What actually happens during a 90-minute family session

Ninety minutes sounds like a long time until you are standing in a park with two kids who have decided they are done cooperating. Grace has structured the full family session specifically to work around that reality. Here is how the time actually gets used.

The first fifteen minutes: nobody is photographing yet ¶

Grace arrives at the location before the family and scouts the light one more time. When the family arrives, she puts the camera down and spends the first ten to fifteen minutes just talking. She asks the kids what they are into, what they did that day, whether they have a favorite spot in the park.

This is not small talk. It is the most important part of the session. By the time Grace picks up the camera, the kids have a sense of who she is and the session does not feel like a performance.

The middle hour: working through the combinations ¶

Grace works through a loose sequence of groupings: the whole family together, then the kids alone, then each parent with the kids, then the couple alone if they want it. She does not announce each transition. She moves between them naturally as the energy shifts.

The kids-alone section is usually the most productive part of the session. Without adults in the frame, children tend to interact with each other in ways that are genuinely funny and genuinely tender, sometimes within thirty seconds of each other.

The last fifteen minutes: the unplanned frames ¶

Grace always builds a buffer into the end of a session. Sometimes it is used for a specific shot a parent requested. More often it is used for whatever is happening organically. A kid who has finally relaxed, a sibling moment that appeared out of nowhere, a parent laughing at something the toddler said.

These are often the frames that end up as the cover of the album.

If you are curious about how a session would work for your specific family situation. Different ages, a new baby, a kid who has strong opinions about cameras. The FAQ page covers the most common scenarios, and Grace is always happy to talk through the rest.