Your phone has 47,000 photos of your kids. Your walls have… that one frame from 2019. Let’s fix that.

Here’s the thing about family photos: everyone wants them. We all know we should do them. We scroll past other people’s gorgeous family portraits and think “yes, we need to do that this year.” And then somehow it’s December, the baby who was three months old is now walking, your toddler looks completely different, and you’re kicking yourself for waiting.

Sound familiar? You’re not alone. But 2026 is the year you’re actually going to do the thing. Let’s make a plan that sticks.

Why Family Photos Keep Falling Through the Cracks (And Why That Ends Now)

It’s not that you don’t care. It’s that life is incredibly full, and family photos feel like something you can do “anytime.” Except that’s exactly the problem, when something can happen anytime, it happens… never.

Your kids are growing impossibly fast. (I know, everyone says this and it sounds like a greeting card, but also: it’s true and it hurts.) That baby chub, those missing teeth, the way your five-year-old still holds your hand, the stage where everyone actually fits in your lap- these phases have expiration dates you can’t see until they’ve already passed. Professional family photos aren’t just about getting everyone to look at the camera and smile. They’re about capturing who you all are right now — the chaos, the connection, the specific way your toddler wraps their arms around their sibling, how your partner looks at you when they think no one’s watching. These aren’t just photos. They’re time capsules.

The “I’ll Do It When…” Trap

Let me guess some of the reasons you’ve been waiting:

• “When we lose the baby weight…”
• “When the kids are a little older and easier to wrangle…”
• “When we have more time…”
• “When we all have something coordinated to wear…”
• “When things calm down…”

Here’s what I know after years of photographing Tampa Bay families: things never calm down. The baby weight might shift, but there will be a new reason to wait. Your kids will never be easier. They’ll just be different kinds of chaos at different ages. And that outfit situation? We’ll figure it out together.

The perfect moment you’re waiting for doesn’t exist. But the real moments — the imperfect, beautiful, chaotic truth of your family right now — those are happening whether you capture them or not.

How to Actually Schedule Family Photos in 2026 (And Stick to It)

Think in seasons, not “someday.”

Instead of “we should do family photos this year,” let’s get specific. Tampa Bay gives us gorgeous weather almost year-round, which means we have options. Here’s how I think about scheduling family photos throughout the year:

Winter/Early Spring (January-March): Perfect weather, beautiful soft light, less humidity. This is Tampa’s secret weapon season. Tourists know it, locals should too. Great for outdoor sessions at the beach or parks. If you’re expecting a baby in spring or summer, late winter maternity photos are magical.

Spring (April-May): Still comfortable weather before summer heat hits. Gorgeous for beach sessions, especially if you have family visiting for spring break. The light stays beautiful later into the evening, which is perfect for families with little ones who need that post-nap timing.

Summer (June-August): Hot and humid, yes. But also? Dramatic sunset skies and the golden hour light is absolutely stunning. We schedule sessions early morning or later evening to avoid the heat. Indoor and studio sessions are always an option too. This is also when I start booking fall sessions because Florida fall books up fast despite being a myth.

Fall (September-November): Everyone wants fall family photos even though Florida fall means it’s still 85 degrees and you’re pretending that scarf isn’t making you sweat. But we make it work, and the photos are beautiful. This is prime family photo season, which means if you want November photos, you’re booking in August. November is also when I offer Santa minis and tree farm minis (one day each, and they book up fast).

Holiday Season (December): If you’re thinking about holiday cards or gifts for grandparents, family photos need to happen in the first few weeks of November. Here’s why: photos take about 2-3 weeks to edit, then professional print companies are dealing with high holiday volumes. Holiday cards can take up to a week to arrive, and framed artwork or keepsakes can take 4-6 weeks for delivery. I wrap up all family session work in November. December is reserved exclusively for maternity, newborn, and milestone client work. (Babies don’t wait for the calendar, after all.)

Pick your “why” and book backward from there.

Are you hoping for holiday cards? You need photos in early November to account for editing time (2-3 weeks), plus printing and delivery (up to a week for cards). Want to gift family portraits to grandparents for Mother’s Day? Book your session for March or April. Planning a gallery wall refresh for your home? Pick a season when your family will look and feel most like themselves, then book 2-3 months in advance to allow time for editing and production of framed artwork (which can take 4-6 weeks during busy seasons).

