Family Photos With a Baby AND a Toddler? Bring Them Anyway. | Cornelius NC Family Photographer

A six-month-old baby.

A two-year-old big sister.

Two parents.

And absolutely zero expectation that everyone was going to sit perfectly still and smile at me at the exact same time.

Perfect.

This family came into my Cornelius studio for updated family photos while their youngest was six months old, and we basically did a little bit of everything.

Clean family portraits.

Baby milestone photos.

Big sister by herself.

Sibling pictures.

Black and white.

A second backdrop.

And, naturally, a two-year-old being held upside down by Dad.

Because if we're photographing what your family actually looks like right now, I would argue that one is pretty important.

Family Photos With Little Kids Don't Have to Be Perfect

I think one of the biggest things that keeps parents from booking family photos when their kids are little is the fear that their children aren't going to "cooperate."

Your toddler won't sit still.

The baby might get fussy.

Someone is going to need a snack.

Someone else is going to decide that the exact thing we planned is absolutely unacceptable.

Okay.

Come anyway.

I don't need a two-year-old to act like a seven-year-old. I don't need a six-month-old to understand that we're taking family pictures.

And I definitely don't need everyone staring at me and smiling for an entire session.

We got the classic family portrait.

But we also got Dad cuddling his daughter while she cracked up. Mom playing with the baby. Big sister squeezing her little brother. And Dad turning his toddler completely upside down while Mom stood next to him holding the baby like this was all perfectly normal.

Because I'm guessing in their house, it probably is.

That's the stuff I want, too.

Six Months Is Such a Good Time for Updated Family Photos

Newborn photos get a lot of attention.

First birthday photos get a lot of attention.

But six months?

Six months is GOOD.

At this age, babies are becoming so much more interactive. They're looking around, smiling, sitting with support and starting to show you the little person they're becoming.

And if you already have an older child, the sibling relationship is starting to get really fun too.

Big sister is two, which meant I wasn't exactly expecting a carefully posed sibling portrait.

Instead, she wrapped herself around her baby brother with her entire body.

THAT'S the picture.

He's six months old.

She's two.

This is what being brother and sister looks like right now.

It'll look completely different a year from now.

You Can Get the Family Photos AND the Kid Photos

This is one of my favorite things about doing family sessions in the studio.

We're already here.

Everyone is dressed.

I've already won over your toddler.

Let's use it.

We photographed the whole family together, but then we broke everything down into smaller combinations and individual portraits too.

Baby got his own little six-month milestone moment — including the chunkiest little seated black-and-white portrait that I am obsessed with.

Big sister got to have the camera completely to herself for a while.

And THAT GIRL.

Put her on a tiny chair and apparently she has places to be.

We got the sweet smile. The little scrunched-up grin. The side-eye. The giant laugh.

All of those expressions that are so incredibly two.

Family pictures are important, but I also want parents to walk away with photographs where they can really see each kid at the age they are right now.

One Studio Session, Two Completely Different LooksIf you missed newborn pictures, that doesn't mean you've missed your chance.

We also switched things up during this session with both my clean white studio setup and a warm neutral backdrop.

Same family.

Same outfits.

Completely different feeling.

The white setup kept everything bright, clean and simple, especially with all of the soft blues they wore.

Then we moved onto the warmer backdrop and suddenly those same blue tones popped in a completely different way.

It gave us a little more variety without asking a baby and a toddler to survive an outfit change, location change and seventeen other things.

Work smarter, people.

We have toddlers involved.

Studio Family Photography in Cornelius & Lake Norman

If you've been putting off family photos because you have a baby and a toddler and the thought of getting everyone to "behave" sounds exhausting:

Good news.

They don't have to.

My studio is in Cornelius, NC, and I photograph families from throughout Lake Norman, Huntersville, Davidson, Mooresville and the Charlotte area.

Your toddler can be two.

Your baby can be a baby.

Your family can actually look like your family.

We'll still get the pretty one for the wall.

I just happen to think the upside-down one deserves a spot too.

Ready for updated family photos? Bring me the chaos. I'll take it from there.