What To Expect – Extended Family Photos
You did it! You finally got your ENTIRE family to commit to being in one place, at one time. This moment needs to be documented!
You’ve got the dates everyone will be here, and you know you want a photo with everyone in it. But how does this work? What should you expect during an extended family photo session?
How do you schedule extended family photos?
Extended family sessions can be tricky to schedule, since your family is typically only available for a short window of time. I recommend reaching out to me using my contact form – let me know the dates you’re interested in, as well as the number of people (please include number of adults and number of kids).
Holidays are always a great time to get the family together! But…they’re also a great time for me to spend with my own family. 😉 While I do occasionally schedule extended family sessions over Thanksgiving/4th of July/Labor Day/Memorial Day weekend, those are typically booked 6-12 months in advance, and sessions over Thanksgiving break require an additional charge for the holiday weekend.
I do not schedule ANY extended family sessions between Dec 19th and Dec 28th. I occasionally schedule extended family sessions between Dec 29-Jan 5, but only in Cheyenne, and typically only for returning clients.
Summer and fall weekends are also a great time for these sessions, but know that my Fridays and Saturdays are typically all booked by the end of May. So get in touch ASAP!
What does your session include?
Every year, I get quite a few inquiries for extended family photos. And not surprisingly, “one size fits all” is not a term that applies to these sessions. I’ve had inquiries from families of six, all the way up to 40+ family members! My Full and Deluxe Family Sessions include pricing for extended family photo sessions up to 20 people, but
All of my extended family sessions do include all the final images from your session in an online gallery (perfect for sharing with your family), unlimited downloads, and help putting together a list of family groupings, prior to the session day. My Full Family Sessions currently include a print credit (only one credit per gallery, not per family attending), and my Deluxe Family Sessions include a print credit as well as an album.
Your gallery can be shared with everyone attending, as well as family (or friends) who may want to view or download. Downloads are unlimited, but I do ask that you back your images up, as I only guarantee online gallery access for up to one year from your session date. The gallery includes an online shop, where you can purchased professionally printed canvases, wall art, and prints, but you are also welcome to download your images and print them at your favorite printing establishment.
What to expect during your session
Despite everyone’s best efforts, extended family sessions can be chaos! Small children, various personalities and family dynamics, the pressure to Make Things Perfect…but guess what?? That’s why you’ve hired a professional.
One of the best ways to combat the stress of photo day? Be prepared!
And one of the best ways to be prepared? By putting together a list of needed family photos prior to photo day.
Before your session, I will ask for a list of all the people in your family, along with their relationships to each other. Let’s pretend Ashley inquired about extended family photos. This would be an example of a list I would need from her:
- Mark and Diane (parents)
- Ken and Ashley, Tyler, Kyle
- Bert (my brother) and Sophia, Arthur
- Ben and Erica (my sister), Emilie, Olivia, Charlotte
- Joe (my brother)
If you have blended families, or a family situation that may need to be noted, please let me know (aka “Ben is Erica’s boyfriend”). That allows us to have the delicate conversations prior to photo day, rather than whispered off to the side (Would you like Ben in all the photos? Does Erica want a photo of Ben with her kids?).
Once I have this list, I will send over a draft list of family groupings. You will be able to add/remove groupings, based on your family’s preferences.
My rough draft of photos might look something like this:
- Entire group
- Grandparents with grandkids
- All grandkids
- Family 1 (whole family, kids together, kids solo, parents)
- Family 2 (whole family, etc)
- Family 3
- Parents with adult children
- Adult children together
I may add/remove groupings depending on the family that is attending. For example, if great-grandma is attending, I will make sure to have photos of great-grandma with all the great-grandkids.
IMPORTANT NOTE: I do ask that you temper expectations for any groupings involving kids under 5 – attention spans are limited, and in a lot of these sessions, they’re meeting family members they don’t know very well. They may not be up for a dozen combination of grandkid photos!
How to prepare for your extended family photo session
Ready to get on the calendar and get your session planned?
Choosing A Location
During the scheduling process, I will ask if you have any preferences on location. Not sure? Totally fine! I’m here to help figure out the best spot for your family photos.
If you’re located near Cheyenne, I have a list of my favorite locations for family photos. For groups of 10 or less, almost any of these locations will be fine, assuming you don’t have anyone with mobility issues. For groups of 15+ (and definitely 20+), I strongly recommend choosing a location that is easy to find, and accessible to all ages.
