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13 Tips For a Successful Family Photoshoot

Family photoshoots are supposed to be a lot of fun. It’s an activity that you get to enjoy with the people you care about the most in the world, all while preserving shared memories that you may cherish for the rest of your life.

You may be wondering what to bring, how long the shoot will take if you can bring your dog, how hair and makeup are done, and if venues can be switched! 

There are so many details to work out before the scheduled day. So we compiled a list of thirteen tips for a successful family photoshoot to help you get ready for your big day.

13 Tips For a Successful Family Photoshoot

Prior to the shoot, you must:

  • Brainstorm Ideas

The great thing about family photoshoots is that they can be a huge collaborative effort amongst you and your relatives. You must first let them know what you are planning for everybody and get them excited to brainstorm ideas with you. Let them contribute poses, themes, and costume ideas. And remember, this is part of all the fun!

Know that whatever works for your family will be your own unique style. The shoot is something you all should look up to, so frame the experience in a brilliant and positive light.

family sitting on a log
  • Plan Everything Accordingly

We can’t stress this enough: you have to plan ahead and accordingly to have a successful family photoshoot. No matter the size of your family, it’s important to set everything up from scheduling, wardrobe changes, grooming, food or catering, and so on. 

Fix your clothing the day before your shoot, for example, and make sure all required things are dry cleaned/ironed. Set aside time the day before the shoot to have everyone conditioned and ready. Also, allow plenty of time if you’re getting your hair or cosmetics done. You don’t want to be rushed and flustered when you arrive.

Mt Compass Family photography
  • Get Some Beauty Rest

A big part of photoshoot preparations is setting the mood for the entire day. And to achieve a successful family photoshoot, everybody in your family must be well-rested, energetic, hydrated, and well-fed. Eight hours of sleep, lots of water, a big breakfast, and an uplifted mood sure can go a long way.

Family walking along the pond

Things to Pack

  • Healthy Snacks

No, we’re not just talking about chips and junk food. We’re talking about jelly beans, cheese cubes, light crackers, and dried food. Avoid foods that could stain or get stuck in your teeth like chocolate, candies, coloured beverages, and anything that consumes too much time to devour.

Food platter on display
  • Extra Clothes

It’s always a good idea to pack extra clothes and backup outfits for everybody, young and old. This tip is especially advantageous if, let’s say, you’re bringing a bunch of kids along. With almost any type of photoshoot, expect spills and stains to go wrong! It wouldn’t hurt to be a little bit overprepared.

I have a cake!
  • Fun Activities

Breakout sessions in between photoshoot layouts are a must. This is a way to inject fun as the day progresses. This is not really a requirement, but it can relax your whole team and loosen up your family members

In addition, fun activities like blowing bubbles, and playing with toys and balls can be added to your themed shoot.

Family photo in Pine Reserve
  • The Furry Friend

If you bring your dog, please consider bringing a dedicated walker to look after it throughout the shoot. This way, you can keep your dog secure and comfortable while not interfering with the shot. Also, before bringing your dog to the shoot, evaluate her disposition. How will it be able to pose for photos if it is typically wild and rowdy? Finally, provide dog treats and toys for the dog so that he would comply.

bride groom and dog
  •  Outdoor Items

Best place to hold a natural family photography session is to hold it outside – rather than in a studio. For example, heading to the beach? bring beach towels, sunscreen, coolers, umbrellas, and more! Treat it the way you would for any beach trip. How about a forest? maybe bring a picnic setup, some games? frisbee?

Family sitting together on rock
  • Grooming Tools for Hair and Makeup

Perhaps grooming for hair and makeup aren’t requirements either, but it wouldn’t hurt to bring your own tools. This way, you can touch up in between layouts and keep it all hygienic as well. But beyond hair and makeup, you may also want to bring a sewing kit for emergencies. And if you’re feeling quite extravagant, feel free to hire your family’s own glam team!

Running in front of the family

Reminders During the Shoot

  •  Make the Most Out of It

We’ll say it again: A family photoshoot is a perfect excuse to bond with your loved ones. So, use this time wisely. This is a time to learn new things through new experiences, together.

