Most people think a portrait session starts when the camera comes out. Not with me. I start in your living room, at the design consultation, weeks before you see my camera.
It’s the part of the process almost no one expects, and it’s the part that makes the biggest difference in how your finished portrait actually turns out. Here’s what happens, and why I do it this way.
We Figure It Out Together
You probably don’t have it all figured out yet, exactly what you want or where it’s going to hang. That’s completely normal, and it’s exactly what this visit is for.
We start with a conversation. I get to meet your dog, and we talk about your family and what you’re drawn to. I look at what you already have on your walls. Do you have family portraits hanging? Do you gravitate toward one bold piece, or a wall gallery with several pieces? This conversation tells me a lot about which framing and layout styles actually fit you.
Once we have a sense of your style, we walk the house together and look for the wall space that could hold it. If it’s a single piece, we’re looking for the right wall. If it’s a gallery, we’re looking for a space that can grow.
And I always ask about what’s already there and staying put. Maybe that new portrait is going above an entry table with a lamp on it, and we need to know what size will actually work beside it. Maybe you already have a small gallery started and want to add to it. Either way, I factor in what’s already on your walls, not just what we’re creating.
Sometimes you’re just not sure yet, and that’s fine too. When that happens, I photograph a few different wall spaces so we have options to design around later, once your portraits are ready.
Here’s Where the Magic Happens
Every wall I photograph gets measured too. Later, once your session is done, I bring your actual portrait together with that wall photo using my design software, scaled to size, so you can see almost exactly what it will look like hanging in your home. Not a mockup. Not your imagination doing the heavy lifting. A real preview, sized to your real wall.
By the time you’re choosing your final piece, you’re not picturing it. You’re seeing it.
Why I Do It This Way
I could skip all of this. Show up, take photos, then hand you a link to choose your favorites on your own. A lot of photographers work that way, and there’s nothing wrong with it if that’s what you want.
But my clients tell me they love having me right there with them, helping them choose and explaining what I see in one image over another. I don’t make the decisions. But I am by your side, guiding you and answering questions along the way.
I recently helped a family choose wall art for their dining room. During our original design consultation, we talked through portrait and landscape orientation, since those are the two most common options. And either of these would have worked beautifully.
Then at their ordering appointment, I placed their family portrait onto the photo of their actual wall using my design software. Looking at their two very large dogs and how the family was posed together, a framed 30″ x 30″ (square) fine art canvas print looked amazing, something they hadn’t considered until they saw it that way. Seeing the options laid out like that makes the ordering process so easy. It removes all the guesswork.
What This Kind of Planning Actually Creates
I’ve learned that the portraits people love most for years, the ones that actually get hung instead of sitting in a drawer, come from knowing the home first. When your dog’s portrait is planned around your actual wall, your actual decor, and your actual life, it doesn’t feel like decoration. It feels like it was always supposed to be there.
This is why I feel so strongly about planning with the end in mind. I don’t just take a photo of your dog. I create a portrait that was made for exactly where it hangs.
A Note on Pricing
We’ll also talk through your options during this visit, and I’ll give you a preliminary idea of what fits your space and your vision. Sometimes I’m able to put together your full quote right there. Other times I like to double check a few details back at the office first, so you’ll have it in hand later that day or the next. Either way, you’ll know what to expect well before you have to make any decisions.
What This Means for You
You don’t have to know anything about design, sizing, or wall art before we meet. That’s my job. All you need to do is invite me in and be ready to talk about your dog, your family, and your space. I’ll bring the questions, the tape measure, and everything else this design consultation needs for creating a portrait of your dog.
Families throughout The Woodlands, Houston, Spring, and Conroe start this way. A conversation in their own living room, long before the camera ever comes out.
Let’s Start With Your Walls
If you’ve been thinking about a portrait of your dog and you’re not sure where it would even go, that’s exactly what the design consultation is for. We’ll figure it out together, in your home, before anything else happens.
Schedule a call and let’s start with a walk through your space.