Start with one, then plan for more.

If the idea of scheduling multiple sessions feels overwhelming, start with one. Just one. Get that on the calendar for a season that makes sense for your family. Then, once you’ve done it and you remember how good it feels to have these moments preserved, we can talk about adding more- maybe a newborn session if baby is on the way, or a back-to-school personality session in August, or holiday minis in November.

The Session Types That Actually Work for Different Stages

Not all family photos are created equal, and not every session type fits every family right now. Here’s what I offer and who each one is perfect for:

Full Family Portrait Sessions are the classic. Your whole crew, extended family welcome, the works. We take our time (because toddlers have opinions and babies have schedules), we get the big group shots and the tiny intimate moments, and you walk away with a full gallery of images that become your family’s visual story for this chapter. Perfect for: growing families, families with aging grandparents you want to capture together, anyone who hasn’t done professional family photos in 2+ years.

Maternity Sessions celebrate that in-between moment when you’re a family of X about to become a family of X+1. Your glow, your growing belly, the anticipation. And if you have older kids, capturing them with you before they become big siblings is incredibly special. These happen in your third trimester, typically between 28-34 weeks.

Newborn Sessions are my specialty, and they’re different from what most photographers offer. I use a baby-led, NICU-informed approach because I understand how newborns work: their nervous systems, their cues, their comfort. We move at your baby’s pace, never rushing, never forcing. These happen within the first two weeks after birth when babies are still sleepy and curly. (Pro tip: book these while you’re still pregnant, because those first weeks are a beautiful blur and you won’t want to be researching photographers.)

Family + Newborn Sessions combine both. Your new baby and your whole family together. We capture those first days with your newest addition while also getting photos of big siblings meeting the baby, parents looking exhausted and proud and in love. It’s the whole story.

Milestone Sessions mark the big moments: sweet 6-month baby rolls and smiles, first birthday, starting school, seniors. These can be full sessions or shorter milestone-focused sessions depending on what you’re celebrating.

Personality Sessions (especially popular for back-to-school in August) are all about capturing who your kid is right now. Their interests, their quirks, their personality. Less “stand here and smile,” more “show me what you love.”

The Part Where I Talk About Printing (Because Your Camera Roll Is Not a Family Heirloom)

Here’s the uncomfortable truth: if your photos live only on your phone or in the cloud, they don’t really exist. Not in the way that matters.

I know digital files feel safe and permanent, but they’re not. Hard drives fail. Phones get lost. Cloud services change. And even if none of that happens (even if your 47,000 photos remain perfectly backed up forever), they’re still invisible. You can’t see them. Your kids can’t see them. They’re not part of your daily life.

When I deliver your family photos, we talk about products: wall art, albums, prints. Because these moments deserve to exist in your actual world. They deserve a place on your walls where you see them every day, in your hands when you flip through an album with your kids, in frames your children will one day take to their own homes.

The digital files are yours. But the prints, the albums, the canvas on your wall? Those are the heirlooms. Those are what your kids will fight over someday. (In a loving way. Probably.)

I’ve photographed hundreds of Tampa Bay families over the years, and I can tell you this: no one has ever regretted doing family photos. Not once. But I’ve heard countless parents say they wish they’d done them sooner, more often, before the baby grew, before their toddler lost that lisp, before life shifted in ways they couldn’t predict.

You can’t stop time. (Believe me, I’ve tried. I swear my sweet, senior dog was a puppy five minutes ago.) But you can preserve it. You can hold onto these moments (the ordinary magic of your specific family in this specific chapter) and turn them into something tangible that lasts. That’s not just what I do as a photographer. It’s why I do it.

So here’s the plan: stop waiting for perfect and start planning for real.

Look at your 2026 calendar. Pick a season that makes sense for your family. Maybe it’s spring before it gets too hot, or fall for those (Florida-style) fall vibes, or winter because your family is visiting and you want four generations together.

Then let’s talk. Tell me about your family, what matters most to you, what you’re hoping to capture. I’ll help you choose the right session type, the best timing, and we’ll get you on the calendar before life gets in the way again.

Because somewhere between “I promise we’ll print these” and actually doing it lies intention. And action. And that’s what we’re doing right now, together.