Family Questionnaire

Hi, folks! This questionnaire is to help me learn a little bit about you before your session. Please fill it out to the best of your ability. If you have any questions or concerns, please shoot me an email. This questionnaire is due two weeks before your session. Unfortunately, you cannot save this as you go, so you’ll need to do it all in one jump. It’s best to do it closer to the due date than doing it way ahead of time, just to make sure the info is up-to-date. You can submit the questionnaire after you’ve answered the questions by hitting the “submit” button below. Please note that once you’ve submitted the questionnaire, you cannot go back and edit it, but you can send me an email to adjust! Once submitted, you’ll receive a copy of your answers in an email. Thank you! :)
Who are all the subjects in this photoshoot? If there are children, please list ages of kids.
Is this your home, an Air BnB, or someone else’s home? Are we doing the shoot on location somewhere?
If there are kids at this shoot, their schedule gets priority! PLEASE AVOID TIMES TOO CLOSE TO DINNER OR NAPTIME IF YOUR CHILD IS THE HANGRY OR EXHAUSTED TYPE. This is not for my sake – it is to ensure that your kids and you stay in the best mood possible, which will make it easier for me to give you the best pictures possible. Shoots are 1 hour long, but sometimes they can be closer to 1.5 depending on the activities and moods of the kids. Snack breaks are, of course, encouraged and recommend if your child or you are hangry. If you don’t have a kid, or if you have older kids, my light recommendation is this: if we’re shooting mostly indoors, the best time of day is when your house gets the most light inside, ideally without other light sources. If we’re shooting mostly outdoors, the best time is typically toward the evening, about 2-4 hours before sunset.
Let me know the reason for the shoot, as well as anything you’d especially like me to focus on documenting. If you don’t know the answer to this, just tell me to do what I do, and I will! :)
Activity lists to jump start your brain are located on the frequently asked questions page for both families and couples! Yes, you must answer this question. Yes, you must choose 3 activities to do together. No, an activity isn’t sitting on opposite ends of the couch on your phones. *IF THIS IS A NEWBORN SHOOT WITH NO SIBLINGS: You do not need to choose activities – you will just be busy staying alert and upright and I’ll take care of the rest. *IF THIS IS A NEWBORN SHOOT WITH OLDER SIBLINGS: Choose a couple very easy activities with the older kiddo.
TIPS: Wear something you can move in. You’ll be sitting, bending down, and moving – if you can’t move easily in your clothes or body parts that you don’t want people to see are revealed if you do certain movements, pick something else (pro tip: if you have a little kid who wants to wear a dress, shorts or leggings underneath the dress is usually recommended due to the amount of movement they’ll be doing). Patterns are fine! If you all wear patterns, it will give a more maximalist effect, and if none of you wear patterns, it will be more minimalist. This comes down to your personal preference and whatever you guys want. AVOID any highlighter-esque colors (neon anything, super vibrant solid primary colors). Any color you wear will reflect upon your face and the faces of people next to you, so try to stick to earth tones, jewel tones, or calmer colors as the main color you wear, though accents of bright colors are totally fine. The effect of whatever color you’re wearing changing the color of your skin is more pronounced the paler you are – so little kids who are very pale are especially affected, so really try to steer them away from wearing pink, yellow, orange, etc (although I realize this is sometimes hard or impossible when they want to pick out their outfits and may be a losing battle). Wearing all the same color will make your torsos all look like one giant blob and also might look like a 1992 JC Penny’s ad so watch out for that too. If you’re pale, avoid white or gray. If you need any help, please feel free to email or text!
Sometimes I photograph highly emotional events and someone starts crying. This can be due to not-so-serious reasons (i.e. my subject is 3 years old and they aren’t allowed to watch Paw Patrol for the next 15 minutes), or it can be for very serious reasons (i.e. a terminal illness). Would you like me to continue shooting if someone starts crying, or would you like me to step away for a bit?
Do you have any dogs or cats who will be home during the shoot? Are they participating in the shoot? Are they friendly or do they come with any warnings? Should I avoid doorbells or knocking when I initially get there to avoid spooking any of them? I can text upon arrival if that’s better! If you have a jumping dog – can you please restrain said dog until the jumping subsides? I am very short and easily bowled over by large dogs, so I get afraid of them if they jump. Then they sense my fear and will begin growling and then it’s a whole thing. *PLEASE NOTE: I do not permit dogs (or other animals but let’s face it no one brings their cat to a park) to accompany on-location shoots to parks or other non-home spaces unless the shoot is specifically just you and your dog. It is too much to wrangle when it is a whole family and a dog in a public space regarding leashes, barking, tying up the dog, navigating the irrational fears of grates your dog has, etc.
What do you think would help me better understand your personalities and get better pictures? Feel free to tell me as much or as little as you want… from the incredibly boring to bizarre. :)
Yes you have to answer it. Anything you say can be used against you on the blog. Choose wisely.
Physical and verbal abuse will not be tolerated. Abuse of any type toward children, pets, spouses, or me is grounds for immediate termination of the session and your money will not be returned. This includes persistent rude, belittling, snarky comments as well as bullying behavior, name calling, or undermining the session with aggressive or uncooperative behavior. If your partner does not want to do this session, does not like me, tends to be aggravated with your children or life in general, you should reconsider doing this session. If you have an unpleasant partner, you are responsible for speaking to them about this beforehand and to please ensure that they can at least be pleasant and pretend to enjoy themselves for 1-2 hours. By checking this box, you acknowledge and agree to the above clause, including speaking to your partner to ensure they aren’t a problem. Please note: uncooperative behavior from children is expected; this clause is intended for adults.
I typically send out a lengthy shoot prep email one week prior to the shoot that will go over everything on this questionnaire and tell you what you need to do. I then send out a text one day before your session to confirm again and check on the weather. If you prefer a phone consult instead of these, speak now or forever hold your peace!