|
You’ve seen great family
portraits before. You walk into a friend’s living room
and your eye is drawn to the happy family over the mantel. The
portrait is light-filled; the family is smiling and well groomed,
and their individual personalities are shining through. The
children even look well behaved. It almost makes you ready to
take the plunge and get a family portrait of your own.
Almost.
But you have those nagging
doubts. How do I find a good photographer? What about the cost?
How do I get my family looking good all at once? Will my evil
eye and motherly threats be enough to keep my kids smiling the
whole time? Is it possible to have a family portrait taken without
a nasty headache on Mom’s part?
The answer is "yes,"
with a few tips from the experts. Wendy Allred (Silverdale
1st Ward, Silverdale, Washington Stake, USA), owns Sparrow
Portraits along with her husband Rick. She agreed to give
us the lowdown.
Do Your Homework
One thing you really need
for a great family portrait is a great photographer. But that
might mean different things to different families. If you’re
looking for a portrait for your old English library, you want
traditional and formal. If your second home is a tent in the
mountains, then you'll want something more casual and outdoorsy.
And if you're the mom with red toenails and kitten heels, you
might want a gallery wall of contemporary black and whites.
The trick is to find the photographer that matches your style.
“Check websites, studios,
[and] interview the photographer and/or staff,” Wendy said.
“If you look at a photographer's website or album in a
studio, you'll find somewhat of a style. Don't invest the money
if you don't like the style.”
Style isn't the only thing
to consider, however, cost can also play a large factor to deciding
which photographer to use.
 “I've
heard more than once from people who have decided to do the
photography themselves and wished they'd spent the money. Obviously
you're not going to spend money every year on portraits, this
is something you're going to invest in every few years. In between
times, go to places like JC Penney, or The Picture People,”
Wendy said. "It comes down to a difference in quality.
I would rather invest in portraits than spend the money on school
‘mug’ shots. I personally feel this kind of photography
is a waste of money. I do school portraits and would never even
consider doing mug shots, when other photography companies will
put a person on a camera that's been trained for two weeks!”
To further build value into
your investment, Wendy suggests building a relationship with
your photographer, “just like you would a dentist! You're
spending enough money, that you don't want a total stranger
photographing your family.”
Next on your photographer
checklist: experience.
“If you want your
family to be captured in their personality, you really need
a professional to do this,” Wendy stressed. “It's
very important that you choose a photographer who is experienced
with children. This includes teenagers! Don't be afraid to ask
how experienced the photographer is. I've been photographing
children since 1976, and with this kind of experience I rarely
miss with families.”
Dress the Part
As far as clothing style
goes, the JC
Penney Portrait Studio lists tips for selecting your clothing.
They emphasize choosing simple clothing in solid colors, necklines
that flatter, such as v-necks or turtlenecks, as well as long
sleeves to keep the attention focused on the face rather than
the arms.
“I personally love bright
colors for portraits, red being my favorite," Wendy said.
"Although navy, burgundy and colors like that work well.”
Some professionals, however,
like Kelli France, of France
Photography, prefer more neutral clothes.
"It's nice when families
choose to wear white shirts and khakis or black shirts and jeans,"
Kelli said. "When you use neutrals, you focus more on the
people and their faces, then their clothing. Neutral solids
also help to not date a picture to a particular time period."
And what about color coordination?
Do you need to go buy your family matching outfits?
“You don't have to all
be in the same color, just the same intensities," Wendy
said. "For instance, I would put navy with burgundy or
red, but wouldn't put burgundy with red.”
A great tip for making
sure your clothes coordinate for the picture: “ Lay out
each family member’s clothing choices on the bed. If an
outfit catches your eye, it needs to be replaced,” Wendy
suggests.
 Relax
You’ve found a great
photographer, you’ve coordinated everyone’s clothes,
but now you’re just worried about how they’ll act
for the camera. You may be surprised to find out who the biggest
photo session troublemaker is.
“Moms can be the toughest
I can say this because I'm a Mom. We tend to stress out during
picture time,” Wendy admits.
To offset this maternal stress,
Allred often suggests doing portraits in the home, or a casual
session outdoors in a park.
“The stress level on
mom goes way down. If mom can be casual and not too uptight
about the two year old, or the 22 year old for that matter,
you're going to get a good portrait.”
One way to do this is to
take a few minutes prior to the session and listen to soft music
and relax.
"I always suggest to
my clients that they listen to relaxing music on the way to
my studio or the location we choose to shoot," Kelli said.
"I think this time out can help them from stressing out
and then the pictures will be better."
So, Mom has to relax, and
then…relinquish control. It sounds hard, but photographers
say they take better portraits when they are allowed to do their
jobs.
“If the parents can
put their trust in the photographer's ability to do his/her
job, that is the best,” Wendy said. “One of my best
recommendations to parents is to just let the photographer do
his/her thing and not say anything at all to the children. The
best portraits I have taken, I must admit, have been taken when
no parents are around. If you just stand and watch and help
when asked, I guarantee you'll get a good portrait of your child.”
Wendy has one last surprising
secret:
“Listen to what the
photographer says. I think parents would be surprised to realize
that they never tell a child to smile! You always get that pasted
on smile that's usually not the best.”
So we can all just forget
about saying “cheese” and enjoy the beautiful results.
|
