Let me let you in on a little secret: the families who come into sessions saying “our kids never cooperate” almost always leave with the most beautiful, real, laugh-filled photos.
Kids are unpredictable. That’s not a problem — it’s actually what makes family photography so alive. But a little preparation goes a long way in helping everyone arrive relaxed, ready, and actually excited about the session. As a family photographer based in Marshfield, MO, here’s exactly what I tell parents before every session.
Before the Session
Talk It Up — But Keep It Low Key
Tell your kids about the session ahead of time, but keep the energy light and fun rather than building it up as a big formal event. “We’re going to take some fun photos together outside” lands very differently than “you need to smile and behave perfectly for the photographer.” The first sounds like an adventure. The second sounds like a test.
For younger kids especially, framing it as something exciting rather than something they have to do right makes a huge difference in how they show up.
Don’t Mention Smiling
This is a big one. The more you remind kids to smile, the more you get that stiff, teeth-bared, deer-in-headlights look that nobody actually wants. Trust your photographer to draw out genuine expressions naturally — that’s literally the job. Your role is just to show up and have fun with your family.
Schedule Around Nap Time and Meal Time
If you have little ones, this is non-negotiable. A tired or hungry toddler is working against everyone — including themselves. Book your session at a time when your youngest is typically at their best, whether that’s mid-morning after a nap or early evening before bedtime meltdown hour. And make sure everyone has eaten beforehand.
Let Kids Help Pick Their Outfit
For school-age kids and teens especially, giving them some ownership over what they wear goes a long way. Work within your coordinated color palette but let them have input — a kid who feels good in what they’re wearing is a kid who’s more willing to participate.
Practice Being Silly Together
In the days leading up to the session, get your family laughing together. Tickle fights, silly faces, inside jokes — whatever makes your kids genuinely crack up. Those are the moments I’m going to try to recreate on location, and kids who are already in a playful headspace get there so much faster.
On the Day Of
Arrive Early and Let Kids Explore
If possible, arrive to the location a few minutes early and let your kids run around, explore, and get comfortable in the space before the camera comes out. Kids who feel ownership over an environment are far more relaxed than kids who feel dropped into an unfamiliar place and immediately told to pose.
Bring Snacks and a Change of Clothes
For the little ones — always. A small snack mid-session can completely reset a grumpy toddler. And accidents happen, especially outdoors. Having a backup outfit tucked in the car means a spill doesn’t have to derail everything.
Bring a Comfort Item for Toddlers
A favorite toy, stuffed animal, or lovey can be incredibly helpful for toddlers who are slow to warm up to new people and new places. It gives them something familiar to hold onto while they get comfortable — and sometimes it becomes a prop that adds the most adorable dimension to the photos.
Bribery is Completely Acceptable
I’m a photographer, not a parenting judge. If promising a trip for ice cream after the session is what gets your five-year-old to cooperate, that is a completely valid strategy and I fully support it. Do what works for your family.
During the Session
Follow Your Kids’ Lead
The best family sessions feel less like a formal photoshoot and more like a really fun family hangout that happens to be documented. If your toddler wants to chase a butterfly for two minutes, let them. If your kids want to wrestle with dad, let them. Those unscripted moments almost always produce the most meaningful photos.
Don’t Stress the Chaos
If a kid cries, runs off, or refuses to look at the camera — take a breath. It happens in nearly every family session, and experienced photographers know how to work with it rather than against it. Some of the most treasured photos I’ve ever made came directly out of chaotic, unplanned moments.
Stay Calm Yourself
Kids are incredibly attuned to parental energy. If you’re anxious, stressed, or visibly frustrated, they feel it — and it shows up in the photos. The single most powerful thing you can do for your family session is arrive relaxed and give yourself full permission for things to be imperfect. That’s where the real magic lives.
A Note for Parents of Teens
Teenagers are their own category entirely. They’re often self-conscious, reluctant, and deeply uninterested in family photos — and forcing enthusiasm usually makes it worse.
What works: give them some control. Let them choose their outfit. Ask their opinion on the location. Acknowledge that it might feel awkward at first and tell them you appreciate them showing up anyway. And then move quickly and keep the session dynamic — teens do much better when there’s momentum and variety than when they’re standing still waiting to be posed.
Most teens come around within the first fifteen minutes once the pressure lifts and they start to actually have fun. And the photos of a teenager genuinely laughing with their family? Absolutely priceless.
The Bottom Line
There is no such thing as a perfect family session. There are kids who won’t sit still, parents who forget to breathe, moments that go sideways, and light that disappears faster than expected. And somehow, in the middle of all of that, there are also the most real, tender, laugh-filled images you’ll ever have of your family exactly as it is right now.
That’s what I’m there for. You just show up and be with your people — I’ll handle the rest.
Book Your Family Session in Springfield, MO
I photograph families all over the Ozarks — Springfield, Marshfield, Nixa, Ozark, Republic, Rogersville, and surrounding areas. If you’re ready to book or just want to chat through what a session looks like, I’d love to connect.
Inquire about family sessions here →
Katey Sutton is a wedding, engagement, and family photographer based in Marshfield, MO, serving Springfield and the greater Ozarks region.
