12 things to consider when choosing your Family Photographer
You may be looking to book a family portrait photographer or have already done so - fabulous!
You have decided it’s time to capture those important moments of your families generation and there is no better time then now.
It’s important that you find the right photographer for you and your family to ensure that the time you spend preparing prior and during your photoshoot is well worth the time, effort and money.
So, what are those critical factors that will help you to find the right photographer to suit your needs?
Here are some things to consider when choosing your family portrait photographer…
1. The Mood - Formal, Classic & Natural
When you are choosing a family photographer one of the decisions that you’ll need to make early on is whether you would like a classic or natural looking portrait.
You might remember having family photos as a child at either Pixi Foto or Portrait Place in Myer. You would walk in, sit down, be formally posed and the photo shoot was over in no more than 10 minutes. These portraits were classed as a formal portrait where the photographers did not need a lot of experience and the setups were repeatable so most of the portraits looked similar.
Today, there are a wide variety of family photographers with all ranges of experience. A photographer who is a master portrait photographer will be able to capture all the moods within one photo shoot and this will include formal, classic, natural and candid shots to give you a wide variety of options.
2. A member of the AIPP and award winning
The AIPP (Australian Institute of professional photographers) is the peak industry body for photography and videography across Australia. Photographers part of the AIPP have to go through a qualification process to be accepted meaning that it gives you piece of mind knowing they are qualified.
If you can also source an award winning AIPP photographer then you will know you are in very capable hands. Any AIPP photographer who has won awards at state or national level will be a high class photographer.
Between our team of Zest photographers we have two AIPP Masters and have been awarded over 50 industry awards including 4 golds.
3. Style
What kind of photography do you like?
Ultimately this is the most important question to ask when considering which family portrait photographer will be right for you. If you are drawn to a certain style of photography than finding a photographer who specialises in this style is integral.
If you are not sure what style you would like, we recommend spending an evening looking through Pinterest and googling family photographers in Perth. You will find lots of different styles of photography and once you’ve found something you like you can search for photographers who create the same style and quality of work.
You will see from the images below that Zest Photography style is elegant, classic, natural and artistic.
4. Past Customer = Raving Fans!
Out of all the advice you will get about how to choose a family photographer that is right for you, this is without the doubt the most important one.
Any photographer can show awards, beautiful photography galleries and great looking websites which is valuable, however, knowing what other customers experiences have been will give you a great idea on what you will achieve by going through a family photography experience.
Check out past customer reviews of your photographer and ask to see what past customers have said. You want to make sure that once you read the reviews, you can clearly see that your photographer has raving fans!
Generally you will either be able to look at their google reviews or your photographer may have some stories on their website.
Here are examples:
5. Facilities for your Family
Your family’s comfort and experience is important, and this should be something to consider when asking your photographer what facilities they have available for you.
Toilets
Changing rooms
Change tables for newborn shoots
Disable access
Toys for young children
Ample parking
Coffee and tea facilities during the shoot
Spacious rooms
Air conditioning/Heating
Cinematic viewing facilities
Makeup areas
A home studio or outdoor shoot may not be able to accommodate you at those times of need so finding out before your shoot is important.
6. Experienced photographing 250+ Families
Whether you have a newborn baby, a toddler, primary school children, teenagers or adult children, specific family photography experience will be required to bring out the very best in your family and kids.
Make sure your family photographer has photographed well over 250+ family photo shoots in their career as a minimum.
A big bonus is knowing your family photographer has a professional team behind them to help assist you prepare, plan and have a fabulous experience for your photoshoot.
Is the photographer a sole operator or are you going to a professional studio with a dedicated team to guide you through your whole experience. Knowing your photographer has a whole team of experienced people is something to assure you that you are getting the very best for your family shoot, with years of experience behind them.
Another thing to consider is Profession vs Hobbyist - is this a full-time occupation or something they do on the weekends for a hobby and are they accredited with the Australian Institute of Professional Photography (AIPP).
There will be a big difference between the skillset and experience level of a professional that lives and breathes photographing families everyday.
When considering a photographer, be sure to ask them about who will be there on the day and find out about their personalities and learn a bit about the people that will be taking you through this experience with your family.
A great place to find this information is on a photographer’s website.
7. Time
The number one reason preventing families from having their family photography is time or lack thereof.
Finding out how long your session will go for and what is included in that time is a good way of making sure you get the right photographer for you.
Life is busy and finding a family photographer who can accomodate you is important. Here are a few questions to ask:
Are they available weekdays and weekends?
How long will the session take?
Is there time during the shoot if children need a rest?
Do you get to see everything on the same day or do you need to try and find time to go back and view on a separate day?
Knowing whether this is an all-in-one session will be something to consider for those family’s pressed for time.
8. Photo Gallery - Website, Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest.
Choosing a family photographer with an extensive photo gallery on their website, facebook page, instagram page and pinterest page will help decide if they are the right fit for you.
Loving and following their socials will help you get ideas for your shoot. Choosing a photographer or studio with a wide variety of work will help you to see their style and get a good idea of their experience.
A professional family photographer with years of experience will have an extensive range of photos to show whereas someone who is just starting out in the industry will be limited with variety of pictures over their socials.
9. Digitals vs Artwork
Are you looking for a photographer who specialises in creating photos worthy for your walls at home and has experienced staff to assist you in putting together your final artwork and designs.
Or are you looking for a photographer who specialises in photographing for social media and only works with digitals.
There is a big difference in the quality of who you choose.
Everybody that has a smart phone is photographing for digital photos these days. They are snap shots and generally not photos you would choose for the wall. The quality and style of the photos are not designed to be on the wall.
Whereas, if you were wanted a photo for your wall, you would choose a photo that was outstanding or artistic. A one off style of photo that you love and is a picture you would be proud to hang. This is the difference between how a photographer will photograph for the use digitally and the use as wall art.
Another way to look at it is that your photographer who photographs for displaying artwork is more of an artist than a photographer.
10. Customer Reviews - 100+
In this age of social media, Google, Facebook, word of mouth and other sites are dedicated to helping people find an expert.
You can’t go past checking out your family photographers’ reviews. What to look out for is a photographer who has more than 100+ reviews and clients who are raving fans giving testimonials about their experience with that photographer.
Previous clients will give you the insights to any photographer and can be a useful tool for you to use when choosing your photographer.
Reviews are an authentic and open way to understand what other peoples experiences have been and you will learn the quality of service and product and how the customers needs were over or under met.
You want to make sure that your family photographer has a rating of at least 4.7 stars with 100+ reviews.
You can check out Google reviews, Product Review, Word of Mouth or Facebook to read more reviews.
11. Retouching
Asking if your photographer offers a natural retouching service to all images you are taking home is an important question and if this is included in the service they provide or is an extra cost is very important.
You will find some photographers include basic retouching where you could end up with substandard photos which will not be good enough to display.
12. Cost
Is there hidden cost? Are the prices on the photographers’ website?
Does your photographer have a products page?
Are their payment plans available? Not all photographers have the options of payment plans and different packages for their clients.
Be sure to check whether your photographer has a range of options for you and is open and honest with pricing, so you do not feel pressured when viewing your photos.
We hope these tips will help guide you to find the best photographer for you.
If you are interested in booking a Zest Photography newborn, family or children’s portrait photography experience, call 0862453150 or email us at info@zestphotography.com.au.
