It’s always a good time to get new photos taken of your family, but spring is the most popular season for a reason. Taking pictures in the spring offers many benefits that other seasons simply don’t have. If you’re trying to decide when to schedule your next family portraits, you can’t go wrong choosing a date in March, April, May, or June. 

Here are a few reasons to schedule your family photo session this spring: 

Why Spring Is the Best Time of Year for Family Portraits

1. Flowers and Colors

Spring is when the most flowers are in bloom throughout Texas, and scheduling a spring photography session can allow these beautiful buds to enhance your outdoor photography. The bluebonnet, Texas’s state flower, blooms from late March to mid-May. These gorgeous blue-purple blooms can add southern charm to your spring photos. 

Aside from bluebonnets, Texas is home to more than 5,000 species of wildflowers, including: 

• Indian paintbrushes
• Pink evening primroses (buttercups)
• Dandelions
• Brown-eyed Susans
• Texas bluebells
• Indian blankets
• White prickly poppies
• And many more!

Using these flowers as a backdrop can add beauty and visual interest to your family’s photos. 

2. Weather

While Texas has mild weather throughout the winter, rain and unexpected cold temperatures can put a damper on your photo session. Scheduling your family portraits for the spring gives you a better chance of experiencing favorable weather. 

3. Lighting

The amount of daylight each day slowly increases from January to June. When you book family portraits in the spring months, you’ll have access to more than 12 hours of daylight that can provide ample lighting for your photo session. Whether you want glowy golden hour photos or bright and cheery afternoon pictures, spring will give you the sunlight you need. 

4. Fresh Air

Being cooped up all winter does a number on everyone. When you take photos in the fresh, warm spring air, your family will feel happier and more relaxed, which can lead to better photos. You’ll also feel more comfortable posing in 75+-degree weather as opposed to the chilly 50s and 60s of the winter months or the 90s and 100s of the summer. 

5. Updated Photos of Kids

Most schools in Texas take school portraits in the fall, but your children grow and change every day. Scheduling a spring photo session can ensure that you document your kids’ growth with professional photography in between the yearly school photos. 

What Time of Day Is Best?

If you’re planning to take outdoor photos, different times of the day offer different lighting benefits. The best time depends on your location and backdrop, as you’ll want to make sure the sun is in a good spot to illuminate your session. 

Golden hour, or the hour before sunset or after sunrise, is a popular time to take spring photos. This time of day offers beautiful golden light floating just above the horizon, allowing the sun to star in your spring photos. If you’re planning a photo session in a flower field, on the beach, or even in your backyard, scheduling your session during golden hour can leave you with stunning photos. 

However, Texas has beautiful, shining daylight for more than 12 hours a day during the spring months. Scheduling your spring photo session during any of these hours can capture the moment with a beautiful, sunny backdrop. Additionally, professional photographers know how to use any sun position in their favor to enhance illumination in photos. 

What To Wear for Your Spring Photoshoot?

Your family should wear whatever you feel comfortable in to a spring photo shoot. Comfort shows in your expressions and postures during your photo session. Wearing stiff, impractical clothing may look nice, but you won’t feel as relaxed and yourself in these clothes. 

Some families try to wear coordinating colors and patterns to their photo sessions, while others allow each family member to show up in their favorite outfit. 

Bright colors, floral patterns, and flowy materials tend to look best in the spring. If you aren’t quite sure, feel free to have a conversation your photographer prior to the session to get their opinion on your outfits of choice. Without a doubt, your  photographer will work their magic to ensure that your photos look great, no matter what you wear.

Final Thoughts

Scheduling family portraits during the spring is a great choice. Your family will have beautiful spring blooms as backdrops, ample natural lighting, and positive attitudes from the pleasant weather. 

If you’re looking for a professional family photographer in Humble, TX, look no further than Visibly Illustrated. We have extensive experience helping families of all sizes and age ranges look and feel comfortable on camera. We’ll help you achieve stunning photos that capture the moment and allow the beautiful spring weather to shine.

Contact us today at 281-940-7458 to schedule your family portraits!