Family looking through the bushes
  •  Grab a Solo Portrait for Everyone

Show off everybody’s beauty. One by one, allow every member of your family to have their own time to shine. Let them show off their hobbies, their talents, and their unique styles.

Portrait
  •  Give Room for Goofy Shots

You can culminate the shoot by taking a goofy group family pic which you can blow up and hang on your wall! This is a way for you to truly cherish your close family ties, unbreakable bonds, and sense of humour! There are no wrong answers when it comes to taking goofy family portraits.

Family portrait under gum trees

Keep Your Photographer Team in the Loop

  •  The Editing Process

As with any photoshoot, the images are thoroughly retouched. For this process, you have to let your photographer and their assistant know what you’d like the outcome of the pictures to be. 

If you feel conscious about something, raise it. They can keep everything natural, with a bit of tweaking when it comes to reducing wrinkles, toning down puffiness around the face, lightening the eye bags, etc.

Let us know if you’re planning something special too – perhaps an engagement? We are good at keeping secrets, and if we know about it beforehand we can be sure to look out for the cues!

Santorini Couple Shoot

Thirteen tips may sound like a large amount of advice for a successful family photoshoot, but one can never be too sure about family activities and gatherings! Being prepared and knowing what to expect can save you and your family members a lot of stress, arguments, and unnecessary pressure. That said, make sure you plan ahead, prepare, and enjoy every second. Take this chance to capture special shared moments while you still can!

Are you looking for a family photographer in Adelaide? Sven Studios offers professional photography services that are intricately crafted to capture your most special moments. Contact us now at sven@svenstudios.com and make your dream family photoshoot happen!

 

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Relive your wedding day, your way with Wedding re-LIVE

I’m sure you’ve all heard stories of bridal couples who have had some small hiccup, or story from their big day in which they wish they could do something differently. Well, that need not be you for your own wedding!

The product development team at Svenstudios have been hard at work building upon our already impressive array of technologies developed in order to better enjoy the memories from your big day. From the developers of Instant wedding photography, robotic wedding ceremonies, a fan favourite odorgraphy and many more – comes ‘Wedding re-LIVE’.

Wedding re-LIVE

With the incredible Wedding re-LIVE service exclusively from SvenStudios, you are able to utilise the very latest in virtual reality and deep fake technologies to not only relive your wedding day – but actually interact with what happens on your day as if it were a computer game.

Using a Virtual Reality headset you basically take control of your own self as recorded on your wedding day, and walk around your wedding venue as if you were a marionette puppeteer. In this way you’re able to talk to your guests – visit areas you never did, or perhaps watch uncle Jim drunkenly meander out the gate as you had heard it was hilarious from your geusts but you missed it as you were busy with your first dance!

How does it work?

Before your day, I will dillegently scan your wedding venue using the latest in 360 degree cameras and mapping hardware in order to produce an intricately detailed 3D map of the entire space. This involves running about with a camera on a pole. The more I scan, the father you can walk around in virtual reality with your self as your ‘game’ character!

I then import all the data I created into the Unreal Engine – which is software that underpins many modern games to a degree that reality and gaming becomes blurred due to the realistic textures I captured while scanning your venue.

Unreal Ed

Finally all I need is to have you, as the bride and/or groom wear a discreet 360 camera on a pole that sticks out of your back, all day. You wont even know it’s there! This camera records your movements, speech patterns and personality in such a way that SvenStudios can now use that data to program how your guests interact with your virtual avatar when using the Wedding re-LIVE service!

The result being a completely immersive, and highly customiseable way to relive your day, in the way you want!

Perhaps you said something stupid to the wait staff? We’ve all been there – Enjoy your meal sir! “YOU TOO!” – god what an idiot! Relive your wedding with Wedding re-LIVE and that sort of thing won’t happen again!

Bride and groom through the pine trees

This service of course extends on the already ground breaking 360 degree filming of your wedding ceremony that we offer for free with any wedding we cover as either your wedding photograoher or videographer and we feel as though this is the next logical step in better recording your wedding day and your memories in the most realistic way possible.

