Photoshoots that take place at home are an awesome idea on many levels. One’s house is a place of comfort, an escape from the "toils” of the outside world, a home for our pets, and a place of personal expression. For all of these reasons, one’s personal dwelling makes for an excellent location choice for a photoshoot. Regardless of the photographic genre - wedding, engagement, maternity, newborn, family, or content imagery - photographs taken at home are unique. This week, we are discussing five tips to keep in mind for family portrait sessions that occur at home.
1 — TIME — 1
Given the nature of photoshoots at home, we recommend starting out with a 90-minute session for family sessions. This will allow for enough time to capture photos both outside and inside the house. In many situations, I may also opt to move furniture or items on tops of tables around to avoid clutter and/or to ensure a nice colour scheme in the shot. If you have a large group of people, a 2 Hour session may also be recommended. This is to ensure that you also have time to take individual family photos alongside the big group family shots. If you’re opting for a photoshoot with 2 nearby locations and one of them is your house, a 2-Hour Session is highly recommended.
2 — HEARTH — 2
Consider having your picture taken in the room intended for gatherings. Why do I emphasize the word “intended”? How many of us having gorgeous living rooms with carefully thought out interior design but spend most of the time in the TV room? Chances are good that the room in your house that is intended for family time has a more artistically pleasing “look” to it. This room may also be a kitchen or the parlour - as my Aunt Mary would say.
3 — TEXTURE, PATTERN, & COLOUR — 3
A big question I get as a photographer has to do with textures, patterns, and colours. When selecting outfits for a large family or group photoshoot, you may want to go with a common colour. For example, if folks in the pictures had blue in their outfits. Consider the main colours that are in and around your home. Now consider the colour of the outfit you and others will be wearing during the shoot. Be sure to avoid clashing patterns, like two different plaids. Chances are good the two different patterns will not look great together when placed side-by-side. You may find interesting texture throughout the outfits but also look for texture on surfaces, such as walls or furniture.
4 — GARDEN — 4
If you know me personally, you know that I love to “tinker” in the garden. Gardens have a tendency to evoke poetic moments among families. When taking photographs in a garden, I strive to capture both candid moments as well as traditional portraits. If your garden has a particular colour scheme, consider how your outfit may look with that colour. If you do not have a personal garden, allow time to capture images outside around the house.
5 — GOLDEN HOUR LIGHT — 5
One of the best times of day to capture your photo shoot is during the golden hour. This timeframe refers to the first two hours after sunrise and the two hours before sunset. The golden hour provides light that is soft, which creates a flattering effect on skin tones. If you’re not able to schedule your photo session during this time, consider shooting indoors and/or finding shade.
Do you have any tips you’d like to submit? Or are you interested in booking a session? If so, feel free to reach out:
