We loved this busy, raw, and emotional documentary session featuring a family of 6 sent to us by Julia Erz. She is a documentary family photographer in Germany. Julia has two kids of her own and a masters in psychology which can only assist in her ability to understand and empathize with the children she photographs and anticipate their behavior. You can check out more of Julia’s work on her website, Facebook page, and Instagram.

Here is what Julia had to say to our contributors:

Chrystal: I love how honest these moments are. Sometimes I feel my documentary clients are still looking for pretty, perfect moments even though it’s a Day in the Life session. Is this true for some of your clients too? How do you make sure to find clients that would love an image of nose picking? I think it’s so perfect and wonderful but worry the client may not.

Well, the families see the photos on my homepage (www.juliaerz.com), my Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/juliaerzphoto/) and Facebook (https://de-de.facebook.com/JuliaErzPhotography/). I think they know that I show “real” pictures rather than aesthetic ones, which demonstrate the daily life and routine. It’s clear to me that not all families want these authentic pictures, but that’s totally fine.

In a while, these pictures will be of great sentimental value. Kids are growing up so fast and there’ll be a time when we miss the moments when we told them not to pick their nose, when we were annoyed or the intimate cuddles with them. How wonderful will it be to dig out these photos from “a day in the life” from the past and just reminisce…

I’m also aware that these family portrait sessions require a massive amount of trust. For the most part, there’ll be a bit of tension and shyness at the beginning, but – and I speak from experience – these will cease after half an hour and the family will feel comfortable to do what they normally do. When it’s time to say goodbye, the parents are super excited about how relaxed their day was. I also notice that the kids are able to their thing free of any reservations, without having to pose and smile into a random camera. It really is much easier than the family thinks. It’s just so much fun!

Aniya: Julia, it’s no secret I’m a huge fan of your work. You seem to be able to get access to these families so that they are completely at ease with you. How well do you get to know your clients before the session? Do you send them a questionnaire? What do you do to put your clients at ease so that they are at ease with your presence?

For the most part, I didn’t know the families that I have accompanied at all. I do not send a questionnaire before the shooting. I rather make sure in advance that I know their expectations and what they can expect from my type of photography. This is essential to me! If the family is well informed before our session, everything works out just fine.

During our shooting, I’m not the famous fly on the wall. It’s quite the contrary – I talk to the parents and kids and keep up the conversation. I’m always happy to get to know new people, find out about their story, hobbies and everything else.

My primary day job is being a nurse, but then I decided to add a degree in rehabilitation psychology. I’ve always been interested in patients’ lives and backgrounds rather than what they were diagnosed with. I believe that a natural interest in people is essential for documenting families via photography.

Carrie: Do you think your background in Psychology affects/informs your artistic vision when shooting your family or clients? If so, can you elaborate?

Definitely! But; I’ve always been a rather empathetic and sensitive individual. I experience situations and personal encounters very intensely. I don’t think that it’s necessarily linked with my studies in psychology. Just by watching and simply observing people, our surroundings and the lighting, moments unfold, which I would just love to capture with my camera immediately.

Lisa: With such a large family there must have been so much activity going on at the same time. How did you decide which moments to capture? Did you feel that you needed to choose one moment over another at times?

Honestly, I love big families. There’s ALWAYS something going on. Of course, it’s hard to literally be at a lot of different places all at once, but I stopped pressuring myself. For me, it’s important that the composition, lighting, and moment merge into the perfect picture. Yes, I may miss another moment in this situation, but I’m even more happy about ONE really great photo, where everything is perfect.

Leslie: What a great set of images. I love your use of b/w. Really allows me to connect with the family. Many times when I’m photographing a family, I have a muse…that one person who draws me for a great deal of the session. Do you find yourself doing this as well? If so, who was your muse during this session?

Yes, sure. I definitely have a muse during every family portrait session; however, most of the time I do realize that I’m taking too many photos of this muse and will make sure to get the other family members into the picture as well.

But during this season with a family of six, there was a balance from the beginning. All four kids have COMPLETELY different personalities and manners, which made it extremely exciting for me. If I had to pick a muse, it’d have to be the second youngest boy who was picking his nose.

Michelle: The documentary family photography movement is growing in the U.S. but, outside of large metro areas, it is definitely diffuse. It’s still hard to get families to buy into this style of photography. Is this the same in Germany or do you feel that the European mindset toward these kinds of sessions is different from what you understand of that in the U.S.?

Oh, documentational family photography is arriving VERY slowly in Germany. I feel like the US are moving at a faster pace here, also when it comes to the families’ attitudes.

People spend money on good wedding photographers, but when it comes to family photos, they are satisfied with photos that were shot in kindergarten (in Germany). That’s very sad!

