WHERE WILL THE SESSION TAKE PLACE?

 We have a fabulous, mellow and naturalistic studio in Pasadena, perfect for taking baby and family photos or you can go on location - either in your home, at the beach, a park or at an alternative location of your choice - the session depends primarily upon your aesthetic preferences and the age of your child. We have lots of options and recommendations and can guide you during your booking phone call.

WHEN IS THE BEST TIME TO SCHEDULE MY SESSION?

If you are doing a pregnancy session, it really depends on how much you are showing and when you feel most comfortable! This time can be different for everyone, so we encourage you to give us a call to discuss. 

When scheduling a newborn session, we suggest that you set it up within the first two and a half weeks after birth so you can capture the wonderful tiny newborn qualities. However, any time within the first month is acceptable - we understand the first weeks after baby is born are a little hectic! We will note that we tend to focus more on the emotion of your interactions with your new baby, as well as your baby’s natural beauty rather than posing them with props - therefore we tend to be a little more flexible than companies that focus exclusively on sleeping newborns in baskets and backdrop setups. The next stage after newborn is 6 months (soo fun- classic giggling-baby stage), 9 months (full of personality and on the move) and 1 year (or when your child is up and walking). While EVERY baby stage is totally yummy, for best results we do strongly discourage 3 month shoots unless baby is really holding her head up and full of smiles. If you missed newborn images, we recommend waiting until 6 months - you will get a lot more out of your session. 

If you are pondering doing a birth with us, call us now to discuss! It is never too early to have a consultation and get prepared!

All sessions require fee for booking and holding a date.

DO YOU HAVE A PACKAGE FOR THE “FIRST YEAR” OF OUR BABY'S LIFE?

We do! Ask us about our Baby Steps package that documents all those beautiful stages.

CAN PARENTS BE IN THE PHOTOS?

YES! Those emotional interactions are a huge part of a session with us, absolutely.

HOW LONG WILL THE SESSION LAST?

While we don't limit the length of our sessions, your child will typically determine how long it lasts. On average, the majority of shoots will last between 1.5-2 hours - newborn sessions can be a bit more of a wildcard due to feedings and such. As moms ourselves, we completely understand and are ready for and accustomed to these scenarios. We want you to be relaxed and enjoy your session!

HOW SHOULD I PREPARE FOR A SESSION AT MY HOME?

It isn't hard to prepare for a session at your home, so don't fret! It is fun, easy and relaxed to do an in-home shoot; and believe it or not, you don't have to do a lot of clean up! And you don't need to have a large place for it to work, we are very resourceful. First things first, we will take a look around your home to scope out different places we might want to utilize. We will mostly want to be in the room that has the best light. Ultimately, we do a majority of the session in your bedroom, possibly the living room, and the nursery or yard if you have some shade. Otherwise, we will assess when we get there and help you with anything else! If your home is dark, please consider using our beautiful studio.

WHAT SHOULD WE WEAR?

Simple, lovely and clean is always good. Not too trendy but not too plain- be yourself and dress your child in any way that you want! Let your personalities shine out.

Some rules of thumb to follow: no wild patterns, no logos, no stripes- they distract from the beautiful faces that we want to capture! Please no white and no black; to to find colors somewhere in-between. Don't go matchy-matchy; some color coordination is fine, but having everyone in exactly the same outfit is not ideal. Fun hats and accessories are great, bring them along as we can always put them to look back on a beautiful image and see an outfit and ask, "what was I thinking?"

For pregnancy portraits: the same as above applies with prints and colors. You can also try yoga pants, flowy or stretchy skirts, fitted tank tops, ballet-style wrap sweaters, button down skits, bikini tops or exercise bras and jeans. 

You can also bring different outfits to your session and we'll be happy to consult with you if you're stumped!

HOW SOON AFTER MY SESSION WILL I SEE MY PHOTOGRAPHS?

Within two weeks of your photo session we will set up a viewing meeting at our studio to show you your images. When we meet with you, you will be able to view a custom slide-show set to music of the photos from your session. After watching the slideshow, you will be able to narrow down the photos to your favorites, and from there decide on how you would like to present your images: prints, an album, gallery-wrapped canvas, frames, etc. We are full-service boutique with many, many options.

HOW LONG DO YOU KEEP MY IMAGES?

We would love to keep all digital files forever - but because of limited hard drive space, Shoots & Giggles can only guarantee the archival and indefinite storage of the images purchased at the time of your meeting or during the two weeks when the image website is online. Any images that are not purchased during this period of time will NOT be guaranteed to be archived indefinitely. Therefore, it is important to choose your images thoughtfully at your viewing meeting. 

CAN I HAVE THE DIGITAL FILES?

The majority of our clients purchase digital copies of their images in some form ranging from a single files to the full session on disk or in a package with an album. This offers you the flexibility to archive and print your images however you like or reprint them for grandparents. We 100% understand that most people are going to want something digital. Unlike other photographers, these images are not sized down to limit the reproduction size. You can print these as large as you want, as often as you want. We also offer several product packages that include digital images. We often hear the story of the “forgotten disk of wedding photos” and therefore encourage our clients to purchase something physical (like an album or wall art) with their session rather than just walk away with a disk of images. That being said, you can certainly purchase all or some of your digital files!

HOW DO REFERRALS WORK?

The greatest compliment we can receive is referral from our clients and to make it extra rewarding we have a referral rewards program! For every client you refer that books a session with us, you receive a $50 dollar credit and they do too!

DO YOU SHOOT EVENTS?

We sure do! We follow many of our clients through the first years and this often includes capturing Baby Showers, 1st Birthdays, Baptisms and on and on - it is wonderful to be able to be there to document those special events for our clients. For more, email or call us or visit our blog dedicated to events at shootsandgiggles.com/events