Be sure to get in contact to have us utilise this pioneering new service at your own wedding day. You certainly will not regret it – just as long as you don’t look at the date and are willing to have a bit of a laugh at your own expense!

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How to plan a picture perfect proposal

Your proposal is a magical moment, one that you will likely tell all your family and friends about. Having photos of this once in a lifetime experience will make the story even better, and if you have any loved ones who live further away, it will allow you to show them the engagement ring in all its glory.

But how can you plan a picture-perfect proposal without raising your partner’s suspicions? Whilst they might have an inkling of what is going to happen, keeping it a surprise can make for the best photos, as you’ll capture the look of shock (and hopefully joy) on their face as you get down on one knee. Follow our tips and make sure your proposal is memorable for all the right reasons, so that you can cherish your photos forever.

How to plan a picture perfect proposal

Get the ring ready

The crucial element of any proposal is the engagement ring. After all, this is the traditional symbol of love that shows your partner just how much they mean to you, and that you want to spend the rest of your life with them. There’s no need to go flashy just because you’re having photos taken, though – the best ring is one that suits your partner well, and ultimately one that they’ll be happy with, whether that’s a huge diamond or a small band of gemstones.

Whatever style of ring you choose, making sure that it fits well can be crucial to a successful proposal. Nothing will ruin the ultimate shot of you sliding the ring onto your new fiancée’s finger than it getting stuck at the first knuckle, or twisting around because it’s too big. If you’re uncertain on your partner’s ring size, try measuring an existing ring at home, or asking their friends and family, providing you trust them to keep the secret. If you still don’t know, then you can usually ask the jeweller to opt for a standard ring size, but just check that they’ll be able to adjust it after purchase.

Bride and Bridesmaids looking at ring

Choose your outfits

Being able to do this will really depend on whether your partner will be happy for you to choose their outfit for them. If they are, then choose an outfit that is complementary to your own for the most cohesive shot. If they would find it odd if you suddenly developed a fashion sense, then you can try and match your clothes to theirs instead, or opt for neturals so that you don’t clash.

It’s likely that your outfits will fit in with whatever you’re doing the day of the proposal, so make sure to take this into consideration. Remember that you can always have an engagement photoshoot afterwards if you really want to have photos in more formal clothing.

Engagement

Think about location and timing

Working with a photographer does require a bit of preparation and setup, but it also means that you’ll get the best advice on the scenery and lighting for your proposal photos. Talk with your photographer when you plan a picture perfect proposal to come up with a plan of action, and check in with them again on the day to make sure that the weather hasn’t changed your plans.

Mt Lofty Botanic Gardens Proposal

Taking advice from a professional photographer is a sure-fire way to plan a picture perfect proposal that you’ll cherish for the rest of your lives together.

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The best spot for your ‘trash the dress’ wedding photos

After the big day, brides are presented with a dilemma – what to do with their wedding dress? It’s a tough question; after all, this is probably the most expensive item of clothing you will ever own, but the chances are you are only going to wear it once! Some brides like to hang on to their dresses for sentimental reasons, or to pass it on to younger members of their family. However, there is a third, more dramatic, theatrical, and photogenic option – a ‘Trash the Dress’ photoshoot!

If you’ve not heard of the concept, ‘trashing the dress’ does pretty much exactly what it says. ‘Trashing the Dress’ photos are when the bride (and often the groom) get together for one final shoot after the wedding, and quite literally trash the dress. Whether it’s playing together in the surf at a beach wedding, slinging paint bombs at each other, or even getting wet and wild under a waterfall, trashing the dress is enormous fun, and makes for some spectacular wedding snaps.

Bride and groom walking in waters of Lake Louise

Trashing the dress often goes hand to hand with beach or outdoor weddings, as there’s a certain romance and drama in getting up close and personal with nature directly after your nuptials. So if your destination wedding this year involves taking a western Caribbean cruise or hiking up a mountain, why not consider a ‘trash the dress’ wedding photoshoot! Take a look at the following ideas and get inspired!

The best spot for your ‘trash the dress’

Standing in the surf

An absolute classic beach wedding shot, a photo with the couple standing in the surf as the waves roll in (ideally at sunset) is absolutely stunning. If you are going full on in your trash the dress shoot, you can wade in a little further, away from the sure, for extra drama.

