What if my kids won't sit still?
Do you have the kind of kids that don't sit still even for a minute? Are you nervous that the kids are going to behave and listen to what they asked to do for a photography session?
These are my tips as a mum and photographer about the best way to prepare:
Here's the final copy with everything applied:
What if my kids won't sit still?
As a mum of three, I totally get that mums are nervous about how the kids are going to behave during their family's session.
Do you have the kind of kids that don't sit still even for a minute?
Do you try to go out for a meal and they last about 5 minutes at the table and then they're wanting to race around the restaurant and check everything out? You never seem to be able to get that relaxing meal at the restaurant. You watch the other family sitting around with the kids at the table behaving normally and dream of having kids that will sit still.
When I see these kinds of kids arrive at a session I can clearly see the look on mum's face. She's nervous that the kids aren't going to behave and listen to what they're asked to do.
Here are my tips as a mum and photographer about the best way to prepare:
Firstly, explain to them what's going to actually happen at a session
Have a chat to the kids a few weeks before your session about what's going to happen.
Explain that the photographer is going to take some pictures of you as a family and then the kids together and then the kids by themselves.
Set some expectations of what you expect of your kids.
Explain to them that they need to listen to what the photographer asks them to do.
Reassure them that if they listen and do what they are asked then the session will be quick and easy.
Make sure you ask the photographer how long the session is going to take and then explain that to your kids.
My sessions never go for more than about 45 minutes. Young kids have short concentration spans and I would never expect them to be sitting still and concentrating for that whole time.
Reassure them that it will be fun.
Let them pick their own outfits
As a mum I dream of having those perfectly coordinated photos with everyone sitting in white, with hair perfectly brushed, shiny white teeth and kids looking like perfect angels.
The reality is with energetic kids, if you saw a photo of your kids like this it wouldn't look like your kids.
I've had issues with my kids not liking labels on clothes, not liking certain colours, only wanting to wear one kind of look.
When they're not keen on getting photos done, and then we try to dress them up for the perfect look is most often when the fighting starts.
So my advice is pick out a bunch of their favourite clothes, lie them on the bed to check which ones roughly coordinate best with each other. Most blues work well together, or grey can work well with blue. Throw in a splash of colour and it will still work.
Give your kids 2 to 3 options each. Then let them pick which one they want to wear. You'll end up with happy kids who feel comfortable in what they're wearing.
When you get to the session
Be guided by what your photographer tells you.
I start our sessions by explaining to the family exactly what's going to happen. That way mum knows what to expect and the kids know what to expect.
I find quite often it's dad who's the most nervous, worried about having to smile and be told what to do. He has often been dragged along as well.
The important thing as a mum is just to relax.
An experienced photographer is used to dealing with kids that don't sit still. I have lots of tricks that will help the process go smoothly.
If you get stressed your kids know you're stressed.
Relax and enjoy your session.
Watch your kids interacting with each other. Watch them interacting with the photographer.
A photo session is about capturing your kids at this age. Enjoy those moments as the session unfolds. Enjoy those little quirks that make your kids who they are. Let me engage with your kids and capture their individual personalities.
Most importantly don't tell them to smile. Kids often have that awful fake smile, especially between the ages of 5 and 10. As a photographer I have lots of tricks to get them to laugh.
If you're still weighing up which Sydney family photographer is right for you, here's what actually matters when you're deciding.
What actually matters when you're deciding on
Should you include your dog in Family Photos?
Your dog is part of the family. So why is the dog never in the family photos?
I hear this all the time. The kids have had their school portraits, there might be a nice shot on the wall from a holiday, but the dog who sleeps on the end of the bed and greets everyone at the door is nowhere to be seen. For a lot of the families I photograph, that feels wrong. If the dog is family, the dog belongs in the photo.
I've been including dogs in sessions for 23 years. It isn't an add-on or a novelty. It's one of my favourite parts of the job. So if you've been putting off family photos because you aren't sure how the dog will cope, let me talk you through it.
Will my dog behave?
This is the question I get more than any other. The honest answer is that dogs don't need to behave. They need to be themselves. I'm not after a stiff, sitting-to-attention shot where everyone including the dog is frozen. I'm after the real thing. The dog leaning into your youngest. The dog looking up at you. The dog doing a lap of the studio because there's a new smell to investigate.
My studio is a big 175sqm space with room for a dog to move. Dogs are allowed to sniff around, settle in and get comfortable before we start. When a dog feels relaxed, the photos look relaxed. That's the whole trick.
