Let's talk about shooting a FULL gallery of images in a 15 minute mini session. I know it's not a lot of time, but I have a shooting workflow that keeps me moving forward and on track with what's needed. Trust me, it is possible to shoot Spring & Fall 15 minute minis and still capture all the shots needed!
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The big secret to shooting a full gallery is having a plan. I know that sounds obvious, but I know too many photographers who don't go into the session already knowing what poses they're going to get. I use the same shooting workflow in my sessions and let me tell you – this is how to shoot Spring & Fall 15 minute minis! There's definitely variation depending on the age of the kids or the size of the family, etc. I can actually get all my shots in 7 minutes if everyone is cooperating. The rest of the time is for interacting or dealing with a child who doesn't want to cooperate!
I start with the whole family to get everyone comfortable. Next, I have dad come behind me and it's just mom and the kids. Then we swap and do just dad and the kids! Next, it's just the kids. The reason I flow this way is for the least amount of movement possible. It's the easiest way to capture all the must have shots needed in this short amount of time. After getting a shot of all the kids I do individuals – which is a huge incentive for clients to buy the full gallery. If they are going to buy one photo of their child they will end up buying all the individuals.
Lastly, I do another full family shot and it's for a few reasons. One, it allows me to choose the best full group photo and two if I need to use it for face swaps or backups I have it. If you have time at the end that's when you can really bulk up the gallery and do individual shots of each kid with each parent. I love including these because they often get used for Father's day or Mother's day.
Was that fast? Well, that's how to shoot Spring & Fall 15 minute minis! You need a plan, you need to know your poses and be intentional with that workflow. If I can do it, you can do it. I am at the place now where I have all the poses memorized and it's just second nature for a mini session. It takes practice and repetition, but soon you'll have it down to a science. If you need a cheat sheet to help you along check out my podcast “One Thing I Do to Give My Clients the Best Experience“! Now, go have the smoothest mini session workflow yet!
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