Most children are a bit shy at the start of a family session. To break through that shyness, I like to involve them in the process of taking photos. We’ll start by taking some pictures of the parents together – not that these photos are any good, but it helps them understand what we’re doing. And from there, I ask them if they want to be in the photo as well.

Usually, this question results in a quiet family portrait of the child(ren) with their parents, but this time, the three-year-old ran with it and directed the entire session. It was the best thing ever.

While I was selecting and editing this gallery, the tears streamed down my face because I was laughing so hard. So, when you’re going to have your family portraits taken, please put your children in charge. It will make for the most authentic and unique photos.