Family Frequently Asked Questions

Frequently asked questions about my family sessions

My promise to you is a dedicated and exceptional service from the moment you get in touch to delivery. I will send you a link detailing everything you need to know about how my sessions work, how you can prepare to make the very best of it, and my full product brochure.

Where will our session take place and are you able to come to us for a session outside of London?

I travel to families for all sessions and the session takes place both inside and around your family home, or any specific location that is special to you be it near your home, in Central London or at the beach! We usually shoot some pictures inside the home and some outside and everything is child and family led.
I am based in Teddington in the London Borough of Richmond but I will happily travel further afield to families outside London or wherever you are in the UK.

What kind of pictures will you take at our session?

A whole mix of natural documentary, story-telling images with me connecting and integrating into your day, engaging and playing with your children and also standing back and quietly observing as you do. There will be quite pictures of contemplation and images of high activity and energy - everything is child-led and real.

I will also create beautiful individual portraits of your children, pictures of relationships - between siblings, between you both with your child/ren together and individually, pictures with grandparents if they are present, group family portraits of you all and sometimes even a couple of shots of mum and dad together if they will allow it! These are the only pictures that are a little more directed.

How long will our session be?

I usually come for a morning arriving early and we are finished by lunchtime but it does depend on the age of your children and we can organise an afternoon which is often better for teenage family members, or even a late afternoon into the evening session in the Summer months. With families further afield I sometimes stay the night before the session. You should allow at least 3 hours for your session and often they are longer than that because I like to take time to get great results and to allow for breaks. The idea is that I am integrating into your family day, not directing you, and to do this well, we need unrushed time for me to both integrate into and observe family life. Essentially the day is yours!

Can we include other family members outside of our own immediate family and do you photograph pets?

Yes if you would like to, please include grandparents and nannies or anyone very integral to your day to day family life in the session and yes to pets! I am very happy to photograph all pets from stick insects to horses! I’m not too keen on pet spiders but I will be brave:) If pets are part of your family, they should be there!

What do we need to do to prepare for our Family Session?

There is not much you need to do to prepare for your session. At our pre-session zoom we will have a good chat about your children and family, talk through any specific pictures you are hoping for, and sort all the practicals and logistics. I will also send you some useful tips to prepare for the session to help you and your family to get the very best out of it. This includes advice on clothes, hair, makeup etc and tips to ensure you as parents relax and don’t put pressure on yourselves at the session and specific advice and preparation for different ages of children - e.g. parents with newborns and babies in the first year of life, toddlers, teenagers etc.

What happens if one of us falls ill?

When children get ill, it often happens very suddenly and I understand this. If this happens, we simply re-schedule the session for as soon as possible. Obviously, if you think you or your child/ren are coming down with something I would appreciate as much notice as possible so I can try to book that day with another client.
Obviously, if I come down with something and am not able to attend your session on our arranged day, you can choose to re-schedule the session or have a full refund for your session fee.

What happens if it is raining on the morning of our session?

Unless you are really not happy for me to come and want to postpone, we don’t let the weather stop our family session because we will have plenty of opportunities to get great pictures and some of the best can come during a shower. Nine times out of ten the rain stops anyway and we can get out but with most family sessions we will start at home and then head out. Photographing toddlers and younger children in the rain can make for fabulous pictures so don’t let the rain deter you from the opportunity for pictures that can be both beautiful, characterful, and story-telling. However, if you have had your heart set on getting out for most of the session and we wake up to black skies and torrential rain, of course, we can re-schedule your session.

Will our pictures be in colour or black and white?

Yes all your pictures will be presented to you both in colour and black and white. From there you can choose, with me on hand to guide you, colour or black and white for each print, frame, book image or other display.

Will you bring physical samples from your Family Product Range to our session for us to see and feel?

Yes, I do exactly that and we find a good time to look at these either during a break or nap time or at the end of the session. I can also help with things like looking at your wall space with you and suggest ideas for frames in certain spaces etc.

What happens after the session, how do we choose our finished prints, frames, book or other displays?

After your session, I will personally process, edit and retouch the images and present the results within 2 weeks for you to view and choose from either at a viewing session at my studio or by uploading them to your personal online gallery. We work together either remotely or in-person to select products for you and with me sending you visuals and helping you. I bring samples of my products to your session for you to view and see and I am on hand afterwards to help and guide you as much as you want and need it with a very bespoke service. You can see visuals and prices in my range on the Family Product Range page and I can send you a full brochure of the Range which includes descriptions, more images and sizes.

Is there a minimum spend on ordering product?

No. There is no minimum spend requirement. You can order whatever you wish, though most parents will order a mix of images as traditional glass framed prints or more modern displays, ready-to-frame prints and a family book that will tell the wonderful story of your day in fabulous layouts that capture the spirit of your family and reach the threshold of £1,900 thereby getting the best of both worlds - beautiful physical products and the digital files for their archives. Please ask me for my Family Product Range brochure for more info and prices for products and individual files or the complete set. I offer 10% discount for all complete orders received within 2 weeks of you receiving your results on your gallery.

Do you offer cosmetic retouching and will you airbrush out distracting elements to our images if we desire it? 

Once you have chosen your images, I will happily carry out simple cosmetic retouching, for example to remove hairs, snotty noses! a scratch or bruise, spots or scar, or a distracting object in the background of a shot Please note that all retouching work is made to the images that you finally select as products. Sometimes I am asked to carry out more extensive retouching like the removal of teeth braces, and for this I can send your image off to my retouchers to see if it is possible and the charge for their retouching will be charged at cost.

Do you retain the copyright to the images?

I retain the copyright to the images but if you purchase or qualify for the high-resolution digital files from your session, you will be able to print, copy, share and own the complete set in perpetuity.

Are you insured?

Yes. I have both public liability and professional indemnity insurance.
I ask that a responsible adult is with me and the children at all times during our session.

If there’s a question you have that I haven’t answered here, please call me or drop me a line or send me a message via the enquiry link below and I will send you all the info you need - info, pricing, tips for preparing for your session and my full family product range brochure.