How to prepare your home for family photos: Athens, Ohio.
Your home is honestly one of my favorite locations to shoot. It’s a safe space full of potential for honest storytelling where your family photos can truly feel like you. It can feel overwhelming thinking about all of the prep work you need to get your home into photo-ready shape, but it might not be as daunting of a task as you may think. Here are some of my suggestions as to how to prepare for your family photos.
this family had recently moved into their beautiful home near Athens, Ohio and hadn't even unpacked or settled in when we did their photos. instead of feeling pressured to have everything looking "perfect" we embraced real life details and had fun celebrating this milestone for their family. 
Suggestion 1:
Have the right mindset.
It’s okay for your house to look like people live there. Your images can be thoughtful and beautiful in whatever stage of life you are in and really without a ton of pressure to try and make everything sparkling clean and pristine
Suggestion 2: Focus on decluttering rather than deep cleaning.
I do not care if your floors have crumbs on them and I do not care if your giant pile of laundry is shoved in a closet somewhere. Having surfaces like counters free of random pop cans, or extra un-necessary items will be what make a difference. .
Suggestion 3: Clean the main rooms you hope to use first.
Sounds like common sense, and it is. If you want photos of your family baking together, focus on cleaning your kitchen and dining area. If you love the way your bedroom looks and want to cozy up with your newborn in bed, make sure your room is free of clutter. If you get one or two spaces decluttered and looking spiffy, go ahead and keep going if you have the energy. When I’m there, I will move things around and use my eye for detail to set distractions aside as needed, so don’t stress!
Suggestion 4: Plan to do your photos mid-day and take advantage of natural light.
We don’t need a lot of space but we do need windows and even better if there’s sunshine!
Suggestion 5: Plan an activity together during your photos. Anything from favorite games, reading books, or doing crafts. Sky’s the limit on what you can do, but having the option will help you narrow down your prep space and will make for a super fun photo experience with heartfelt images as the result.
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Happy planning! If you need me, you can contact me by clicking here.
