Aoife O’Connor is a professional photographer with a portrait studio in Dun Laoghaire, Co. Dublin. She specialises in baby and family photography, capturing your family through her timeless, natural style.

She has very kindly shared some top tips for families wanting to capture more precious moments together…..

I’m often asked when is the best time to photograph babies or kids. My answer is always the
same.

Now!

Sure there are certain stages which are lovely to capture, that teeny newborn stage when baby is so impossibly tiny for such a short time, when baby is just sitting on their own but not crawling yet (so can’t escape from having their photo taken) or maybe a milestone like a birthday.

But that doesn’t mean all of the in between moments are any less important to capture. Think of the baby who at a few weeks old is just starting to smile, or the 4 month old who has just figured out how to grab her toes, or the simple joy of a birthday when you’re turning 3!

Of course while it is lovely to get a professional photoshoot, it’s not the only way to photograph your kids. Take those phones and cameras out and capture those everyday moments. Your images don’t have to be perfect, somebody may be half in/half out of the frame, there may be sniffly noses and windswept hair but those moments are so precious!

And please, get in those photos! So often as parents we focus on photos of our kids and forget to be in there with them. Take loads of selfies with you all in together, take photos of your partner with the kids and then swap over and get in the frame yourself. Your children will love to look back on photos and see not only how they’ve grown but to see you in there with them and showing how loved they are and always have been.

And finally, print those memories! Too often our images stay on our phones, laptops or a forgotten USB stick. Growing up, my Mum kept bundles of photos in big envelopes. We loved to empty out those envelopes and find everything from photos of my grandparents when they were little to the photos of our days out to the zoo or the forest. Wonderful reminders of the holiday in Kerry where it rained solidly for a week, the joy of an ice cream at the beach, the caravan in Wexford with our cousins. There is nothing like holding a photo in your hand to bring you right back to a moment in your life. 

Magical.

To see more of Aoife’s stunning work, be sure to check out her website www.aoifeoconnor.com and follow her on Instagram HERE