Lions Park/Cheyenne Botanic Gardens is one of my go-to spots, especially for families with young kids or older relatives who may not enjoy a long walk or uneven ground.
Do you have a home that is large enough for the whole group? Or a backyard/front porch with some shade at some point in the day? I LOVE extended family sessions at home – not only do we not need to worry about the weather, we also have snacks/water/bathrooms!
Deciding On A Start Time
I typically schedule my family sessions to start roughly 1.5-2 hours before sunset, for best light. But that’s not always a workable start time for families with young kids – especially if you have kids who are adjusting to a time change!
If you have small children (kids under 6, or kids who are particular about bedtime), please let me know if they’ll be traveling from a different time zone, especially if they haven’t had time to adjust. Let me know if there are non-negotiable nap times or dinner times. Midday outdoor sessions (roughly 11 am – 3pm) won’t work for me, as it’s too bright outside, both for my camera and your eyes.
While I can’t promise we can avoid ALL these things, we can do our best to find a time that will make sure we have happy kids and manageable amounts of light!
Plan on roughly 1.5-2 hours for your session, depending on how many people are attending.
What To Bring To The Session
I recommend bringing the following to an extended family session:
- Chair(s). If you have someone who cannot stand for long periods of time, I recommend bringing a chair they can use to rest in while they’re watching the session. Sturdy camp chairs work great for this purpose, and can be carted around for Grandma so she can watch the grandkids play, without being stuck on a bench 20 yards away from the action.
- Water. There will be a child who demands a drink, just as we’re getting started!
- Snacks. As mentioned above, for large families these sessions can take 90+ minutes. That’s a lot of time for little people with big appetites. Feel free to have families bring snacks (veggies without dip, non-staining fruit, crackers, meat sticks, cheese). Heck, I’ve even had families bring a folding table with a full picnic setup!
- Diapers/Travel Potty. If you have potty training kids (or kids who need to frequently go), I recommend bringing a travel potty that can hang out in the back of a car until it’s needed. Most of my locations don’t have great bathroom access.
What To Wear
I have an entire blog post dedicated to “What To Wear For Your Extended Family Session“!
Tips for Your Family
A few quick tips to help your session go smoothly:
- Remind your family to be on time. If you need to tell “the late one” that the session starts 15 minutes earlier than it actually does, go for it!
- I don’t start sessions until everyone has arrived. I know – I could totally get some photos of the Jones Family while we wait. But I’ve found that spreading out photos like that makes the session feel like it’s dragging on foreverrrrr, and kids have a VERY limited attention span for me.
- Let them know – we will have fun, I promise! Family photos can be hard. They’re long, everyone is tired. But I’ve been doing this for 10+ years now, and have a system for most things that can come up. We’ll get this done as fast as we possibly can!
FAQs
What happens if the weather is bad? What if someone can’t make it until another day?
While I will do my absolute best to make sure your session happens, unfortunately I can’t set aside multiple nights for every session, unless I’m paid extra (and if this is something you’re interested in, let me know!). If the weather looks awful, we’ll attempt to reschedule for morning. If someone can’t make it, you’re welcome to ask about a different date.
We only need one photo of the whole group. Would you be willing to do that?
I am willing to do that, but I will still need to charge you the full price of the session. And at that point, you may as well just go for all the photos!
Why do I charge full price for one or two photos? Even if I’m only taking “one” photo, I’m still setting aside an evening for your family that could have been set aside for another family who wanted a full priced session.
Can we bring our dogs?
While I’m normally all about dogs in family and newborn photo sessions, I hesitate to say yes to dogs for extended family sessions.
Dogs are basically a giant toddler, one that is less likely to look at the camera when needed. And if you’re already wrangling several human toddlers, adding a canine chaos monster to the mix can ramp things up even more.
But if your extended family session is all adults? Or mostly adults and a couple chill kids? Sure! Let me know ahead of time so I can make sure we schedule your session for a dog-friendly location. And follow my tips for bringing your dog to your family session!
Examples from real life gallery
The following images are from a recent extended family session. As you can see, I try and provide a variety of images, both posed and candid, during each extended family session. Even if you’ve already had recent family photos taken, it’s good to have them taken again – a photo album of the extended session can be a great gift for your mom/grandma!
More Info
Have questions? Or looking to book your own extended family session? Contact me here! I am willing to travel, so don’t hesitate to get in touch if you don’t live in Wyoming.
