san-francisco-film-family-photographer-mi-amore-foto-copy.jpg

Why I choose a lifestyle approach for family sessions

May 27, 2020 in family

It comes down to something so fundamentally simple; you have a story to tell and I’m here to help tell it through photographs.

Lifestyle sessions let everyone breathe easier. I had a session where the child didn't want to be in any of the photos. The mom was stressed and kept apologizing. I told her to breathe and that this was a time in their lives. It's so natural for kids to not want to be in photos, or to be over it within a few moments. This is how her son was feeling at this time and that's okay. We thought of ways that would be fun and natural for him. I had dad pick him up and hold him upside down. I had mom spin him and tickle him. Brother played with toy trucks with him. These are the moments that we remember. We remember storytime, bathtime, putting baby to bed, nursing, playing airplane (where you are on your back and you fly your child through the air using your feet), pillow fights, and just being a family.

Lifestyle sessions allow me to be a quiet presence in your family’s life. They allow me to capture moments that you are never going to want to forget. There are no rules when I show up to a session. I just want to tell your story perfectly.

Finding a New Normal

May 20, 2020 in family, boudoir, headshots, maternity, newborn, Seniors, travel, weddings, engagement

The world is beginning to open back up and I’m feeling…sad.

I know, that sounds crazy, but hear me out.

Let me start by saying that I know how privileged this statement is. People have been without income, not able to see family, sick, dying, working overtime, caring for the sick and dying, living with their abusers, missing their senior year or school, and living in their depression.

I have been able to work and still provide services to my clients (past and new) through this quarantine. I don’t take that lightly.

Let's Finally Get Those Photographs onto Your Walls

May 06, 2020 in products

How long have you been saying, “I really need to print these photographs and put them up”?

Be honest. You know it’s been a while, probably entirely too long.

Do you know why you haven’t done it yet? It’s too overwhelming. Let’s look at some possible reasons as to why you haven’t done it:

You don’t have the time.
You don’t know which photos will look good next to each other.
You don’t know where to have your photographs printed.
You don’t know where to purchase museum quality frames.
You don’t know where the digital files are.
You don’t know how to put a gallery wall together.
You don’t know how to get custom sized prints and frames for your unique space.
You don’t know where to start.

That's where a professional comes in. When I first started photography I just wanted to photograph the session, hand over the digital files, and be done with it. I started to notice that a lot of my couples, families, and boudoir clients had no clue what to do with these files. I would talk to them a year later and the files would still be sitting on their computer. This broke my heart and it was my job to come up with a solution. It's not fair to call myself a professional photographer if I'm not putting in the work.

Your computer crashed and you lost all of your photographs

April 29, 2020 in products

Yes, I’ve heard clients say this.

Yes, it makes my heart drop into my stomach.

Yes, this is your photographer’s job to make sure this never happens to you.

I would highly recommend that you use an online storage, while also backing up to an external hard drive. Here are my recommendations:

You Are What I'm Grateful For | West Palm Beach Family Photographer | Shannon Griffin Photography

April 28, 2020 in weddings, family, boudoir

As an adult, I don’t particularly get into the holidays as much as I did when I was a child. There isn’t the same sense of wonder and magic. It’s also the busiest time of year for me (I had a family session yesterday, on Christmas Eve). I’m also very aware that the holidays are not wonderful for everyone. There are a lot of people that don’t have family, friends, a roof over their head, etc. This time of year brings up a lot of depression and anxiety in many. There is no rule that says that you have to be happy and celebrate Thanksgiving or Christmas or Hanukkah or any other holiday.

This is where I feel truly lucky. I’m working right up until being with my family, I suffer from anxiety and some depression, and I feel like I’m not getting any time for myself, but…I’m happy as hell. That’s a lot for me to be able to say that. I know a lot of that is because of you, my clients. A big part of my self worth comes from my business, it comes from holding time still for you. It always sounds clichè, but I couldn’t do any of this without you. You keep my passion alive. You keep me believing in myself and my business. You’ve kept my doors open and a fire in my belly for over 10 years.