A few simple things that help
A few small things just make the session run smoother. Take your dog for a walk beforehand so they burn off some energy.
If your dog gets groomed, book it in for the week before rather than the day before, so their coat has a little time to grow back.
And bring some treats along. I actually prefer to work without them, because dogs can get a bit fixated on the treats, but they're there as a backup if things aren't going to plan.
You don't need to train your dog for anything beforehand. I'll just work around them, help them feel comfortable and gently guide them into the shots.
And if your dog gets nervous, let me know before the session. I've worked with anxious dogs and senior dogs and everything in between, so I'm comfortable with whatever the day brings.
Why it matters more than you think
Here's the part people don't always say out loud. Dogs don't live as long as we want them to. The family photo with the dog in it becomes one of the photos you'd never part with, because one day that dog won't be there and you'll be so glad you have it.
I photograph a lot of families who come back years later, and the sessions with the old dog in them are the ones they talk about most. That's not something you can redo. This is the dog you have right now, at this age, with these kids at these ages. That combination exists once.
What the photos actually look like
Warm. Natural. A bit chaotic in the best way. Your dog isn't squeezed into the corner of one shot at the end. Your dog is in the family portrait, on laps, in the middle of the cuddle pile, wherever they naturally end up. Because that's where they are in real life.
If you'd rather be outdoors, I do outdoor sessions too, which some dogs love because there's more room to run. You can see how those work on my outdoor sessions page.
Ready to get your dog in the picture?
If you have a dog who is family and a wall that is missing them, let's sort it out. I'll handle the chaos. You just show up with the family, the dog and the treats.
Book your session here or get in touch if you have questions about bringing your dog along. I'm always happy to talk it through.
Kate x
Can You Bring Your Dog to a Family Photo Shoot?
Yes, your dog can come to a family photo shoot in Sydney. Here's how it works at my Gordon studio, where about a third of sessions include a dog.
Yes, you can bring your dog to a family photo session in Sydney, and at my studio the dog is part of the family, not an add-on or a problem to manage. I'm Kate Buechner, I've photographed roughly 2,500 Sydney families over 23 years, and about a third of my sessions have a dog in them. If you've been wondering whether your dog can come, this post tells you exactly how it works and why it goes better than you think.
So, can the dog actually come?
Short answer, yes, and I'd encourage it. If the dog is part of your family, the dog belongs in the photos. About 30 per cent of the families I photograph bring a dog, so this is normal here, not a special request I have to think twice about.
The reason it works comes down to the space. My studio in Gordon is a 175sqm room with three big arch windows, and it's set up to feel like a home, not a clinic. That size matters more than people realise. It means I can take your dog off the lead and let them actually be a dog. There's room to move, room to sniff about, room to settle. A small studio can't do that, which is why a lot of photographers quietly steer you away from bringing the dog at all.
So the question isn't really "will you allow my dog". It's "is your space set up for it". Mine is, and it's been set up for it for years.
But my dog won't behave. They'll never sit still for photos.
This is the worry I hear most, and I understand it. You picture your dog ignoring every command, bolting around the room, refusing to look at the camera while you stand there apologising. It almost never goes that way.
Here's what actually happens. The dog comes in, has a good sniff around, usually jumps straight up on the bed or the lounge, and within a few minutes settles right down. I never start shooting the second you walk in. I give the dog time to get used to the space first, because a relaxed dog photographs beautifully and a rushed one doesn't. By the time I begin, your dog isn't on edge anymore. They're at home.
It helps that I love dogs. I've got my own miniature dachshund, Lollie, so working with dogs isn't a service I tolerate, it's something I look forward to. Dogs read that. They sense when someone's comfortable with them, and they relax accordingly. The takeaway here is simple. You don't need a perfectly trained dog. You need a space and a photographer that work with the dog you've actually got.
How do you even get the dog in the photo?
The other worry, right behind behaviour. People imagine the dog will be off in a corner while the family poses, and they'll end up with photos that don't include the one they came for.
What really happens is the dog usually steals the show. I tend to put the dog right in the centre of the family, and nine times out of ten they love being the centre of attention. You'd be amazed how many of my favourite family images come down to a dog doing a head tilt at exactly the right moment. It's the best thing ever, and it's the frame the whole family ends up wanting on the wall.
One thing I do that not everyone does, I'll also photograph your dog on their own. Not just tucked into the family group, but proper portraits of the dog by themselves, so you've got something beautiful of them to keep. Dogs don't stay with us as long as we'd like, and a real portrait of yours, the way you actually see them, is worth having. That's the bit families tell me later they're most glad they got.