For me, documentational family photography is a luxury. But why not gift your kids something of a more sentimental value (for later on). Kids are being bombarded with material gifts nowadays, so it would be amazing to present them with some family portraits, as a treasure for later.

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Want information on how you can be a featured artist? Check out our submission page for all the details.

This session from Katie McMenamin stood out for us, not only because of her beautiful images, but also because of her long standing relationship with the family pictured. Katie says:

“I have been photographing families for almost ten years now and started shooting documentary sessions several years ago. The majority of my work is still lifestyle sessions, but documentary really has my heart. There is nothing like going into a family’s home and capturing all the little moments that they’ll want to remember years from now. I love how it preserves a sliver in time, how it’s about more than just pretty pictures. I firmly believe that the value of these photos will really be felt ten years from now, when life looks very different than it does at the moment.

I have been photographing this family since their oldest of four kids was just one. This Winter was the first opportunity that I’d had to photograph a documentary session for them. Mom home schools their older kids and dad happened to be home that day, so it was a really relaxed, typical day in their home. I photographed a bit of their home schooling, the kids playing with legos, lunch and nap time. The kids’ personalities really shone and I loved watching them interact with each other in this setting where they’re super comfortable. It was by far, my favorite session that I’ve ever had with them.”

You can read more about Katie on her website, Facebook page, and Instagram account.

Our contributors also asked Katie a few questions about this session and her work in general. Below is her Q & A:

Aniya: Hi Katie, I love that you’ve been able to move this family from lifestyle to documentary. How do you see this creeping into your business, and how would you go about marketing these sessions differently from your lifestyle sessions? Also, I see that you aren’t afraid to get close in, and go in some places that some photographers stay away from. Do you ask before, say, going into the bathroom? Did you find this particular documentary session more relaxed since you do know this family particularly well?

I started out shooting weddings about ten years ago, and even then, I was always drawn to the photojournalistic moments over the posed photos. So when I started focusing on family photos, even in a more traditional lifestyle session, I always loved capturing documentary moments. I shot my first fully documentary session almost five years ago, https://www.kmcmenamin.com/r-family-part-1-manayunk-documentary-family-photographer/. I feel like it’s been a slow build since then. At first, I didn’t think I’d be able to sell this sort of session to people, and honestly, I was too scared to even try. Once I had my own kids, I realized the true value of these photos. I have been working harder to show these types of images on my website, blog and social media and to encourage my clients to at least make a portion of their session documentary, which I think gives them a taste of this type of work. I love nothing more than when a client who had a traditional, lifestyle session, tells me that a documentary moment that I captured was their favorite image. Lifestyle images with beautiful light and smiling happy kids sell themselves. I really think it’s harder to see the value in documentary photos unless you see photos of your own family.

Any time I know the client before the session, it is always more relaxed. I also always have my clients fill out a pre-session questionnaire. So even if I don’t know them, I can get a taste for what moments are important to them and who they are as a family. If I am capturing a personal moment and it wasn’t explicitly addressed in the questionnaire, such as breastfeeding or a toddler on the potty, I will usually ask if it’s okay. If a little one is older than a toddler, then I just give them their privacy in the bathroom, unless the door is open and they’re brushing their teeth or washing hands, etc. I am also extra discerning with what I share online. I never want to make my client feel uncomfortable with an image that I share, so if it feels too private or intimate, I will either ask or simply won’t share it. I think it takes a lot of trust for a client to let me into their home to capture everything, the good, bad and ugly, and I really want to respect that trust.

Today we are featuring a family session by Chelsea Silbereis from Hamden, Connecticut. Here’s what Chelsea had to say about this session:

“I spent a fantastic day with Rachel and her family. In all seriousness, as I’m coming off of maternity leave and focusing exclusively on in-home, documentary family sessions, this session meant so much for me. First of all, Rachel and her family were so welcoming. We live in the same neighborhood and they shared so much knowledge with me, from their preschool and kindergarten experience to some restaurant recommendations. Second, I love my job. I have missed this so much. It is a long, tiring day, but I get home invigorated. Then when I’m getting bogged down by life, I work on a little editing and I’m invigorated again. It is beyond words to be able to spend time with a family and make pictures of all of their love and the little quirks and traditions that they share. It makes me overflow with joy and gives me hope.”

You can find Chelsea online on her site, facebook, and instagram. Read on below to find out more about Chelsea, this session, and her approach to photography.

Jessica: I love your creative compositions that are still moment-focused. Do you find a composition and wait for something to happen in the frame, or are you just watching for a moment to occur.

