Fall Portraits | Okotoks Family Photographer
These are some of my favourite portraits of my girl that I have ever taken. And, that is saying a lot because I literally have thousands to choose from. We took these last fall right outside our backdoor. She wore a suit that my father gave my mother back in the 60’s. He bought it while on a work trip in Montreal.
It is fall portrait season in Calgary and that means that I will be asked a lot of questions about how to get the best portraits for your own family this fall. Here are the most important things to remember:
Consider keeping your kids up for golden hour. I know that you have an idea of the time of day that you want to have your session, but—take it from someone who has been taking fall portraits of people since 2005…the best time is that last hour and a half of sun. Especially in the fall as it really makes those fall colours pop.
Trust your photographer about when fall happens in your area. After years of fretting over how long the leaves will be on the trees, I can tell you that without a doubt, September is the best time for fall portraits in Calgary/Okotoks…especially the third week in September. After that, we are literally holding our breath for the first big windy day or snowfall. To me, the most important thing about fall portraits is that the leaves are on the trees. It’s also nice if you get a mix of colours and not just a solid wall of yellow(in these images you can see that some of the leaves are still green—these were taken very late in the fall season before Thanksgiving).
Wear layers. Plan for it to be possibly as warm as a summer day or as cold as early winter. I’ve seen it all in September and October in Alberta. Be flexible…weather can really mess up your plans, but keeping some flexibility in those plans goes a very long way. I know we all have busy lives, but leaving room to celebrate your family with a portrait session is super important, too.
Hire a photographer who suits your style. Don’t expect your photographer to take images you have seen online. Check out their portfolio. Hire them for what you see there.
Don’t worry about your children’s behaviour. Come with the idea that you are going to enjoy yourselves and have fun!! If you threaten or bribe your kids to get them to behave in a certain way, things can really go south quickly. Again, trust your photographer to do what you have hired them to do and come with a positive attitude.
I still have some room in my fall schedule so book your fall portraits now before that first snowfall takes us by surprise ;)
