What do I need for a gender reveal session.
It finally happened! I did my first gender reveal photo shoot the other day. It was sooo much fun. I was the first (after the doctor and the lady who sells the smoke bombs:) to find out Nicole and Alex are having a girl and that felt pretty amazing!
Before the gender was revealed, we took a few pics with the baby’s ultrasound photos. But the excitement was real and I couldn’t postpone it anymore. Especially, since Nicole has been holding on to the results for a few days already.
Number one thing to remember when you are doing a session that includes props like smoke bomb: Bring an assistant aka a friend who will lit the prop for you. We didn’t have one and oh my Gosh, that was stressful and hilarious at the same time! Nicole and Alex were waiting at the position with closed eyes, my camera was waiting with the right settings at its’ spot and I had to lit each bomb as fast as I could. That brings me to lesson number two. Bring more than one lighter that are different kinds. I had the hardest time with our child proof lighter, I was cursing and laughing at the same time and had only 60 second to lit three bombs and take awesome picture. I peeked at the first one while attempting the light up the second one and I was like: ok, it’s blue, awesome, speed-up, Eva go go go… but then suddenly, the blue color became pink and stayed that way. Yaay!
Don’t forget to bring a bottle of water for the forest’s safety. :) Even though they say these are safe to be in the grass, you want to be sure. I don’t use confetti during my sessions because they are impossible to be collected after being thrown to the air and I want to believe the smoke bombs are an eco-friendly idea of fun gender reveal pictures. Also pick an open space and not a windy day, if possible. We went for Bells Mill Park in Chesapeake, VA, one of my favorite parks to shoot at especially during golden hour. This time we were so lucky to squeeze this session in between storms and took advantage of the perfect overcast weather.
When the surprise part was over, it was time for some fun! We had two extra smoke bombs so I had the guys holding them up and just play around. And at the end I spent few moments taking romantic photos of happy parents to be. This is where the story of their family begins and I am beyond excited I could have been a part of it. Congratulations, Nicole and Alex!
