We can not stress how important family portrait sessions can be. They are even more exciting when one of the children calls to book a session for the whole family.
This was the case for this family session. This is mom and dad. One of their children, Andy, scheduled the shoot for the family. He lives in L.A. so there was a lot of planning through email. He was familiar with Neal Urban's work, and wanted something completely different for his family. He sent us some photos of what he was looking for. He wanted a Kardashian style shoot! We could definitely do that and it was going to be fun!
We sent him multiple locations to research and see if any fit the style. We sent the Statler, Shea's, Salvatore's Italian Gardens, and Ellicott Square Building. The final verdict was the Ellicott Square Building! We also agreed and thought it was the best! Andy called and made arrangements for the shoot. We needed to be there after hours when the business were closed.
Earlier in the week, he said everyone was going to be wearing black and dressy. Perfect! We started with some group photos and then did individual shots and other combinations. We had to bring in mom and dad for some portraits. Andy said they hadn't had any done in so long.
There are identical staircases on both sides of the main courtyard in the building. We used one side for most of the photos. We had to move out a lot of tables and chairs to free up a side. The courtyard has cafes and coffee shops. It is a meeting area for businesses in the building as well.
This family session was also very memorable because Andy has four sisters. And some of them lived out of town as well. We planned it around fourth of July when everyone was going to be home visiting!
We used external lighting for this entire portrait session. We wanted it to look super high end fashion. And that was the way to achieve it. We even had the security guard turn off a lot of the inside lights so we could create this look!
We loved this family session and can't wait to do more like this!
Location: Albany NY.