How Often Should You Schedule Family Photos?
Updated September 2026Spoiler alert: there is no rule for scheduling family photos.
Instead of asking, “When is the right time for family photos?” or “How often should I schedule family photos?” I want you to ask yourself:
What do you want to remember?
Your family doesn’t change according to a photography calendar.
Sometimes a year goes by and life looks pretty much the same. Other times, it feels like everything changes in a matter of months. Your toddler loses the baby cheeks. Your oldest suddenly looks like a big kid. Someone loses their first tooth. Your family welcomes a new baby. Or you realize the little kid who used to fit on your hip hasn't asked to be picked up in a while.
Those are the things I'd pay attention to.
Not whether it's been exactly twelve months since your last family photos.
One of my favorite photos wasn’t taken with my camera
I have a photograph of my grandma sitting at her kitchen table with my daughters while they help her make a family recipe.
Nothing particularly important was happening that day. We weren't celebrating a birthday or holiday. No one was dressed for photos. I didn’t even take it with my camera—I took it with my phone!
At the time, it was just a normal visit with Grammy.
Now it's one of my favorite photographs.
When I look at it, I don't just see what everyone looked like. I remember sitting around that table. I remember the chilly fall day. I remember what it felt like to watch my girls make something with their great-grandmother.
And I think that's why I've stopped believing photographs need an important occasion to justify them.
What I want for you
I want you to have the everyday photos on your camera roll. Take all of them.
But I also want you to have photographs where you’re part of the memory, too.
Moms, I’m especially talking to you.
The photograph of my grandma and my daughters is one of my favorites, but I’m not in it because I was the one taking it. I was there. I was part of that memory. But if you only had the photograph, you wouldn’t know it.
And I’m guessing if I asked you to show me some of your favorite recent photos of your kids, you might not be in very many of them either.
That’s one of the reasons I think intentionally making time for family photos matters.
Not because you’re supposed to do them every year.
Not because you need the perfect location, matching outfits, or a special occasion.
But because every once in a while, you deserve to be in the photographs, too.
So, for my Type A readers, is once a year enough?
It can be.
Annual family photos give you a beautiful record of how everyone grows and changes. And if you love having that yearly tradition, keep it.
But you also don't need to wait until your annual fall photo session if something about your family feels especially worth documenting now.
Maybe you just welcomed a baby.
Maybe your toddler is in a stage you can't get enough of.
Maybe your oldest is about to start kindergarten.
Maybe the grandparents are visiting.
Maybe you've moved into a home where your family is building a life together.Or maybe nothing particularly significant has happened at all.
You simply really like who your family is right now.
That's reason enough.
What if nothing has really changed?
That’s okay. In fact, that might be exactly the point.
Your family doesn’t need to reach a milestone before it’s worth photographing.
Maybe right now life looks like playing in the backyard before bedtime. Trips to the playground. Picking pumpkins every fall. Your youngest insisting on being carried everywhere while your oldest runs ten steps ahead.
These things probably don't feel particularly significant while you're living them. They're just your normal.
But your normal will change, too.
And sometimes those are the photographs that end up meaning the most.
What type of session best suits my family?
If you want plenty of time for your kids to warm up, the freedom to choose a location that feels like your family, or the ability to build your session around something you love doing together, a Family Session is probably the best fit.
Full sessions give us more time to slow down, follow your kids' energy, and create a variety of photographs without feeling rushed.
A Mini Session can be a great fit if you want something short and sweet, a quick update of your family, or photographs for a particular time of year. I offer Minis seasonally, and when they're available, you'll find them listed under Minis on my website.
Making the decision to book
So if you're wondering whether it's “time” for family photos, don't worry too much about the calendar.
Look at your family.
Is there something about them right now you know you're going to miss?
Or something you simply love enough that you want to remember it exactly as it is?
That's probably your answer.
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Remember who they are right now.
Family sessions are available year-round in Rochester, NY and the surrounding area.