What you'll walk away with
When a dog comes to a session here, you don't get a stiff family line-up with a dog awkwardly bolted on the end. You get your family as you actually are, dog included, relaxed and real, plus a few portraits of the dog on their own that you'll be glad you have down the track. That's the whole point of how I work. Real families, real moments, dog very much welcome.
Whether your family is two people and a puppy or a full house of kids and a dog who thinks they're a kid too, that's worth photographing exactly as it is right now. If you've got a dog you want in the frame, have a look at my Dogs and Their Families gallery or send me a message and let's talk about a session.
Kate x
The Best Age for Toddler Photos (And Why It's Sooner Than You Think)
One is the best age for toddler photos, and most parents wait too long. Sydney photographer Kate Buechner explains exactly why from 23 years of experience.
Most parents assume toddler photos happen somewhere around two or three. By then the kids can follow basic instructions, right? Here's what 23 years of photographing Sydney families has taught me: one is the sweet spot, and if you wait, you'll miss it.
Why Parents Wait Too Long
It makes sense on paper. You think, I'll wait until they're a bit older. Until they can understand what's happening. Until they'll actually cooperate.
But here's the thing. A one-year-old who's just found their feet is one of the most naturally photogenic humans you'll ever meet. They're curious about everything. They're steady enough to stand and toddle but still small enough to feel like a baby. They think you're the funniest person alive. They haven't developed the self-consciousness that comes later. They're just completely, entirely themselves.
That window is shorter than you think.
What Changes at Eighteen Months
I want to be honest with you about what happens when you wait, because I see it all the time in my Gordon studio on Sydney's North Shore.
At one, your toddler is just walking. They're wobbly and delighted about it. They're exploring, they're stopping, they're looking around, they're coming back to you. That movement is beautiful to photograph because it's slow enough to catch and genuine enough to feel real.
At eighteen months to two years, everything changes. They're not walking anymore. They're running. They have very strong opinions about where they want to go and what they want to do, and they have zero interest in anyone else's agenda. The determined streak that makes two-year-olds so wonderful to parent also makes them genuinely challenging to photograph, and I say that with complete affection for this age group.
The one-year-old will wander towards you. The two-year-old will wander away from you, at speed, towards whatever they've decided is more interesting.
That's not impossible to work with. I've photographed a lot of two-year-olds across Sydney's North Shore and I know how to get the shots. But the ease and the sweetness of the one-year-old session is something different. It's a specific window and once it closes, it's gone.
What One-Year-Old Photos Actually Look Like
I want to reset expectations here, because "toddler photos" might conjure an image of a child sitting nicely and smiling at the camera. That's not what I'm going for, and honestly it's not what you want either.
What I'm looking for at this age is the real stuff. The way they concentrate when they're figuring something out. The laugh that comes out of nowhere. The look they give you just before they do something they know they shouldn't. The way they reach for you when they want to be picked up.
None of that requires cooperation. It requires patience and someone who knows how to watch and wait. After 23 years and roughly 2,500 families photographed across Sydney, I've learned that the best images at this age come from following the child, not directing them.
Your job during the session is just to be with them. Talk to them, play with them, be the person they always want. My job is to be ready when the real moments happen.
You Belong in These Photos Too
Here's the part I'd be leaving out if I didn't say it: you should be in the session too.
Your one-year-old thinks you are the most important person in the world. That relationship, the way they look at you, the way they reach for you, the way they light up when you walk into the room, is one of the most beautiful things I get to photograph. And it's specific to this age in a way that shifts as they get older and more independent.
Most mums I photograph tell me that the images of them with their child are the ones they love most. Not because they look perfect. Because they look true. You, with your one-year-old, at exactly this moment. That belongs on your wall.
I say this because I know the instinct is to stay behind the camera. I know you're not sure how you'll look. I've been photographing North Shore mums for over two decades and I promise you, the photos you'll treasure most are the ones you're actually in.
How to Know If Now Is the Right Time
If your child is anywhere between ten months and fourteen months, now is the time. You don't need to wait for the birthday. You don't need them to be walking confidently. You just need to book it before the window closes.
If they've just turned one and you've been thinking about it, stop thinking and book it. The eighteen-month version of your child is coming faster than you expect, and as much as I love photographing them too, the one-year-old session is something I'd hate for you to miss.
I photograph families across Sydney's North Shore from my studio in Gordon, and I work with children at every age and stage. If you'd like to talk through timing or what a session looks like, get in touch here and I'll help you figure out the right moment.
Kate x