Bride and groom on Maslins Beach

In a cloud of color

Smoke and paint bombs are an amazingly photogenic way to create a cloud of color, and shower your shots in joy and vibrancy. Normally used in the Hindu festival of Holi, paint bombs are non-toxic yet stunningly dramatic, surrounding bride and groom in a halo of gorgeous hues, and contrasting beautifully with the sheer white of your dress!

First dancing in smoke

Beneath the waves

If you are getting married by the sea, why not go one step further and get a few photos underneath the waves? Diving underwater and taking some careful, clever shots is an amazing way to create magical memories. The otherworldly vibe of the ocean floor creates an atmosphere that is hard to match, and once again the contrast between turquoise or deep marine blue of the water and the white of your dress makes for an amazing image.

pt willunga jetty wedding photo

Under a waterfall

If your wedding is outside in the great outdoors, in a forest, a National Park, or up a mountain, why not try and find the nearest cascade and create some truly memorable photos? It is hard to think of a more romantic image than a kiss between bride and groom under the raging torrent of a glittering waterfall, and you can really conjure up some passionate, poignant photos that will stay with you forever.

Waterfall wedding photographer Hobart

Covered in paint

While smoke and paint bombs are the fun, simple, and easy way to go, why not go full Jackson Pollock and cover each other with splashes of neon paint? For starters, it will give you an incredibly fun experience that might release some of the tension of the big day, plus it will create awesome, color-filled photos. What is a better canvas for your artistic skills than your bridal gown?

Stangate House wedding Light Painting
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Themes & Ideas to Help You Plan Your Dream Wedding

When you close your eyes and imagine what your wedding day looks like, what do you see? What is the general ambience? Where are you? What time of the year is it? These are only a few of the things you should think about. The visuals, sights, feelings, and sounds all carry weight into the overall experience, so you should carefully think about it before starting to plan your dream wedding.

Your selected wedding theme is pretty much the starting point and core of the plan, so you have to be decisive about it. It will set the mood of your wedding and reflect you and your partner’s personality and relationship. There are so many themes to choose from, so it can take a little thinking before you dive in and make a choice.

Keep on reading to learn more about picking out the best theme for your special day.

Themes & Ideas to Help You Plan Your Dream Wedding

Three Considerations When Choosing Wedding Themes

  1. The Wedding Venue

If you happen to book a wedding venue before choosing a theme, you have to explore the venue first. Wedding locations and themes are not really one-size-fits-all, so it is better that you get a feel or idea of how the wedding hall or site will look like. You have to choose a theme that will look good inside the venue.

If you are fortunate enough to get a relatively roomy wedding venue, you can choose a luxury wedding theme with extravagant decorations. To start, explore Adelaide wedding venues and find the right-sized place for your theme.

It’s not at all unusual to have your wedding venue booked as a first when you plan your dream wedding – it’s the most important vendor you will enlist for your day, then comes your photographer.

Sedan Lutheran Church 2

  1. The Season

Every season has its distinct vibe and colour palette that you can use to your advantage for example, an outdoor wedding during the winter or rainy season can be a recipe for disaster. However can be cheaper and provide some unique opportunities for fun and/or photography!

Coordinate your surroundings for a more beautiful wedding. For instance, if you fancy an indoor white-themed wedding, you can do it in winter might be best. Should you want a bright outdoor wedding, do it in the Autumn or Spring. 

Lightning

  1. Your Budget

Cost really should be one of your most significant considerations when planning a wedding. You should not go way past your budget, or else you will be in debt right after your wedding. Stick to your budget and plan a wedding that fits your financial situation. As much as the ceremony and reception are valuable, you shouldn’t forget the life that you will be starting together.

Remember, this is about you and your partner’s union, not about the grandiosity of the event. If you are on a tight budget, you are free to choose a theme, but maybe lean towards DIY solutions. If you have all the money to spare, you can pretty much go for anything. 

