Why I Don’t Want Your Kids to Sit Still for Family Photos

If you’re coming into a family session already stressed that your kids won’t sit still, won’t smile on cue, or might be a little feral… please don’t!

I actually don’t want them to sit still.

Some of my favorite photos happen when kids are moving, being goofy, running off, climbing all over dad, asking for snacks, getting distracted, or doing literally anything except standing perfectly in one spot smiling at me.

That’s usually when they stop thinking about the camera and start acting like themselves.

I’m not trying to get through a checklist of poses or make your kids perform for me. I’d much rather give them something to do, let them play, get everyone moving, and see what happens from there.

And don’t worry, I’m still going to guide you. I’m not going to drop you on a beach and say “okay, act natural!” and then just stand there! I’ll give you prompts, move you around, help when something feels awkward, and step in when I need to.

But I also don’t want your whole session to turn into an hour of:

“Look at the camera.”
“Smile.”
“Stand still.”
“Stop doing that.”
“Please cooperate.”

Because honestly, that is exhausting for everyone.

If your kids are getting a little wild, that’s okay. If they want to run, we’ll use it. If they want to splash in the water, even better. If someone needs a snack or a reset, we take one.

Kids usually give me so much more when they’re allowed to loosen up and just be kids.

And yes, I’ll still grab a few looking-at-the-camera photos because I know grandma wants one 😆

But those usually aren’t the photos I’m most excited about.

I want your gallery to actually feel like your family. Not some weird, perfectly behaved version of your family that only existed for 45 minutes because a camera was there.

If your kids are a little wild and you’re into photos that actually feel like your family, we’ll probably be a good fit 😆 You can check out session details here.

Bring all the chaos!