For those who don’t know, I offer two types of sessions – mini sessions and full sessions.

Mini Sessions happen at set dates and times of the year (most usually the spring and autumn), and are held at the same location. These currently cost £50 per family, and what you get for this is a 15 minute shoot, followed by a gallery of images with anything from 40-60 edited images to select from. The price also gives you two free high resolution images, with the option to buy more if you wish.

A full session can happen at any mutually convenient date over the year, be held at a mutually agreeable location within the entire region of D&G, and for this you get me for up to an hour. Usually, you will get anywhere between 80 – 250 edited images to choose from. The cost of this session is £90 (with packages available to include prints, digital images or coffee table books).

The question I am asked often is, what is the best session for me. So this blog will explain the pros and cons, which should make your decision an easy one.

MINI SESSIONS

These are absolutely perfect for young kids, particularly on their own or a small group of 2-3. Parents like these sessions as they are quick, and we usually get what we need in a short space of time.

Mini Sessions aren’t always great for kids who are shy, or need a bit of time to get used to me. I can sometimes find that children like this get overwhelmed and upset by the intensity of the pace. If you have any doubts, perhaps get in touch for a chat and we can discuss the options, but I would definitely suggest considering a full session as we can ease into it, let them go at their own pace and take time to get to know me before I introduce my camera.

Mini Sessions are also not recommended for larger groups. I usually suggest keeping it to a small family, but I have had mini sessions with a smaller group of cousins which has worked fine. I did one recently for three cousins which was just the right amount of time for them, and we got some great shots in the process. (pictures below).

From experience, mini sessions with multiple children under a certain age can become far too chaotic. For this short period of time, I really need them to be able to take some direction for photo’s, but if the children won’t sit still and are running off in different directions (which is perfectly fine and expected for young ones) I would encourage you to consider a full session where I can take my time with them all, and try to capture natural as well as group shots.

Mini Sessions are absolutely brilliant for so many, as they are a fast and affordable way to update the family album each year. However, I would recommend a full session for many other reasons, which I will list below.

FULL SESSIONS

If you want a session with a larger group, say an extended family shoot such as the one above, and you also have a particular location in mind within the region, then a full session is for you. With this family, we took a walk up the Castramond Woods in Gatehouse of Fleet as the bluebells are wonderful there, and let the younger boys explore, climb trees and generally enjoy themselves.

Again, this smaller family had a location in mind in Dumfries, but we spent an hour exploring the beautiful grounds and letting the girls have fun in the process. Because it’s more relaxed, I do manage to capture more natural images than I might do in a mini session.

With a full session, you can have a more personalised experience – I have photographed families on their farms, with the family horses, at the beach, even in gardens if they are suitable, and at locations covering the length and breadth of the region.

Another reason for booking full sessions would be if you’re looking for a newborn or baby shoot at home, or if you wanted a more bespoke package. The family in the images below actually ended up combining three full sessions into a package – from maternity, to newborn, to first year. I am always happy to offer bespoke packages.

Hopefully this gives a little taste of what to expect from both sessions, but please get in touch if you want any more information, I’d be happy to help. 🙂