Photographs are the best way to store your precious memories. As smartphone cameras continuously evolve, many people think they could just get a friend or family member to shoot wedding portraits, graduation shoots, engagement photos, or newborn pictures.

However, commercial photography involves much more than pointing the camera and shooting. Professional photographers understand complex lighting cues, background color contrasts, camera angles, posing, and much more. Their pro-level cameras allow for manual control of many factors affecting the outcome of the photographs.

When you hire a photographer whose style matches your vision, you’ll have visual memories that depict moods, emotions, and every aspect of that special moment. Whether you want to create inspirational photos or curate the perfect keepsake, you need a professional photographer to help you translate your vision into frameable images. 

Top Reasons To Hire a Professional for Your Next Photo Shoot or Event

When someone takes photography courses, attend photography network events, and learn to use complex equipment throughout their photography career, they develop key skills that set them apart from novice picture-takers. Photographers have experience, high-quality equipment, strong editing skills, and a deep understanding of lighting, angles, colors, and subject positioning. 

1.  A Professional Photographer’s Experience Creates Results

Have you ever taken a photo and thought it didn’t look as good as real life? Or maybe you’ve seen yourself in photos and thought something looked “off.” Either way, these distorted results often result from a lack of photography experience. 

Photographers have years of experience working in professional photography and perfecting their craft. Such experience allows them to know exactly how to translate real-life settings, people, and emotions into a single image. Photographers know how to get your desired results by nailing down the location, posing, lighting, and editing. 

2.  High-Quality Equipment Offers Sharper Images

Many people assume that you only need an expensive camera to get great pictures. However, high-quality, professional equipment requires expertise and fine-tuning. 

Think of it this way: When you wake up in the morning, you likely check the weather before getting dressed for the day. The temperature, rain, and wind will all dictate the clothes and shoes you wear. The same careful considerations are critical with photography equipment. 

An expensive, high-quality camera doesn’t mean you’ll get great results. You must understand which lenses and meter settings work best for different scenarios. The lighting, subjects, and desired outcome will impact exactly how you adjust the camera’s aperture, shutter speed, and lens filters for each photo. 

A professional photographer understands all of these factors and can use the right equipment to create the results you desire. For example, if you want clear portraits and silhouette landscape shots, your photographer will likely need separate lens setups for each. 

3.  Lighting and Angles Change Everything

Though they probably seem like minor details to you, the lighting, camera angle, and photographic proportions can drastically change photo outcomes. While you may be able to face away from the sun and take bright, clear pictures, a professional photographer can analyze an entire setting to perfectly capture a moment’s feelings.

For example, say you find a picture online of a beautiful field in your local area where you’d love to take family photos. Your photographer will understand which time of day offers ideal lighting in this location so you can achieve a picture that resembles the example.  

With advanced knowledge of lenses and camera angles, photographers can accentuate certain aspects of the subjects and setting. For example, your wedding photographer could focus the camera on hands intertwined in the foreground, showing off wedding bands, with you and your partner out of focus, creating a sentimental and timeless image. 

4.  Your Photographer Can Teach You How To Pose

Posing for pictures can feel awkward when you don’t know the best ways to hold yourself. Your photographer understands how different shapes and lines should balance to create an engaging and visually pleasing image. They can help you pose in interesting ways to transform what might be a standard snapshot into something that looks cinematic. 

5.  Professionals Can Edit Anything To Be Perfect

While you may understand how to use basic iPhone editing apps, you likely don’t know the full ins and outs of Adobe Photoshop or other top-tier photo editing software. Your photographer knows how to use these programs to enhance your images and make them perfect. 

For example, they might transform a boring sky into a cascading sunset or remove bystanders from a distracting background. For photo shoots at busy locations, like weddings, you need a professional photographer who can edit well.

Let Us at Visibly Illustrated Capture Your Memories 

Now that you know why you should hire a professional photographer in your area, it’s time to consider your options.  At Visibly Illustrated, we offer lifestyle and portrait photography, commercial photography, videography, and aerial photography. Regardless of your needs, we deliver session guidance, photo reviews, and quick turnarounds to ensure that our images leave lasting impressions. 

