Why Choosing a “Photographer Near Me” is so Important to Your Family

A few years ago, when we thought our family was complete, my husband and I decided to get our family photographed. We wanted what everybody does, to capture the kids in their current state of adorable and have beautiful images of all of us as a family. So I found a photographer whose work I liked and set up a session.

The photographer was about an hour away from us, but I was willing to travel for good photographs. So we loaded our kiddos up on a Saturday afternoon and went to meet the photographer at a vineyard.

Things started to go south almost immediately. The weather kept threatening us with rain and the kids were beginning to fight in the car. Then our 2-year-old fell asleep. So by the time we arrived, we were all a bit frazzled. Especially the youngest, who had to be woken up from his nap so that he could look happy and adorable for our photos. Yeah, so didn’t happen.

You see, I had made a huge mistake. I had chosen a photographer based solely on his work and his prices. I hadn’t considered the comfort of my family. What’s a little car ride, right?

Choosing a “Photographer Near Me” as Google suggests, is huge when you are looking for someone to photograph your family. Yes, you should definitely make sure that you like their work, that you even like them as a person, and that they can give you what you want out of your images. But their location is just as important, believe me.

Had I chosen wisely, we could have had our family photos in our own backyard or at a park 5 minutes away. We would have all arrived fresh and ready to play, with big smiles on our faces. Oh, and that tempting rain would have been no big deal because we wouldn’t have spent an hour in the car only to potentially be rained out.

But the location obstacle didn’t end there. Several weeks later when my images were edited and ready to be viewed, I had to drive that hour again! This time to meet him at his studio to see everything.

Now I could have just had him slap up an online gallery, but then I would have had to wade through tons of images without any guidance on what I could do with them, how they would be displayed best and I wouldn’t have been able to communicate the few changes that I wondered about. I probably would have ended up with a stupid CD of images because I couldn’t decide (which would get lost at the bottom of my desk drawer within a month.)

We did end up with a group of photos that I loved, so I placed a good size order and was excited to get my images home and up on my walls. So when the photographer called a few weeks later to say that my order was ready, I was so excited. “Yes, it turned out beautiful! You CAN PICK IT UP at my studio. . .” At this point, I was ready to scream. I had to drive out there AGAIN!

See the recurring theme here? All of this excruciating travel could have been avoided had I just chosen a Photographer Near Me. And that important detail hasn’t changed as my kids have gotten older.

Then I had babies and toddlers who didn’t travel well. Now I have kids with crazy schedules and an even crazier schedule myself. Having a photographer close by would have saved me so much stress.

We’ve learned our lesson though and have found a wonderful photographer in our town that we can return to year after year. Having our photographs taken with her is so easy and even fun. We always get great images and service and are so glad to have formed a relationship with her.

So learn from my mistakes and find a “Photographer Near Me” to photograph your family. That one little, overlooked detail will make your entire experience a thousand times better.