Dear mum,
It is photoshoot day and everything feels heightened, the kids are moody and don’t want to cooperate, your husband is grumbling and you look in the mirror and think well today, I just feel like I look like crap.
Mum, I know how you are feeling, I have been there, I know first hand what it is like as a mum of 2 who struggles seeing the best in myself, and honestly this is ok, in no way is it going to make your photoshoot worse, in fact it may make it even more real.
Sometimes in these heightened moments we are able to pull off the masks and allow our true selves to shine through, and honestly mumma you want the real you showing in the photos; the mum who is the strength of her family, the mum who is soft and comforting, the mum who melts away all tears. This is what we want to capture, not the forced smiles.
To make things a little easier for you, here are some of my top tips for photo day.
Firstly I want you to see yourself deeply, not just what you look like, I want you to remember all the wonderful things you do for your children everyday, I want you to clothe yourself in strength and dignity and kindness. Your makeup and outfit are important but what matters more is how you speak to yourself, this will make you feel beautiful.
The night before choose your outfit don’t just choose one, choose 2 and then the next day put the one on that makes you feel beautiful. I want you to do the same for your children, choose 2 outfits and let them pick one the next day. The outfits don’t need to match, you can wear patterns if you like that and pull a colour out of it that you can design the rest of your outfits from. ( I can also guide you I am only a video call away)
Snacks! Prepare yummy snacks for your kids, I recommend getting it ready the night before. I never like to rush your photoshoot so if we need to have a snack break that is totally ok. I get it, I get the hangrys too! And bring that back up second outfit for your kids just incase.
Bring a comfort toy! Something your baby/toddler can cuddle when emotions bottle over and don’t worry about a meltdown, I am not worried, I get to photograph you bringing everything back together like you do for your kids all the time, cuddle photos are honestly the best.
Your husband, now I know he has been grumbling all morning that he has to have a photoshoot. But do not worry too much, choose his outfit so he doesn’t have to, and then just let him turn up just as he is, it won’t take long for him to realise that this is actually fun! He gets time with his family, he gets to be silly beans and play with his children but now he doesn’t need to worry about doing any housework. WIN WIN. I love working with dads! They are seriously so much fun, so I am not at all worried about him not enjoying himself, 9 out of 10 times the dads have the most fun.
Now for yourself mum, bring yourself love and grace, come knowing I have your back and you don’t need to manage your family during this photoshoot, just enjoy them. I am more concerned about capturing what is real then what is forced and you are going to love that more in the years to come. Also bring a hairbrush, some lippy and all of your beautiful love.
With love,
Megan
