My seasonal family photo shoots run throughout the year. A 30 minute mini family photography Dublin session in my local area of Blackrock. My two main outdoor locations are Seapoint at low tide (best in warmer weather when we can wade in the water) and a local garden near Carysfort Park Dublin. If your home & garden is in the local area, I might go there too.
Here is a recent gorgeous mini session with these three young women & a happy baby boy.
(Seasonal mini family photo shoot with baby boy). We waited for the rain to stop & when it didn't we had to seek shelter in a small sheltered stone courtyard with a bench.
These pictures are testament to the fact that you don't need a big space to take memorable family pictures.
In the end, the small courtyard in this garden location worked perfectly because of the intricate brickwork, moss covered stone and traditional tiles. It is important to have an atmospheric backdrop for family pictures with baby.
I love the dark, painterly colors that were the result of the overcast sky and rain.
Cloudy weather can be a wonderful opportunity to capture rich colors.
(In a recent anniversary family session in a Wicklow hotel, I captured similar vibrant colors because of shooting immediately after a rainfall. In Ireland it is so important to be able to use all weather conditions & light to advantage, particularly if the date of an event is set in stone.)
At one stage, I added some hydrangea blooms from the nearby garden. You can see the flower bloom here on the far left corner of the frame that acts as a focal point (below). I am always on the look out for props found naturally in the landscape, home or garden.
It is important to have all three women captured together in the frame, interacting with baby.
When the rain abated, we were able to take pictures of everyone under the trees (below).
As with all my natural family photography Dublin sessions, I will do a mix of classic child & family portraits as well as more candid documentary style pictures. Those are the moments that come up naturally & without any prompting from me!
Candid moments include tucking baby into his pram (below) before we went out into the garden. Also, lots of moments capturing cute, natural interaction with baby boy. I asked the women to pass the baby between them on the bench so as to capture the gesture of hands as they passed him across their laps.
As I have said so many times I particularly love to look out for gesture & particularly hand gesture as it can create emotive compositions. (mentoring with Cara Hodge Photography).
A cute one with baby boy's nose being gently pressed. I love how the women's heads are bent together around baby boy & all their expressions.
However, in between the group pictures, I LOVE to capture individual connection with baby. This is a favorite picture (below) of mum holding her precious little bundle!
I love how his socks are slipping off his feet. Sometimes it's the unexpected, unplanned details that make the cutest baby pictures!
I LOVE the vintage style of these women's dresses. The lace on this woman's dress and the way it draped made for a lovely portrait of her and baby boy as she lifts him up to land a kiss on his cheek.
I have wardrobe tips in my Frequently Asked Questions page. Earth toned colors can work well in an outdoor natural location. Complimentary colors also work well spread across a group of people. On this mini session, the pale blue of the dress and jeans worked well with the pop of red from the long skirt. The vintage, bohemian style with long skirts complimented well.
I love to include color as well as classic black & white photography in my family & baby gallery. The dramatic overcast light along with the shelter from the shady courtyard, create good lighting conditions for a dramatic black & white newborn & baby portrait!
You can notice how baby pops out with his white clothes, as do the pale hydrangea blooms while the rest of the scene is steeped in shadow.
If you love black & white baby photography, it's good to wear black (or dark) and white (or pale) clothes to create dramatic contrasts.
Finally it is good to play around with different compositions & angles. With 30 minutes there is time throughout to play about! Here shooting upwards towards a canopy of trees (below). I try and have a varied mix of faraway & close up portraits and details in my gallery.
And as ever CONNECTION is the most important thing to capture for emotive child & baby photography. Not only with baby but between all the family members & friends. I like to also include adult & couples only portraits in my galleries.
The 30 minute mini family photo shoot Dublin.
The mini family session makes the most of seasonal color throughout the year. (the best season for family photography Dublin? Spring, summer, autumn, winter?)
My favorite seasons are Spring & Autumn in the garden because of the cherry blossom trees in the parks in Spring that frame family portraits so well (Family Photography Dublin. The Spring mini, Spring mini family photo shoot with baby).
The great thing about the Summer mini is it's usually warm enough for babies & newborns to be photographed outside rather than at home only. (Summer Family Photography Dublin. The seasonal mini session). Just bring a blanket to the location and enjoy the sun!
Also the leaf colors in the autumn make the most beautiful, atmospheric backdrops.
The mini family session is also ideal for the run up to Christmas & for making Christmas cards for family & friends.
The mini family photography session is also good for small children, babies & newborns who may have only a sort attention span, if any! (newborn in Phoenix Park).
I do recommend you bringing a blanket to the outdoor session for sitting portraits!
30 minutes is enough time to capture a variety of memorable moments. Since I have half an hour only, I will shoot the more classic family portraits - often all the family together - throughout the mini session. I also make room for the more candid moments!
By keeping the mini at 30 minutes and in my local area, I am able to keep the session costs down. I don't have to travel outside my local area.
Please Contact me for further information about your family session.
Cara x