Family Photos Behind-the-Scenes

One of my goals in my 40x40 project was to get family photos taken. The last time we had family photos done was in November of 2019, and it was a bit of a disaster. 

November 2019

It was Zoe’s birthday so she was mad about having to have pictures taken on her special day. She hated the sleeves on her outfit (they were 3/4 length, and she wanted them to go to her wrists), so she was tantruming and pouting the whole time, and then she would try to pull her arms into her sleeves all weird-like. She wouldn't do anything the photographer asked her to, so we had to keep pulling her aside to engage in pep talks and bribery. Nicky was in his “shorts only” phase, and Eva was in a “I will never smile, ever” phase. Everyone was grumpy and unreasonable. 

When asked to smile, this is what Eva would give us

At least the older two were cooperating

On top of that, everyone was freezing, so our faces were all red, and the seasons were confused. Were these Fall photos? Were they winter photos? The location couldn't decide.  

Our sweet photographer ended up giving us our money back because she wasn’t happy with the way the photos turned out. She wanted to do a reshoot for us in the spring, but then COVID crept in, and it never happened.

I did have some updated photos taken of just the kids in October 2020 in conjunction with Zoe's baptism, but it's been over three years since Scotty and I stepped into a photo. 

That session was done by my niece, and she was a lot of fun, so my kids were perfectly agreeable and photogenic. 

(Nicky was still in his "shorts only" phase).

Since Eva is going to be baptized soon, this was a great time to do family photos - that way we would not only have updated pictures, but I could sneak in some photos of Eva in her baptism dress. 

Here we are:

April 2023

For the most part, everything went smoothly, and I have no complaints, but as you know, there are always some behind-the-scenes truths with family photos. I love Elder Gary Stevenson's family photo story as seen in this video (begins around 3:30):

(Blogger is refusing to center this video, much to my dismay)

Though our recent session went much better than photo shoots from the past, here are a few truths you can't see:

Truth #1: I had to pay Zoe to wear that shirt because she didn't want to match Daisy. She was the first one to pick her shirt, and I planned the entire color scheme around that shirt, but when Zoe saw that Daisy also had a yellow shirt (a few days later), she went ballistic.

Truth #2: Daisy hasn't worn jeans since she was about three years old, but I made her for these pictures (she acted like she hated them, but now she's wearing them sometimes, and I think she actually likes them). Her biggest complaint was that the jeans made her look like me. 

Truth #3: There were homeless people all around us. 

Truth #4: It was freezing. But not as cold as November 2019. Off scenes, I would stick kids in my jean jacket to try and warm them up.

Truth #5: The only way to get Zoe and Eva to smile was by making fart jokes. 

Truth #6: I had no time to get ready after getting everyone else dressed and presentable, so I threw on some clothes, ran out the door, and put on minimal make-up at stoplights. 

Truth #7: My hair was fake. 

Truth #8: The photographer made Nicky pull his pants down below his butt so they would be long enough to hide his socks). 

Truth #9: I made Nicky wear a pair of Scotty's shoes because I wanted the shoes to be boring. Nicky's shoes are all bright colors. 

Truth #10: Eva insisted on this pose.

It's a relief that they are done, and that they turned out decent. I try to be chill about family photos (and our photographer complimented us on how easy we were to work with, so I'm happy about that) but they're always more stressful than I intend for them to be. We got everything we wanted, though, so I deem this round a success!