The rain, and this baby, waited for us to take these photos.
We had everything planned out: The Hair and Makeup (Beauty By Brigid), the dress, coordinating outfits, the location (MSV or Museum of the Shenandoah Valley in Winchester), the time - SUNSET. The forecast looked perfect... all. week. long.
And then, Friday evening we went from blue skies into Monday to thunderstorms all weekend, all day, both Saturday and Sunday. I'm talkin' the app was showing all of the clouds, inches of rain, high speed wind, and a lot of lightening bolt symbols. A lot of them.
Individually, we all started minorly panicking. We chatted for a long time, I presented several options for Plan B, and c, and d. etc. In the end, Momma didn't want to wait "just in case". So we chose a couple of inside locations, just in case, and waited it out, all day Saturday into Sunday morning. At the very least, we knew we would be in for a bit of humidity.
Sunday morning we waited until the afternoon, when Hair and Makeup arrived we all jumped for joy as we checked our weather apps one last time - the skies were going to be perfectly clear.
We got heat and humidity, but we also got lovely post-storm clouds, and we found our Sunset.
This momma had one request for her session - Silhouettes. So Sunrise or Sunset was the best bet. Friends, these are time frames you don't want to mess with. Get in early, take photos the entire time, and leave when the light is too harsh (sunrise) or too low (sunset). That is the plan for literally every bright and early or way past bedtime session. (Bedtime, yes I said bedtime... I'm an adult, I promise. I do have a bedtime, as should everyone :)
Silhouettes we made! Check that box right off.
Family photos were created, momma was captured in all of her baby glow, and daddy got to show how he holds her in his comforting, secure ways right up until and into their new beginning together as a growing family.
And their family grew by one... less than two days after these photos were taken - weeks earlier than it was "supposed" to.
Luna Moon even came out to make a stunning appearance. This momma felt like a goddess and she showed it the entire time!
So a couple of lessons learned during the entire process of making this session happen - as there always is.
Policy Change: I will now be scheduling TWO session dates with every session. In case of weather, emergency, or illness on either end. We will hold two dates on our calendar within the same month to ensure we get the photos you want. And as always we will have an plan b for when those inevitably go wrong too.
Lesson 1:Humidity will undo all of the human-made gels, mousse, spray, and creams you put in your hair. Lesson 1a: be okay with it. (Because wow look at those curls.)
Lesson 2: There will be wardrobe, timing, weather, and scheduling issues all the way down to the end. No matter how much you prep and plan. Have a plan b and c, but don't stress when it doesn't happen perfectly. Because you never know what magic will be created when you let go of that control.
and Lesson 3: Always listen to that little voice inside of you, (I'm lookin' at you mommas), that little voice that sometimes says, "just in case". Because it knows best and will never lead you astray. Had we not listened to her little voice, and rescheduled due to insane weather (that never actually happened) - this would have been a MUCH different session - and these photos would have had an extra little one. Don't get me wrong, those photos are amazing too.
Tell me: in the comments, in email, or on my contact page - when have you listened to your little voice, and how did it turn out for you? Then let me know how we can make your next session perfection in the midst of all of the things we cannot control.
0 Comments