Keep in mind though – the old adage of ‘you get what you pay for‘ very much comes into effect with many vendors on your big day, so when you plan your dream wedding try not to cheap out on people that you know can have a wide spectrum of quality – like your wedding photographer.

Drone group shot at Seagrass Long Point Hobart

8 Wedding Themes You Should Consider when you plan your dream wedding

We are here to help you decide the best wedding theme for you and your partner’s much-awaited event. Here is a list of some wedding themes that you might like.

  1. Classic

Traditional wedding themes have remained popular for decades, so if you and your partner are more conventional, when you plan your dream wedding – go for a classic theme and have a textbook wedding.

Use elegant stationery, a soft colour theme, and traditional garb for the bridal party. Think about timeless floral arrangements, silverware, accent chairs, rhinestones, and candles. Plus, get a cinematic wedding videographer for a more classic approach.

Coriole wines wedding photography

  1. Spring

Spring symbolises a new beginning—a perfect metaphor for weddings. You can decorate the venue with many flowers and use pastel colours for all of your decorations. Natural and floral accents are a good fit for this theme, and you can also use earthy colour palettes for the growth vibes given off by a Spring theme.

bride and groom in the sunlight

  1. Modern

A lot of people like a modern, simple look. May it be inside their homes or events, people prefer minimalist designs. If you pick this wedding theme, you can decorate with white or neutral colours to emphasise simplicity. The dress code for the bridal party and the guests may be minimalist, too.

You can opt for geometric props and metallic accents. You can experiment by pairing classic and modern furniture to make your venue look more creative. Usually, modern designs lean toward using mirrors, modern candelabras, contrasting designs, and unique linens.

Crozier Street Wedding Photo

  1. Beach

Beach themes have been one of the most prominent themes simply because they are fun and fresh. A view of the beach is excellent no matter what, especially when your wedding is scheduled at sunset. It is advisable to use blue or silver colours for the colour palette to fully embrace the sea, the sand, and the sky.

Also, you should use coastal ornaments to decorate the venue, such as tables and chairs. The food should also be seafood and crustacean dishes!

Just be aware that you are very much at the mercy of the weather at a beach wedding – so have a plan B ready!

Interested in getting more help planning your exotic and beachy wedding? Paradise Weddings is a destination wedding company that has already planned more than 100 unique wedding ceremonies, each of which was unique and unforgettable. Thus, if you are looking for a professional wedding planners team, don’t hesitate to contact them.

Penneshaw beach Wedding

  1. Rustic

This wedding theme evokes a relaxed, carefree vibe. Mostly held at gardens and farms, this theme looks pretty, calm, and serene. You really do not need many decorations because you can rely on the natural beauty of the surroundings. But to take it to the next level, you can add additional wooden decor, mason jars, natural textures, dried flowers, or burlap for a unified theme.

Paxton wines

  1. Pink

If you want your wedding to look lovely and elegant, you can utilise the many different shades of pink during your wedding day. Blush pink is a favourite wedding colour that symbolises romance and elegance. Make sure to decorate the place with sophisticated details to make it even fancier.

Engagement ring in pink flower

  1. Bohemian

Embrace the countryside breeze and create a quaint bohemian wedding. Enjoy the combination of comfort, warmth, and magic with inviting items like flower crowns, airy dresses, dream catchers, vintage rugs, cascading bouquets, and driftwood. Get something romantic yet playful, perhaps, just like your relationship with your life partner.

Bridal shoot under the sun

  1. Coral

If you want your wedding venue to look refreshing yet fun, you can opt for a coral wedding theme. It enhances your wedding atmosphere by filling it with reds and oranges of various shades. You can decorate the place with floral garlands such as peonies, roses, and dahlias. 

bride and groom looking out at the sunset

No matter what kind of wedding theme you choose when you plan your dream wedding, always remember to go with what you and your partner will enjoy. Think about what would reflect your love story the most and perfectly fit your relationship.

When everything is ready, talk to your wedding planner and also prepare how to immortalise the memories of your wedding day. If you are looking for the best wedding videographers or photographers, you can hit up Sven Studios. We have fantastic wedding photography packages sure to cater to all your wedding photos and video needs. Also let us know if you need any help to plan your dream wedding!