Quite often while planning family sessions with other moms their main concern about shooting at the beach is the sand. Will the sand get everywhere? Will it ruin the shot? I always reassure them that it will be part of the experience but then again they just look at me like I’m some weirdo who loves getting dirty. So last week as I was planning with Sam what we would come up with for #twintuesday I thought I’d set the example. Sunrise session at the beach with the kids. Let me be a bit more detailed, sunrise session at 6:30 AM at the beach with one year old twins. I didn’t think we could do it. Especially since my husband wasn’t coming along and I had to get everyone and everything into the car by myself. But we made it. Ten minutes late, but I felt like an Olympian Gold Medalist… it can be done. So all those momma’s out there that I had spoken to and just gave me the “who will wake up the kids that early” “I can’t get everyone ready in time” bit, this girl right here had to put to the test and it most definitely can be done.
As a how-to guide though, if you are planning on having a session at sunrise at the beach here are some tips to keep everyone smooth sailing the day of. We already know someone is going to wake up super grouchy and that Starbucks doesn’t open that early for a coffee fix.
- Prepare everything you will need the night before. I know this sounds like a no-brainer but you would be surprised how often a mom will mention that she was ironing a shirt the morning of.
- Bring as much stuff as you can to the car the night before. Since I was the only one escaping that morning, I made sure I brought to the car our clothes bag and snacks so that I wasn’t making too many trips back and forth in the morning.
- Dress the kids at the beach. Hop in the car their pajamas. There’s a better probability that they will be happier to get naked once they are there than when you first wake them so early. Plus this keeps their picture clothes safe from any mishaps… aka spilled chocolate milk on the drive there.
- Wake the kids right before you are ready to leave the house. That was three minutes for us before I was ready to go. The car was packed, I was dressed and all that I needed was the boys.
- I cheat with hair and makeup because I happen to like wearing my natural beach waves so in my case, it was just make up in the car while Sam drove. But for some mommas, get your make up and hair done at the house. Think about the weather conditions at the beach. Here in Miami its usually windy and humid, so keep it light enough where its not melting with the sun and your hair… this is the biggest thing for girls… EMBRACE IT. Let it do it’s thing. Beach hair is super sexy, I mean come on, you can just pretend you have a fan giving you the Victoria Secret model look. Work with the wind to try and keep it out of your face but overall FORGET IT’S THERE and enjoy the time you are spending with your family. Regardless of whats happening to your hair.
- While at the beach, have fun. Run around and play in the sand and water. Keep the day light and natural and you will for sure release the stress of a perfect photo setting and focus on your family. The pictures will reveal the magic later.
- Bring baby powder to remove the sand once you get to the car. This is a miracle worker.
- If time permits or another day, go back to the beach with the kids! The biggest reward after picture day is breaking loose of the “we have to look nice for pictures” feeling. I didn’t get to do so with the kids that morning because we had to go back home to have breakfast with Daddy but if we would of all been there, we would of gotten in the water for sure. Just like we did this day.
I hope I have inspired you a bit to try it with your own kiddos the next time its picture day. There’s nothing I love more than capturing the boys in their own element and they LOVE the beach. Thank you all for reading!
