New Hampshire Family Photography

My go-to advice is to wear what you feel comfortable in… to a point.

It’s generally best to avoid clothing with logos or texts on them. When it comes to colors you want to lean towards coordinating. If this sounds confusing or overwhelming- fear not!

Once you are booked with me I send you a prep guide with in depth outfit advice and I include a link to Style and Select- a complimentary outfit planning service!

Kids are going to be kids. My advice is to tell them “We are going to go play at the [insert location]!”. Frame this as a fun day playing and not a “be on your best behavior” kind of thing.

That said, tantrums happen and I build extra time into all of my sessions to accommodate that. We will take breaks, play games, and follow your child’s lead to help them feel secure and calm- leading to beautiful photos.

This is where we can really get creative! If you have a favorite park or beach that you visit every year, then I would encourage you to select that location for your session to give an added layer or meaning.

That said, if you don’t have a place that jumps to mind I am more than happy to do location scouting and give you some ideas!

Here are a couple of blog posts listing a few places I have loved shooting family sessions:

• An in-home family session

• Fave location in Haverhill, MA

• Fave location in Burlington, MA

To be perfectly honest- I have had some wonderful rainy day sessions. But I understand that not everyone wants to get drenched for their photos.

If the weather doesn’t cooperate or if someone in your family isn’t feeling well I have plenty of flexibility in my schedule and am happy to move your session to another day.

This question has two different answers:

What time of day should you book your photos- The BEST lighting generally occurs one hour after the sun rises or one hour before the sun sets. Now, I know that in the summer this timing does not work well with bedtime routines. I encourage you to try to make it work but if you absolutely cannot- that’s okay. Photographs can be taken anytime of day, just be aware that a full sun session will look a little different than an overcast session or a golden hour session.

What day/season should you book your photos- This one is completely up to you! Just keep the weather in mind (for example a beach session in December will be cold and maybe not a great idea). My only advice is to book as soon as you have a plan to ensure you’re able to get onto my calendar. Also, if you need these photos for a specific reason (Christmas cards, birthday gifts, etc) plan to have your shoot AT LEAST six weeks prior to that date you need the photos by. This gives me time to edit and deliver your images and gives you time to order whatever products you’d like.

This depends on a lot of factors. If there is only one child then I often finish a session in about 45 minutes. However, for additional children or if we need to pause to give your little one a break, it will obviously take longer. I block off a three hour period of time for all of my sessions but would say on average sessions take around an hour to an hour and a half.

Uhhh PLEASE DO! I love dogs and am happy to include them in your session! Bring plenty of treats to help bribe them into sitting properly.

That being said, it is often a good idea to have an extra person join us or have a plan for where to put your fluffy friend unless you want them in every shot.

This blog post was written about including dogs in newborn photos- but still includes tips that can be helpful during family sessions too! Click here to read it

I photograph families all throughout Southern New Hampshire and northern Massachusetts, including Plaistow, Salem, Windham, Hampstead, Atkinson, Derry, Exeter, Haverhill, North Andover, Amesbury, and surrounding communities.

If you live outside of this area I am more than happy to photograph your family! Just keep in mind that there is a $50 travel fee for sessions greater than 30 miles from my home in Plaistow, NH.