It’s that time of year! All the kids are going back to school. How are you going to document it this year?! Well, I have some tips and ideas for you here:

1.       Tradition

Do you have a first day of school tradition? If not, create one! Our tradition is taking a portrait in front of our driveway every year.  Some people hold a sign or chalk board, others do a front door picture.  Some make sure to get the photo outside of the school. Whatever your tradition is, make sure to stick to it! It is so good to see how your child grows over the years.  Tip: sometimes in that early morning it is pretty dark.  This would be a good time to use your off-camera flash set up!

2.       The Bus

This is a classic photo for going back to school! If your child rides the bus that moment that they get on is so important.  You will wish you had that documented if you miss it. Perhaps you drive your kids to school.  Then make sure you capture them piling into the car and waiting in the car drop off/pick up line.  Tip: this is the perfect time to use those primary colors that scream school!  Those are yellow (like the bus), red and blue. Or you can be super creative like Meg Bethard was: here.    

3.       Details

You cannot tell a story without details! Show the nervous hands waiting for the bus.  Show the backpacks and new pencils they so carefully picked out.  What was their favorite school supply to pick out?  This year be sure to capture those masks; it really documents the weird time we are in.  Maybe you’re homeschooling, or E-learning this year.  Make sure to photograph their learning environment, and many of these tips can still be used!  

4.       The Interview

This is a yearly tradition for us!  We do a quick interview the day or two before school starts and then I put their answers on the portrait I took of them that first school day. I always try to ask the same questions.  It is so fun to see their answers change as they change each year!  It helps me to mark what their interests are at that moment in time.  Somethings change while others stay the same.   I always ask these questions:

What is your favorite color?

What is your favorite book?

What is your favorite movie?

What is your favorite food?

What do you want to be when you grow up?

It is such a great tradition; I highly recommend you implementing it with your own family!

5.       The Preparations

There is a lot of preparations that are done before the school year begins.  Make sure to capture all these moments: the cereal they eat, the packing their lunches, brushing teeth and hair, the squirrelly energy that happens right before that first day begins at school.  These are all moments that help tell that first day of school story.  

These are just some ideas on how to remember the new school year.  I’d love to see and hear about your traditions! Feel free to contact me! Thanks for reading!