Teddy Bear Picnic Children's Mini Sessions

I couldn't let the summer go by without having the cutest mini sessions ever and what little ones don't love a picnic with their Teddy?!  Tender Expressions Photography will be having Teddy Bear Picnic children's mini sessions on Wednesday August 24, 2011. Dress up your little ones (boys and girls alike) and don't forget to bring your favourite Teddy! We will have a picnic scene set up, a cupcake treat and some extra teddy friends just in case.

Time slots ...will start at 5:30 pm and run until 7:30pm. They will be 15 min each and allow 2 children per time slot. Session cost is $40, additional child is $10 and you will receive an online gallery to choose your 2-5x7's free! Cash only please.  $20 deposit is required which can be email transferred, mailed or dropped off  and the remaining payment at the time of session :)

Rain date will be Thursday August 25th.

To get more info on location or to book your time slot please send me an email at jennine@tenderexpressionsphotography.com

Preparing children for a photo session.

Kids are such amazing little people.  On my side of the camera I never know how a session is going to go from one session to the next when it comes to kids but one thing is for sure.....very cute expressions will be caught and their stages in life will be captured and to me that's what it's all about. Children's photographers should love to just go with the flow with kids and let them do their own things for part of the session. It helps the kids to be more at ease and that's when most of the cutest shots are taken as well as the most natural.
On the other side of the camera I know many parents stress when it comes to getting their kid's pictures done.  They worry they aren't going to smile, they worry they aren't going to sit, they worry they aren't going to co-operate and I can't say it enough that it's better if you just don't stress, but it's easier said then done right? If you go to the right children's photographer they should be a natural with kids and be experienced with them, not only with photography but with life in general.  This one key thing will not only make the parents at ease but the children will be much more comfortable as well which will result in better behaviour and therefore better pictures. With that said I do have a few tips for parents on preparing your children for a photo session that may help even more.  Some even apply to the bigger kids.

1.  Let the kids know where you are going before you head out and let them know what is going to happen when they get there.  I know it's easy to forget this first step since naturally we do not explain to our kids where we are going every time we step out the door. Most times when we leave with them though we don't have a lot of expectations from them so it's really not important. With photos however, parents do expect the kids to do things at the photo session and b/c that expectation is there, a warning on what is going to happen is very helpful, especially for toddlers and little ones. During my many years of experience with kids I have found that kids like warnings, not surprises. They like to know what to expect. Getting them mentally prepared will help the transition when they arrive to go smoothly and the session as well.

2. Parents need to be intimately involved with the photo session.  For the little ones, be prepared to make silly faces, funny noises, crazy dances, quick tickles or whatever it takes to make your little ones smile and laugh for those "fireplace mantle shots". As well be prepared to be the nose wiper, the hair fixer and wardrobe adjuster. Kids feel a lot more comfortable with their parents helping them then the photographer they just met. For the older ones, perhaps thinking of things in advance to talk about that would make them naturally smile would be a good idea as well.  I.E. bringing up their goal they got in soccer, talking about thier favourite things or teasing them about their "girlfriend".  The photographer should be able to bring some of these things up their own, but the more help from mom and dad the better. Just be ready to have fun in the moment. The more fun it is, the more natural smiles we'll get!

3.  For younger ones especially, bringing tidy snacks to help them get through the session is a good idea but make sure it's not something that will make them messy. Crackers, Gold Fish, Cheerios, fruit snacks in a package are a good idea and it makes those little tummies happy again.  Expecting the kids to sit for an hour is not realistic and I always allow enough time in a session for the kids to have a little break or two to eliminate meltdowns.  It's amazing the results this can have.

4. Timing is everything and you know best when your children are at their finest.  For some it's first thing in the morning, for others it's right after a nap, so be sure to book it for their good time.  When they are there, don't be surprised if your kids have had enough after 20 minutes.  Each kid varies with their limits but they all have them, and when they are done they don't hide it.  Make sure you mention to the photographer the important shots you want to make sure you get and do them first.  You want to make sure you got the "it" shot before a meltdown occurs.

5.   Choose an outdoor location if the weather permits.  I find the outdoor sessions to be so much more productive with kids because it gives the kids that run around time and they aren't expected to just stay in a small area.  Your photographer should have a list of places that they can recommend and perhaps know where to meet to avoid the temptations that might be at the location for little ones.  For example, if you are meeting at a park that has a playground, perhaps there is a spot where you can meet with the photographer first and then make your way during the session towards the playground, leaving it to be last and therefore less tempting for the kids. I try and always do this with my sessions and I find parents like to use the playground as a reward for being good throughout the session.

6. Just be relaxed and have fun.  The more you are relaxed, the happier and more relaxed your children will be and the happy moments will be captured forever.

Photo of the Month Contest

Tender Expressions Photography appreciates all those who have sessions with me and in return I want to give those people an opportunity to win something throughout the year. If you know me, I love contests! I think this one is the best yet!
The contest:
This new contest is TEP's Picture of the Month Facebook Contest which will be held every month (if the July contest goes well), and it is held for those who have sessions the previous month! Each family who has a session with me during the month (so this first draw is for July) will get the chance to choose one picture from their session gallery to enter into the Picture of the Month contest and let me know which one they choose. When it comes time, I will post their chosen picture into that month's contest which will run the last week of the month. During the contest I will ask my fans to vote by "liking" the photo they think should win the contest and please feel free to invite your friends and family to vote as well. Everyone can only vote once or their vote does not count. Please be aware that in order to like things on a page, Facebook makes you have to like the page first, so for those that are not a fan on the TEP page yet, they will have to like the page first to vote. For each vote you get, your name will be entered into a draw and on the last day the draw will be held and announced. The draw will take place on Random.org so my hands are tied on who will win.

What will I win? The winner of the contest each month will get a picture from their session put on the main page of Tender Expressions Photography website for the following month, they will get a picture from their session put as Tender Expressions Photography's Facebook profile picture for the month and of course they will get the spot of being announced as TEP's picture of the month on Facebook and on my blog and get the bragging rights to go along with it. Please note that for the pictures posted on the website and profile picture, they will be chosen by myself from your session to ensure there is a variety of pictures and poses displayed from month to month. If this contest should go well, at the end of the year each month's winner will be entered into a contest to win some free prints for their next session.
For those who may have sessions after the contest of the month has started (so within the last week or so of the month) you will be entered into the next month's contest.

The technicalities of the draw: names will be numbered for the draw and will go in order of when during the month they had their session. Ie Mary had her session on the 5th of month and was the first to have a session that month she would be #1. Johnny had the next session and had his family session on the 8th, he would be #2. For every vote each person has, their numbers will alternate so that their numbers are not all in a row and this would continue for every person in the draw that month. So if 5 people had sessions that month the first person would be #1 and #6 if they got 2 votes. This seems very confusing to explain and I hope its clear but if you have any questions, please ask!
This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by or associated with Facebook.
By entering this promotion you acknowledge that you completely release Facebook of any responsibility.
 
If you have any questions regarding this contest please message me and I would be happy to answer them.

Thanks so much for all those who participate.  I hope this pilot contest is successful!

Sweet baby K

This little man was such a treat to photograph and I just loved his facial expressions in the pictures from this session.  In 80% of the pictures he had his little fists out and I'm sure he will be a boxer one day. Congrats to an amazing Mom and Dad on your new addition. 

Baby E arrived

This little peanut had a hard time deciding if she should eat or get her picture taken but in the end did a fantastic job of both. Congratulations to this beautiful family on your newest addition.