Taken about forty seconds after somebody said “I don’t wanna.”
Hey, I’m Daniel Wesley.
Family photos that feel like your actual family.
I photograph families across Orange County. You don’t need to know how to pose, and your kids don’t need to behave for an hour. I’ll handle the direction, get the classic one, then photograph what happens around it. Most parents leave saying “that was way easier than we expected.”
49 five-star reviews on GooglePick your chapter.
The notes in the margin are me.
Family, maternity and newborn sessions all run as The Picture Book: one spot, and I run the session so you don’t have to. Seniors get two options, The Main Character and The Origin Story.
The first fifteen minutes.
Why it ends up feeling easy.
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one
I say hi to the kids first.
Before anybody is asked to stand anywhere. Usually there’s a dinosaur question to settle.
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two
You see a frame on the back of the camera.
A few shots in, I turn the screen around. It’s the fastest way to stop worrying about how you look.
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three
Then we keep things moving.
I point you toward the light and give you something to do. We make the portrait, then catch the twenty seconds after it, and you’ll want both.
I give plenty of direction, so nobody is guessing. Where to stand, what to do with your hands, when to look at me. You’ll get the classic portrait, everyone in and everyone looking, the one for the wall. You’ll also get everything around it: the hugs, the chasing, the laughing at whatever Dad just said. Both are the point.
Two things I’ll actually say out loud:
- “Everybody look at whoever ate the last cookie.”
- “Give Mom the slowest hug in history. Slower.”
Somebody always cracks halfway through the slow one. That’s usually the photo.
Want to see how a whole session holds together?
Kind Words
Daniel was so fun to work with, and he vibed really well with our teenage daughter. He took the time to help us all feel comfortable in front of the lens.
Anna Bell
She had to be woken up from her nap in order to get magic hour sunlight and was a mess, but Daniel turned her bad mood around and got some amazing pictures.
Erin Ramsey
About Daniel Wesley
My mom taught first grade, so a roomful of kids doing their own thing is familiar territory. I leave space for the funny little things they do when nobody is trying to make them behave.
I studied film, which is probably why I’m always looking for the frame right before or right after the obvious one. That’s usually where your family actually lives.
The supporting cast:
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Katie
My partner
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Noodles
Editor in Chief
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Samantha
from Accounting
This fall:
The Weekend Matinee
Six weekends of twenty-minute mini sessions, October 11 through December 5. $295 for twenty-five photos, or all 40 images for $370.
Ready when you are.
I reply within a day. Noodles remains unavailable for comment.
You don’t need a location, a pose list, or any experience being photographed. Tell me who’s coming, roughly when, and what your family is actually like. That’s enough to get us started.