If you’d like to work with us, peruse our strong portfolio online to see our photography style. If you like what you see, call us at Visibly Illustrated in Humble, Texas, today at (281) 940-7458 or fill out our online form to schedule a session with our professional photographer.

Do you have a professional headshot photo shoot coming up? If so, you may feel a little nervous or unsure about the process.

Thankfully, any great photographer will work hard to help you feel comfortable during the shoot. However, you can also take a few measures to prepare for the photo shoot and receive photos you feel confident in.

Read on to learn our six tips for preparing for professional headshots.

What Makes A Good Headshot

Before you can begin preparing for your business headshots, you should understand what makes a good headshot. Many people believe that as long as they stand still in front of the camera, their headshot will come out well. However, several elements can impact how your headshot appears to others and whether you feel confident in it, such as:

• Clothing
• Hairstyle
• Background
• Posture
• Tone
• Lighting
• Camera quality
• Post-production

Your headshot reflects your company and branding and is often the first impression customers see when browsing your website. As a result, every element of your headshot should portray a clean, flattering, professional image.

Tip #1: Solid Clothes – Ironed

Before heading to your corporate headshots session, you must choose the proper clothing to portray a professional, neat appearance. Choosing the right attire can accomplish two benefits:

• Help you appear professional and attractive.
• Give you confidence during the photo shoot, creating more authentic photos.

We recommend wearing solid colors rather than prints or patterns to ensure that the focus remains on your face. Additionally, be sure to iron your clothes before you get dressed the morning of the shoot. If you forget, your photographer can also smooth wrinkles in post-production.

Tip #2: Posture – Lean into the Camera

Your posture has a significant effect on your appearance within a headshot photo. We recommend angling your body slightly toward the camera, keeping your face head-on with the lens, and leaning your weight on your front foot. Leaning into the camera in this way will:

• Stretch your neck, eliminating the “double-chin” effect
• Enhance your jawline
• Draw the focus to your eyes
• Create a friendlier, more approachable appearance

You should also be sure to stand up tall and keep your shoulders back. A hunched posture can portray an image of discomfort or insecurity while standing tall can help you look and feel confident.

Tip #3: Reset Your Smile

Your photographer will take several photos to ensure that they obtain the perfect shot. As a result, you may need to stand behind the camera for a few minutes during the shoot.
Instead of maintaining the same smile throughout the photo shoot, we recommend resetting your facial expression between pictures. Holding a smile for longer than a few seconds can create an unnatural appearance, but simply resetting your expression can refresh your smile.

Additionally, you may want to take several photos with different expressions, such as a wide smile, a softer grin, and a neutral expression.

Tip #4: Reinforce Your Brand Image

Before you begin your headshot session, you should discuss with your photographer the tone and image you’d like to portray. Different companies often choose to portray different tones in their photos. Being aware of your tone ahead of time can help you shape your appearance and posture accordingly.
For example, you may want to portray an approachable, friendly appearance of your brand. Alternatively, you may choose a more professional, centered look.
Whichever tone you choose to portray, you should ensure that it reinforces your brand image and comes across in your headshots.

Tip #5: Be Transparent

Communication with your photographer is key to obtaining the best headshots. As hard as you try to portray a specific image, your photographer is the only one who can see how you look behind the camera. Being open about your goals for the shoot, the poses you dislike, and any personal requests can help you experience a smoother, more successful session.
We recommend either sitting down with your photographer for a consultation before the photo shoot or spending a few minutes discussing your goals on the day of. This discussion will be invaluable in achieving a final product you are happy with.

Tip #6: Update Your Headshots Regularly

Finally, taking professional headshots shouldn’t be a one-and-done experience. We recommend updating your headshots every one to two years to ensure that they reflect your current appearance and keep your corporate branding fresh.

Additionally, you should schedule a headshot photoshoot for every new employee who joins your team.

Contact Visibly Illustrated

If you’re looking to receive professional headshots that reflect your company well, we can help. At Visibly Illustrated, we have extensive experience shooting professional headshots that can enhance your brand image and build trust between you and your clients.

Contact us today at (281) 940-7458 to schedule your professional headshot shoot.