Words & Images in this post are from Maile & her family after their Sedona family pictures.
What do the words “family pictures” make you think of?
Matching outfits? Crying kids? Grumpy husbands? Pasted on smiles? Awkward poses? Stressed out mama?
For most of us, family pictures have been synonymous with at least one of those things for most of our lives. For too long, family pictures have been a necessary evil, a tedious annual to do, though with admittedly priceless results… which of course… always make it worth it.
But what if it didn’t have to be that way? What if your family session could give you more than just pretty pictures?
What if family pictures could be priceless in the moment while they’re happening, not just a month later when you get your images back?
What if they could bring you closer together as a family, build your relationships with each other, and create a safe space to create a real, magical family memory that you will cherish right now? What if they were so personal, you could see your honest, authentic story in the images?
An experience like that… well it might just change your life… and that’s exactly what I set out to create for my clients.
The Maren Elizabeth Difference
Words by Maile, the beautiful mama you see pictured below.
Before booking with Maren
“It’s always been important to me to capture our love and unity during each season of life. I love being able to look back and relive those memories and precious moments, especially as my baby grows. I love decorating the walls of our home with beautiful artwork of our family, sharing on social media, and creating photo albums that tell the story of our life… But… as special and important as family pictures are… they’re also a pain. A pain to plan and fit into our busy schedule.
“When I started looking for a photographer this time around I was really hoping to find someone who, yes, delivered beautiful pictures, but was also passionate about telling our authentic story and delivering a memorable experience. I wanted family pictures to be fun! When I found Maren I was immediately drawn to not only her rich, earthy style but most importantly the way she captured the love and tender moments. I was blown away!”
Preparing for our Session
“With other photographers, after booking you don’t really hear much from them until the session… That’s not how it goes with Maren. She was hands-on, helping me plan every detail to make our session everything I hoped it would be.
“She sent us a “location menu” that made it so easy to pick the best location as the backdrop for our family pictures. We picked Sedona, Arizona, which was so worth it despite the extra travel!
“Next came her hands-on styling service. Working WITH her to decide what to wear took away the stress of choosing colors and styles that would look good on us, with her editing style, and the natural surroundings of Sedona. She really listened to what I wanted and used her experience to help me achieve it. I felt like we were on the same page the whole time which actually made it fun to shop around to find our outfits. I felt so confident that we looked great because she helped me pick everything! It felt so boho and earthy, a vibe that I totally love to embody!
“My favorite part was the dress I borrowed from her client closet! I never would have spent that much on a dress just for family pictures and thanks to her complimentary client closet, I didn’t have to! I felt gorgeous and have received so many compliments!!!”
The Maren Elizabeth Difference
“The thing I appreciated the most and, I think, made the biggest difference during our session was the pre-session couple and family activities. These were thoughtfully designed questionnaires designed to help strengthen family relationships.
“My husband and I were able to connect in a fun and new way and focus on the love we share, why we choose each other every day, and why we’re signing up to get family pictures taken in the first place. It filled me with gratitude for my spouse, the life we’ve built together, for God’s plan for us, and how special it is that we are living our dreams together. It brought up so many amazing conversations, laughter, reflections, memories, and smiles.
“When Maren talks about creating magic in her sessions, it starts here! I absolutely believe in the magic that’s made while going through the questionnaires and we both could feel the effects before, during, and after our session. It’s such a special and unique way to get that love and magic flowing and it showed in every single picture.
“And it was so low stress! Maren laid out examples of what filling it out might look like; date night, on the go, printing it out, etc. It was so thoughtful and special and it really helped us connect in a beautiful way that inevitably carried over into our family pictures. I can’t wait to do it again next year.
“It also showed us how thoughtful and invested Maren was in our experience and relationships as a family”
Our Sedona Family Pictures Session
“Because of all the pre-session preparation, I felt confident, excited, happy, and grateful leading up to our Sedona family pictures session, very different than the usual stress. It didn’t feel so much like going to get our family pictures taken, but going on a little adventure and making a memory together as a family.
“Our session felt natural and stress-free because I didn’t feel like I had to nail every smile, pose, or strut. I felt like I could just be me and my family could do the same so we could all be fully present and in the moment. There is something so beautiful about that that shone through in the photos we received.
THE big reveal (aka sneak peek)
“To top everything off, Maren sent us the most beautiful sneak peek slide show set to music with a priceless video portrait introduction. It had us both shedding tears. We watched it probably 10 times that night. And many more the next day… and the day after that.
“We’re so glad that we upgraded to the video portrait, it was so amazing to see us connecting and interacting as a family and the video captures it in a way photos can’t quite manage. I can already tell the video will help me remember even more details I would forget otherwise, it’s like stepping into a memory.
“And the photos were amazing. We could feel our love exploding out of the photos. It was the perfect culmination of the whole experience, we couldn’t be happier. We’re so grateful to be able to look back on such a wonderful memory
Final Thoughts
“After our Sedona family pictures and working with Maren we feel much more inclined to book our family photos regularly. Life’s too short to not capture your beautiful growing family. And it’s never felt as stress-free and enjoyable as now, after the MEP experience!
“Maren does more than check all the boxes when looking for a photographer, in fact, she adds boxes you might not have known you even cared about or needed. Maren delivers the most beautiful photos by providing a safe and comfortable space for families to freely be themselves, express their emotions, strengthen their relationships and live in the moment.
“Our MEP experience was truly one of a kind and we can’t wait until next time!”
I’d love to work with you! Click here to book your session with Maren Elizabeth Photography. Or contact me for more information about Sedona family pictures session! To view more of my work and stay up to date, follow me on Instagram.
