This one’s for all the mom-tographers out there: if you haven’t tried trading sessions, you should! And to be clear, I use the term mom-tographer with total respect. I was one for a long time before opening my photography business, and I’m still one in my off hours. Moms wanting great images of their kids are single-handedly responsible for a lot of the progress in photography equipment becoming more accessible, so go us! However (you had to know there was a “but” coming), being the primary photography in our families comes at a price. It leaves us chronically out of the picture. Literally.
So here’s my best Mom Tip: Find a way to get IN the pictures in between professional sessions! You will be so glad you did, and your kids will also likely treasure them when they are older.
Trading sessions with another mom is just one way to do this. It’s also one of the most fun ways I’ve found, too. This year I turned to a photography forum to see if anyone was interested in exchanging portrait sessions, and long story short I met an amazing mom and photographer, Alex. And it seemed kind of meant to be when we found out that our older sons’ birthdays were days apart, and our younger sons were about two weeks apart. Apparently we’d been on very similar paths these last four-plus years!
The cherry on top was that Alex used to own a horse farm, and as a friend of the current owner she still has access. The whole property was full of gorgeous spots for photographs. The only challenge was fitting in as many different spots as we could before the light was gone. Well, that and the delightful natural stubbornness of a 4-year-old and an 18-month old. But as mom-tographers, we were both well equipped to handle that.
Here are some of my favorites from the session, of her family and mine. So moms… make a playdate with a friend who also likes photography, and GET IN some of the pictures! And if you’re not ready to try trading sessions, check out these good, succinct tips for self-portraits. But whatever you do, make sure you get in the picture. You’ll treasure them, trust me.
And as Rob (my hubby) said to Joe (Alex’s) as we parted ways… “I have a feeling I’ll be seeing you again.” Yep.