Chelsea: A little bit of both. I’m looking for a composition the whole time I’m with the family, and sort of mentally mapping out compositions that I like so that when the family is in a particular area I have an idea of how I’d like to shoot whatever is happening. Of course, if something great is happening outside of where I plan on shooting, I go for it. But I can certainly tell that the pictures in which I set up the composition then wait for a great moment tend to be stronger.

Leslie: Beautiful family story. Was this the session that made you realize you only wanted to shoot in-home family documentary? If so, how did you come to that realization? If not, when did you realize that was your passion?

Chelsea: I had always tended towards shooting more documentary style sessions. When photographing families I gravitated towards less posing, more activities. Eventually I discovered Kirsten Lewis’s work and participated in her group mentoring. This pushed me towards doing fully documentary, all day sessions.

But it wasn’t until I hired a business coach that I decided to go for it and get exclusive. Shawna helped me identify what part of my business really inspired me. She convinced me that having a specific vision will result in clients who are more devoted and will make it easier for me to promote my business as well as feel fulfilled by my work. You can find her here.

Aniya: This is an amazing session, Chelsea. There are times when I’m doing a day in the life when I feel some moments are off limits and I’m having an inner conflict. For example, if a child is behaving really badly and dad is at his wits end at scolding him; do I shoot through this? Is it disrespectful to shoot? Am I going to be yelled at to put my camera down? Did you ever have any of those moments with this session, where you weren’t sure you should be documenting?

Chelsea: It is better to ask for forgiveness than permission. In one of my first Real Day sessions I arrived before the Dad woke up. In retrospect I can see that the Mom was really eager for me to shoot her and the kids waking up Dad as that was a special ritual for them, but I was afraid. I didn’t follow them into the bedroom. Afterwards I felt miserable. In the immediate aftermath I could tell she was disappointed and I had to work to regain her trust. I gave myself a clear goal of shooting everything regardless of my discomfort because that is what I’m there for, that is what I’ve sold my client.

In this particular session the Mom communicated to me before hand that she didn’t want any below the waist nudity photographed, at all. When she brought it up I took the time to clarify exactly what that meant. What we came away with was I should photograph through any nudity, but compose the pictures to only show the kids from the waist up.

During the session the older son had a couple of time outs. I could tell that he did not want to be photographed during his time outs, but the parents didn’t mind. I continued to photograph but tried to give him his space. Eventually he asked me not to photograph him on the “naughty step,” and I said “absolutely, I’ll give you some privacy.” He seemed to really appreciate that and we moved on with our day just fine. Which really worked out perfectly because I was able to deliver time out pictures, but also respect his request when he decided he wanted me to stop. I think it actually helped me connect with him because he was able to set a boundary and saw that I really respected his decision. Essentially I treated him like an adult, like it was his decision and that usually goes over really well with kids.

Meg: What are some of the first things you do when you go into a session like this? Do you shoot right away or do you chat with the family and let them get used to you some?

Chelsea: I have my camera out right away and I let them know that during our communication before the session. I start out talking and shooting less and as they get comfortable I’m shooting more and relating less, but I want to be ready the minute I arrive (even before, as I’m approaching the house) in case there’s a great opportunity for a picture.

Lacey: How did you know you were ready to end your maternity leave and get back to photographing clients? How was it going back after a long break? Was it different getting back in than what you expected? How so?

Chelsea: I’ve been shooting pretty sporadically since having my first baby in April 2014. During this pregnancy, my second, I really didn’t shoot or promote my business very much as I had a very difficult pregnancy. I felt so sick much of the time that I didn’t even want to make pictures of my own family and really struggled through the few client sessions that I did. So I was pretty excited to get back to shooting and to be really focused on only shooting what I’m most excited about.

Practically, the most difficult thing was pumping enough to get my baby through around 12 hours without me. I know he had a hard day being away but the joy on his face and how he settled into my arms when I came home was just wonderful to experience.

Lisa: What was your biggest takeaway from doing this session?

Chelsea: I think my biggest take away was confirmation that I’m on the right path. I enjoyed the day, I enjoyed the shooting, I enjoyed the editing much more than I usually do. I feel like I’m finally saying something with my work, something that is really important to me, and I can’t wait to see where that takes me.

Michelle: Which of the photos you submitted is your favorite and why?

Chelsea: It is hard to pick. I really love pictures that contain the whole family. From this set I love the picture of the parents trying to use their phones while the kids are climbing all over them. My body knows exactly what that feels like so when I look at the picture it feels really universal but also very specific. It tells the story of something probably all parents experience, but it is also something pretty unique to our period in history.

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Want information on how you can be a featured artist? Check out our submission page for all the details.