A Mom's Guide to Photo Styling

Jess in our FAYE Short

Our children create the most instagram-worthy moments every day! If only we had a professional photographer to follow us around every day + capture them, right??

Meet Jess.

When we saw her feed we knew that we needed to ask her how she documented her memories with her adorable kids! Not only are her kids the cutest, but her babies seem to love being in front of the camera. #instagrammodels in the making!

We reached out to Jess and asked her to give us a few tips on capturing those swoon-worthy moments. 

"I’ve been into photography for fun ever since I was a pre-teen, I was always that person who took a camera everywhere to everything (even when it was still film!). I’m no expert by any means but over the years I have honed in on my photography style, so here are some basic guidelines I use for my photos: 

Start with a  neutral or nature-al background/base. A plain wall, neutral sheets/blankets, nature scenes work as a great base so as not to take away from subject(s) of the photo. If I have a bolder backdrop I’ll balance it out with more subdued outfits/accessories. I also use a preset that desaturates bright colours which makes for more neutral/serene feel to my photos. 

Layer in some cute accessories/decor. whether it be a sweet outfit, cute toys, greenery, home decor items or the perfect hat ;)

Lighting in everything. Soft natural light is always best.  

Let the moments happen. I’ve let go of the expectation that I’ll get both kids looking straight at the camera with the picture perfect smile, so usually I just let them do what they’ll do and snap away - I think this results in a more organic looking photos and sweet memories of them together. On occasions where I want their attention, pretending their favourite stuffy is taking the picture or using a noisy toy works well for us. Now I turn up the shutter speed (or press down the shutter button on your cell phone) and keep taking photos one of them inevitably runs away!

When you hit a creative block... I have a saved folder on Instagram and a Pinterest board for when Im feeling uninspired. I’ll try to put my own spin on a picture and since kids are, well, kids you’ll come up with something different but beautiful in its own way.