If you’re newly pregnant, or had a child during the pandemic, you may not have hired a family photographer before. The search to find the right photographer can be overwhelming! Lucky for you, I am about to give you some insider tips on where to look and what to look for!

5 Steps To Choosing The Right Photographer: Hint, it’s not the same person for every family!

Step One: Google

If you don’t have a specific photographer in mind (someone you know, a personal recommendation), the first thing you’ll want to do is head to google. Finding someone who is local and familiar with spots near where you live is key! Think about the type of photography you are searching for: “family”, “newborn”, or “maternity” for example. Use local keywords to search for these types like: “Boston family photographer”, “Boston maternity photographer”.

Open 5-10 in separate tabs so you have something to compare. Things you’re looking for:

• Do they shoot indoors or outdoors?
• Are they a posed/studio photographer or relaxed on-location?
• Do they have a lot of images with kids the age of yours?
• Do they take mostly images of everyone smiling at the camera or not?
• Are props incorporated into their work?

Make sure the answers to these questions aligns with your personal style!

Step Two: Instagram Profiles

An active, professional photographer is pretty much required to have a social media presence these days. Instagram is a great way to get a further peek into the top 2-3 photographers you narrowed down to from your google search! Check out their most recent work by looking at their grid. See their personality and what they find funny with their stories/memes they share.

More than half of finding the right photographer for your family is finding a personality match!

Step Three: The Next Step to Finding The Right Photographer is: Make Contact!

Searching online is a great first step, but nothing beats talking to the final considerations. Make note of how responsive they are, whether they fit into your budget, and whether you feel the communication you’ve received is personalized. If you’re investing in someone you hope to build a relationship with yearly, you want to make sure their communication style jives with yours!

Step Four: Check Google Reviews

Still unsure about investing with someone you don’t personally know? Google reviews can help reassure you! Look to see if any reviews are poor…and if so, why? Look to make sure there are recent reviews as well. If all of them are five years ago, that’s a red flag.

Step Five: Delve Further Into Their Galleries/Portfolios

Home pages are great but a photographer’s gallery or portfolio will be where you want to spend the most time. If you’ve narrowed it down to your final two choices: go to their portfolio page for family, newborn, maternity….or whatever genre you’re looking for. Scroll through and make a note of *how many* images you love. It should not be 1-2. You should love dozens (if not all) of the gallery images for the photographer you choose.

When you’ve found the right photographer for you: book them!

This may seem like an overwhelming process when you’re first starting. But just think! If you do the research and find the *right* fit the first time, this is the only time you’ll have to go through this. You’ll begin cultivating a relationship with a photographer who is the perfect fit for your family from the get-go.

Happy Hunting!

XO- Lyndsay