Please Leaves, Don't Fall off the Trees | Littleton Colorado Fall Family Photo Session
Every year in cities all over the country that have a true fall, in which the leaves actually turn gorgeous shades of yellow and red, there are photographers that are pulling their hair out trying to figure out when to schedule photo sessions for clients that want those golden colored leaves in the background of their photos. These clients have waited out spring and summer to have their family photos done during peak leaf color. It is common place for us to be asked, "When do you think the leaves will be at their peak?"; and we look at our crystal ball and say, "Oh, I bet that'll be the 2nd week of October in Denver." And yep, it's just a guess, and the majority of the time, only a few lucky clients will actually get that pretty peak color. The reason peak color is difficult to predict is because Denver weather is cray cray, and at some point during fall, the leaves are still too green, or it will be too cold to shoot, or we will have a big wind or snow storm and it will blow all the dang leaves off the trees; hence the title of this blog, "Please leaves don't fall off the trees!" Last year, this was my lucky family who somehow got their session in during peak leaf colors.
I was so happy that it worked out perfectly for the H family, because it had been years since they had had their photos done and they deserved every bit of this gorgeous color and weather. Their son was a tween, and if you know tween and teen boys, photo sessions aren't usually their favorite thing. But this family was different - they all wanted to be there, and they let me get all in their business to get to know them and that's when the magic happened.
My trick when I'm starting out my session is to tell whomever gets to go first to just act natural because all I'm doing is testing out my settings; and when this is how they act naturally (see first photo of their tween son); you know it's going to be a good session. I rarely shoot small families of 3, and it was so refreshing to take my time and not have to keep track of whether or not I got all the family combinations because there are literally just 4 family combinations! No way I could miss something, and I got to really explore lots of different poses and not feel rushed at all!
The photo above was so timeless and precious that I had to turn it into black and white, because it was one that deserved for you to only focus on the emotion that it gave you. When I asked Mom, was there anything special that she and her son liked to do that she wanted documented and she said "yes, there is; let me show you!" So I got my camera ready and she and her son did this Eskimo Kiss. I knew it was magic because Mom and I agreed, there isn't much longer that they would be doing this, as her son was off to middle school next year and once boys get to middle school they're not known to give their moms Eskimo Kisses.
So many fun poses with mom and son, and dad and son; son by himself, and then all three of them! But you know I can't leave out one of the combinations I think is most important for every family session....and that's mom and dad without any kids!
We ended the session by moving to a couple of different areas of Ketring Park for some variety and we had equally gorgeous backgrounds.
I hope you enjoyed getting a glimpse of this gorgeous fall session, and now you know some of the complexities of scheduling a fall session with your favorite photographer. So although you may have missed out this year, you can start planning ahead for next year. Remember to shoot for the 2nd week in October, maybe, ha!
Danielle Makia, Photographer is a South Denver Family Photography Business also specializing in Maternity, Children, In Home Newborns, Senior and Extended Family Sessions; as well as Intimate Weddings/Elopements and Event photography. Service areas include Denver, Colorado; Aurora, Colorado; Highlands Ranch, Colorado and surrounding Denver suburbs.