love, connection and motherhood | toguchi beach, okinawa

Capturing connection within a portrait session is always my number one goal. But what do you do when your clients show up exhausted and angry with one another? It happens all too often where the stress of actually getting ready for the family portrait session pushes people over the edge to anger. I always have a goal to get lifestyle connection portraits but sometimes family members don’t feel like being in close proximity! Much less smile and love. When I do feel that people are annoyed with one another I find that encouraging connection, even if it is awkward at first, always results in images where love can be felt.

Today I am sharing some images from a special mini session day I had. The love between and a mom and her children is usually one of the easiest to see. But still sometimes a parent can be stiff and unyielding during a shoot. I encourage parents to let go of the little things just during the photoshoot time. A child who is constantly being disciplined wont give out smiles or love easily.

The key to good interaction between your subjects is placing them with proximity of each other and asking them not to move. From there I position arms and hands so that as much as possible they are touching each other. Usually next I encourage tickling, joke telling, and I do my famously loud and embarrassing fake laugh. That gets everyone going! (This is the moment when my 15 year old wishes he came with me on every shoot.) As you follow these tips you will be able to create the lifestyle connection portraits you imagine.

Lifestyle connection portraits Okinawa

If you want to see more lifestyle connection portraits click here for more beautiful families!

I am participating in a blog circle with some other awesome photographers today. Follow the links around until you get back here! Next up is the talented Fiona Saxton and she is sharing a Lodore Falls Wedding on her blog today.

Anna Rasmussen is a featured and award-winning family portrait photographer in Okinawa, Japan. She loves documentary-style family vacation photography and beautiful lifestyle portraits. Her two favorite things to photograph are travel logs and birth stories in the hospital, but she also loves everything family – from capturing the joy of expectant parents in maternity photography, the first days of a baby’s life in Newborn Fresh 48 Sessions, the beauty of everyday chaos in Family Day-in-the-Life Sessions, and on-location family portrait sessions. Anna is an on-location photographer, serving the entire island of Okinawa and ready to travel to many major cities in the Asian area. Book a session here with Anna today! Thank you so much for stopping by!