Real Families, Family Photography

I do love family photography,especially the more natural type that I like to feature here on the blog. There is something so free and easy about photos of children playing in their natural environment and todays family shoot is a wonderful example of just that! Photos of posed families taken in studios are all well and good but photos of families out in their natural environment, whether that is at home or out and about playing and having fun are so much better. These sorts of photos really bring out the personalities of the children and act as lasting memories of how those children really are. I’d like to say a big thank you to Helen from Schryver Photo for this gorgeous collection of photos.

Here’s Helen to tell you more about the shoot……..

This fun family photo shoot with Jude, Lucie and George took place on the beach at Whitstable, Kent, before school on a blustery July morning. I pretty much always shoot outdoors – it’s so much more fun for all involved! The more relaxed and free the children are, the easier it is to capture their genuine expressions and unique personalities. For me it’s all in the details – the wind blowing their hair across their face, the way they throw their head back when they laugh, the mischievous grin as they splash in the sea and soak their new shoes, and the way they gently hold a sibling’s hand in theirs…..These are the things that are so easily forgotten as our children grow, and so the little details and genuine moments have become the focus of my photography, as opposed to countless posed shots complete with forced grins!

Whitstable is a favourite location of mine – there’s so much variety and I’m a sucker for the multi-colours of a beach hut or two! I work all over Kent and London, and occasionally further afield. I have my favourite spots for family sessions but also love it when a client asks me to shoot somewhere new.

Here’s what mum Michelle had to say about the experience of the shoot and the finished results:

“I instantly loved Helen when I met her, then when I saw examples of her work I knew I wanted a bit of her camera action… as soon as possible! I couldn’t even wait for two of the boys in our brood to get home from their boarding school commitments (they are choristers at Canterbury Cathedral); I just booked a shoot for the other three. Helen suggested an early morning beach shoot: ‘Let’s meet at 7am on Whitstable beach.’

Seven a.m. ON A SCHOOL DAY, Imagine THAT!!?! Crazed? HELL, YEAH! Who gets to have a good time BEFORE school? Sounded fun to me.

We were hoping for a moody sunrise. We got clouds. And wind. And fresh air, and waves, and laughter, and energy. And we made some precious ‘before school’ memories. Helen was so brilliant with the children; they had fun. In fact, we all had fun. (And the children even got to school on time.)
More importantly, the photographs are even better than we’d hoped they would be – we were so happy that I’ve booked another shoot with Helen at the end of the summer, for all five of the children this time. (I might even be brave enough to step in front of the lens myself!) I have a feeling Helen is going to be hard to pin down so I thought I ought to get in quick.

Update to follow after session 2…