No matter how much you plan for a photo session with small children (or anyone, for that matter), you just never know exactly where that session will go, and you can never predict exactly what kind of photos you'll get. Since I'd consider myself more of a lifestyle photographer than a traditional photographer, that kind of unknown doesn't really bother me.
Erin was the winner of my photo session giveaway, and she brought her boys, Jake, four, and Grady, two, plus their dog, Buddha, for our session. When I asked Erin where she wanted to shoot, she told me that her boys love tractors. If you're from around here, you know tractors aren't hard to come by. And luckily, I have some really awesome friends who were willing to give us access to tractors - and a whole farm, in fact.
When we got to the farm, Jake had on bright orange boots. His mom had picked out other shoes for the session, but Jake chose to wear the boots instead. He must have known exactly what he was doing, because those boots were PERFECT for photos! And later, Jake and Grady insisted on checking out a dump truck on the farm. The photos from the truck turned out to be some of my favorite, even though I never would have thought to shoot there. That's why I named this post "Just Follow Their Lead" - often, the best photos come from just letting kids be kids and letting them take control of the session (and the wardrobe).
I knew Erin would be awesome to work with from the minute I spoke to her on the phone. She was so laid-back and her optimism is contagious. Her boys were just like her - lots of fun and so sweet. Buddha had the best time of all, though, running all over the farm and hanging out with the horses - what a great dog!
I loved so many of the photos from this session (and it was my first with my new camera), so here's a slightly longer than normal sneak peek:
I love how this one makes Grady look so tiny (and notice Buddha on the ground):
This was at the end of the session - I had to post it because it looks like both Buddha and Grady had passed out:
Thanks for an awesome session!
-Heather Maynard, Athens, Georgia lifestyle, family, children's, pet, portrait photographer