Frequently Asked Questions & Concerns

We hope this is helpful, but please give us a call or send a message if you have any questions or concerns that aren't answered here!

When do you shoot newborn sessions?

I recommend that newborns are photographed at around one week of age (ideally between days 7-12) in order to get the very best out of your session, and to achieve the results you see in my portfolio. Any parent will tell you how quickly your little ones will grow in those first couple of weeks, so we want to capture them as early as we can. However, we all know in the days of COVID that plans change! We have taken multiple newborn sessions of older babies in 2020 (5-8 weeks old) that have turned out beautifully.

Are you vaccinated? Do we wear masks? What are you doing for COVID precautions?

Both Olivia and Hannah are fully vaccinated since April 2021. We are still wearing a mask in studio and ask that adults wear them in our studio when they are not being photographed out of an abundance of caution. Children do not need to wear masks in the studio. As always, if you or your child isn't feeling well, please call and we will reschedule. We sanitize regularly, have the studio professionally cleaned regularly, and use UV lights throughout the studio after we leave each day.

When should I schedule my newborn's session?

We schedule out weeks/months in advance, so it's essential that you book your EDD onto our calendar as soon as you know you want to preserve those first, new moments. We don't schedule your actual session until baby arrives. Our clients contact us when their baby is born to let us know they need to come in within a week or so. We only take a set number of newborns each month to ensure we have space for our scheduled babies whenever they decide to make their entrance!

My toddler/kid/dog/husband will never behave well enough for a decent portrait.

Enter Olivia! Seriously, we cannot tell you how many times we've heard this -- especially about toddlers and tweenagers. And we get it - but we promise, they're not going to throw anything at us that we can't handle and that we haven't seen before. For real. We only need a split second to get each perfect image. After 45 minutes of what feels like chaos to you, we'll have a full gallery of amazing images. And we're never going to have a toddler session without chaos, that's the way of toddlers. But it breaks our hearts when someone skips a year because they think their family isn't "cooperative". This is where the magic of OGP happens - leave it to us. If you can dress your family and get to the shoot, we will take care of the rest.

All your clients look so beautiful, we are NOT that photogenic.

Again, enter Olivia! The beauty and expression you see in our images doesn’t happen by accident. We have spent years learning to use the right lighting, lenses and poses to flatter every body type, and we recommend a local makeup artist who does the most beautiful work and can come to the studio before your session or to your home. Not only does she make you look refreshed and not at all tired (because what parent isn't?), having professional makeup done is relaxing and gets you into a good headspace for your session.

We're not in our forever house right now. How can I get something for the wall if I don't know where it will hang eventually?

We have so many clients in that exact situation each year. No need to go big for your wall art if that's not where it will stay for a few years, but there's no need to miss out on having something beautiful on your wall now! We recommend doing a smaller size, an 11x14 or even a 9x12, that can easily hang anywhere. It can go up in your current home, and when you're in your forever home, Olivia can come do a consult to help you start building your family wall gallery with the pieces you have already! And don't worry, you won't have to leave any images behind - we'll put the rest into an epic family album!

How long does a session last?

Newborn sessions typically last 1.5-2.5 hours (depending on how often baby needs to eat). Baby, child and family sessions typically last 45 minutes to an hour. We have spent years honing our talent to be able to create a beautiful gallery for you in as short of a shooting time as possible.

What should we wear for our session?

Don't worry, you'll go over all of this with Olivia at your consultation! You’ll leave your meeting with a good idea of what everyone should wear. Between then and your session, we are available to consult about your outfits via phone, text and email. We encourage clients to text us pictures of clothing, and we can also connect you with a stylist if you want to be totally hands-off and have everything done for you!

Where should we do our session?

In addition to our studio, we have multiple locations in and around New Orleans where we love to shoot. We'll decide this together at your consultation after we go over options!

We just want pictures of the kids, we don't want to be in them.

While we're happy to make portraits of your newborn, baby, or kids solo, we STRONGLY recommend parents participate in the shoot. We take pictures of our children for US, but we take pictures WITH our children for them. Those are the portraits that will be most important to them one day - the ones that show family together. So just pop into a few, and if you don't like them, you don't have to buy them (but we promise you'll like at least some of them). We're our own worst critics - but don't let that get in the way of making these memories, and documenting this important time together. And trust that Olivia will photograph you in a way that flatters you and makes you look your best.