So you had your family photo session!

You did it! You finished up your family photo session, and hopefully, you had a magical time with your photographer on the big day. Whether you were celebrating something big like all of your people being together once a year, or just updating the professional photos you have of you with your kids (or fur-babies!) it’s always super exciting to be in the “middle place” between having your session, and seeing your images.

For clients here at Jessica Strobel Photography, that “middle place” doesn’t last long though, because when you have a session with me, you’ll get access to your gallery for choosing your favorite images SUPER fast after your session! Like, within 72 hours, fast.

When you’re done, it’s time to pick your photos!

And once you’ve got that gallery, you get to choose your images! With most of my family photo sessions, there are five digital images included at no additional cost – but if you’re working with another photographer, that number might vary. Everyone does things differently, after all.

Selecting your images might not be easy, but if you want to, you can always upgrade your package to include more images! You’re not ever limited to just five, if you want more than that from your session. But depending on what you’re using your photos for, you might only NEED five, and that’s okay too!

What should YOU look into ordering after your session?

So if everyone really needs something different after their photo session, how do you choose what you’re going for? How do you pick what YOU need in YOUR unique situation? Well, the answer isn’t cookie cutter, I won’t lie to you. It means thinking about all of the different ways you COULD use your photos after your session, and then doing a little bit of planning ahead!

This is especially true when it comes to physical prints, and albums, and other fun artwork that includes your pictures. Some things, you’ll be able to order yourself with your digital images from the session. For example, if you wanted to order a custom product from someone who makes cool customized things on Etsy after your session. But for products like simple prints and albums, you’re likely better off ordering them right after your session, from within the gallery offered by your photographer!

If you’re working with Jessica Strobel Photography, then you’ll have all kinds of product options, drag and drop style, in your gallery that you can just… click, click, order. No stress, just easy prints, delivered to your door! And many other photographers use this kind of a setup too.

But what about actually CHOOSING what you’re going to order?

What is your decorating style at home?

When it comes to ordering physical prints after your session, one of the biggest things to think about is your decorating style at home. After all, if you’re ordering physical prints that are going to hang on your walls, then you want them to match your decor!

I have a ton of advice available about putting together a gallery wall layout, and choosing between a printed album and framed prints – but there’s more to it than just format. There’s also style to consider! When you’re choosing whether you’re going to order prints to hang in your home, think about the style of the frames you want. If you have mostly white furniture, maybe you want the frames to match! Or, maybe you’re headed in a more maximal direction with your decorating (which is totally in right now, by the way) and you want to get a bit chaotic with your prints! That’s totally okay too.

But spend some time thinking about how you want to work these images into your home. Where will you hang them? Do you want to replace some older images you already have framed, and reuse the frames you already have? In that case, you don’t have to worry about ordering framed prints, and might be able to get away with just the prints themselves!

I know I already said it, but there’s no one “right” approach to using your photos in your home, as long as you’re using them. So give yourself the freedom to have some fun with it!

Do you need to prep for gifting season?

Another big topic you’re going to want to think about when you’re ordering prints from your family photo session, is whether you need to prepare for gifting season! Now, I’ve already talked about how gifting season really never ends. There’s the holidays, sure, but… family birthdays hit all throughout the year, and then there’s mother’s day, father’s day, anniversaries, and all kinds of other gifting opportunities that photo prints can make a magical solution for!

So if you’ve already got things in mind for gifting season this year, and you’re covered, then maybe you can skip this one. But if not, or if you’re still looking for more ideas, you KNOW your mom would love to get some new prints of her grand-babies for her birthday!

Before you make your final print order, think about these opportunities, and how you can make use of the photos from your session to fill in any gaps you’ve still got in your gifting schedule.

If you’ve got questions about ordering prints, just reach out!

Ordering prints after your session might feel daunting, but if you consider all of these components, hopefully the process will feel a bit easier! Especially if your photographer (me?) offers easy printing through the gallery with your session images. That way you know what you need to order, AND the process is simple!

And of course, if you need support or have questions about ordering prints after your session, just reach out. I’d love to talk you through anything from the quality details for items in the gallery store, to helping you put together a gallery wall for your home!