Fresh Photography!

Our Fantastic Family Photo From Fresh Academy

I've been wanting to get a family photo done for a while now. My own snaps are pretty amateurish with heads decapitated and features blurred (its hard to get my toddler to stay still!). So, when Fresh Academy invited me for a family photo shoot at their studios in Watford, I jumped at the chance.

When we got there they were really welcoming and friendly. We had a chat about what we wanted to get out of the shoot and what types of photos we were looking for so that they knew what pictures they had to take. They have a fantastic array of sets and props including a brilliant chair made out of a hedge which the children loved. We did some family photos with a plain white background and then they took some great ones of the kids on a bed which they had great fun bouncing on!

I had been a bit worried about how my children were going to behave as they are quite young and not very good at staying still, but the photographer and her assistant were great with them. They gave us some direction as to how to pose but also 'went with he flow' too. They were happy to follow the children's lead, and if there was something that particularly engaged them they got snapping.

I love this photo of the children!

I hope that Fresh won't mind me letting you in on their trade secret of how to get a successful shot with children. This was a very high tech tool called a tickle stick - a long pole with a feather duster attached to the end which the photographers assistant would reach in and tickle the kids with when they wanted to get a smile. It worked a treat. The children thought it was hilarious and at one point we were all in fits of giggles.  I was impressed with how good the photographer was with the kids and there was no sense of it being too formal or stuffy. Even me and my husband had great fun on the shoot.

After the shoot was over we were taken to the viewing room where you can have a cup of tea, relax and choose your pictures. I particularly loved the fact that the room was really family friendly with a bowl of sweeties for the children to choose from and a big box of toys to keep them entertained. I had thought that we would just be able to see the photos on a computer screen but in the viewing room they have a fantastic projector so the images are shown on the wall in front of you . You can then review them and the assistant goes through them with you and closes down the ones you don't want so that you can make your final selection (although I would have had them all if I could have).

We enjoyed looking at all the pictures and it was a lovely relaxed atmosphere. The sales assistant was really friendly and not at all pushy so you didn't feel pressurised into buying anything that you didn't want to. Fresh had kindly offered me a free shoot and a free photo but we were so impressed with the pictures that we also ordered 4 more pictures ourselves (great for pressies for the grandparents).

I was genuinely impressed with the Fresh experience. As well as family shots they also have make up artists and hairstylists so you can be fully styled for your shoot. They do mother and daughter shoots, pregnancy and bump shoots and even boudoir shoots!

I'll definitely being going back to Fresh and would recommend them as a fun experience for your family.

Fresh are also offering all Hertfordshire Mummy readers a free family shoot with a free 5x7 print included. Please just quote the Hertfordshire Mummy blog when you book.

For more information please have a look at their website www.freshacademy.com or give them a call on 01923 212673

They can also be found on facebook at www.facebook.com/freshwatford and on twitter at www.twitter.com/freshacademy