Family Photographer Johannesburg
Family portraits without the performance
Families rarely arrive behaving like catalogue families.
Children may be shy, busy, suspicious, overexcited, or completely uninterested in my plans. Someone may hate being photographed. Someone else may be worried that everyone will fall apart the moment we begin.
That is normal.
You do not need perfectly behaved children or people who know how to pose.
You simply need to arrive as a family.
What happens in the studio
Before your session, we talk about who will be photographed and the combinations that matter to you.
That may include the whole family, siblings, each parent with the children, grandparents with grandchildren, and individual portraits.
In the studio, I direct throughout.
I look after hands, shoulders, spacing, posture and where everyone needs to be. You do not need to know what to do.
But I am also watching what happens between those arrangements.
A child reaching for a parent.
A sibling leaning in.
The expression that appears once everyone stops trying quite so hard.
The photographs families often love most happen somewhere between posed and unplanned.
Children do not need to perform
Children do not need to smile on command.
They do not need to sit perfectly still for long periods.
And they certainly do not need to spend the session being told to behave for the photographer.
I work with the child who arrives.
Some settle immediately. Others need time. Sometimes we change direction completely.
If we need a break, we take one.
The aim is not a perfectly behaved child. It is a portrait of your child.
What to wear
Black and neutral clothing photographs particularly well in my studio. Coordinate rather than match, and keep clothing simple.
I have put together a full guide to clothing, hair, makeup and the details worth checking before your session.
The people should be noticed before the clothes.
What to wear to your family photoshoot →
What if someone is having a bad day?
Tell me.
If somebody is ill, overwhelmed, running very late, or simply having a day that is unlikely to produce good photographs, I would rather know.
We make the sensible decision.
I will always choose the better portrait over forcing the day.
There is no prize for pushing through a session that should have been moved.
Your family session
For families of up to 10 people, the session fee is R3,000.
For extended families of 11–20 people, the session fee is R6,000.
Larger groups are quoted individually.
The session fee covers the photography session, preparation beforehand, my direction throughout and the creation of your portrait gallery.
Your finished portraits are purchased separately through one of three collections.
Family portrait collections
Foundation — 10 portraits
R7,500
Total investment including session fee: R10,500
For families who want a small, strong group of finished portraits.
Signature — 15 portraits
R10,500
Total investment including session fee: R13,500
For families who want more combinations and greater choice across the session.
Legacy — 25 portraits
R15,500
Total investment including session fee: R18,500
For families who want the broadest record of the people and relationships photographed.
Additional portraits are R1,500 each.
A black-and-white alternate version of a purchased portrait is R1,000 per portrait.
RAW and unedited files are not supplied.
You choose how much you want to keep.
After your session
After the session, you choose the photographs you would like me to finish.
Your selected portraits are individually retouched and delivered as finished digital files.
You can also choose framed portraits, wall pieces and albums if you would like the photographs to live beyond a screen.
View portrait finishes →
The photograph is finished when you can live with it.
Why I photograph families this way
I have photographed families for more than twenty years.
The families change.
Children grow up. Parents become grandparents. People move countries. Some return years later with families of their own.
The photograph remains exactly as it was.
That is the strange and wonderful thing about it.
Time is what gives a portrait its value. We simply don't know it yet.
In my client's words
Bridget is the only one who has, on every occasion, been able to get the whole family to cooperate and smile. So much so that even the grumpy ones admitted to enjoying the photoshoot.
— Katinka Schumann
Earlier parts of the family story
Family photography can begin before a baby arrives and continue through every age that follows.
View the maternity portrait experience →
View the newborn portrait experience →
View the family portrait portfolio →
Ready when you are
Contact me →
JOHANNESBURG PORTRAIT PHOTOGRAPHER
One Moment. One Portrait. Forever
© 2005–2026 Bridget Corke Photography
Blairgowrie · Johannesburg · South Africa
International Master's in Portrait Photography
One of only two in Africa.