Champion Family | Downtown Demopolis | Family Session


This session was a free session won through a giveaway on my Facebook page - I plan to do these every so often so follow my page if you would like the opportunity to enter one of those giveaways.


Anyways, this was a giveaway. This actually was my first time doing a giveaway so I was unaware of the automated tools you can use on giveaways. I manually checked all the comments and inserted each entry in to an excel spreadsheet. I assigned each entry a number and then used excel to generate a random number. That number was Kathryn's! I had worked with Kathryn before on my Valentine's day mini session and we had since friended each other on Facebook. Therefore, when I drew her name, my initial thought was "people are going to think this is rigged!" I told my husband so and he was like "so? And?" I sat there for about 10 more seconds and asked if I should be considering re-drawing to get someone I'd never met. He said "no ma'am! She won, fair and square". And this is why I was SO SO glad he was sitting next to me. He was actually a little disappointed that the thought even entered my mind. I will probably do my next giveaway live just to make it 100% visible and fair to all.


So Kathryn won the session and it took us a couple months to get scheduled. She had originally wanted to use it on her family property but after seeing some of my past sessions downtown, she wanted to try out downtown Demopolis.


The day of the session, we met downtown - and literally we get there and the bottom drops out on this little tiny rain cloud. We ran and took shelter at the Trustmark bank. Then, not 3 minutes later, the sun pops out. I was so grateful - because if you know anything about me, I get really pumped for good light.


We started the session on the steps at the Trustmark bank. I shoot at this location a lot because it is sheltered from overhead light, but the white columns and building reflect light and make for a really clean background. BIG FAN of this location. The kids were, well kids. they didn't want to sit still or look always when I asked - but that is just reality. That's what a family session with kids is like. The really fun thing about sessions with kids is you can get genuinely real reactions and candids from them if you just let them be kids.


After Trustmark we ventured to the fountain to take the rest of our photos. Kathryn won a full 1 hr session, but only requested 30 minutes, knowing that would be the threshold her kids (and husband) could handle. I get it - not many actually enjoy taking the family photos. We push forward though because of the end result! And these end results are just fantastic.


As we ventured over near the main square, Kathryn's son, Watson, was fascinated by the leaves. I had to let him have that moment with the leaves and of course I also photographed it. The kids also were fascinated by the fountain. We did get several other images with the whole family too but mixed in a heavy dose of letting the kids roam and relax.

Family of four standing on white columned porch steps with hanging lantern.
Family in casual attire walking and playing together on columned porch.
Family walking together down a columned hallway with small children holding hands.
Baby wearing a light blue dress and white bow sits smiling on concrete steps.
Child in white shirt and khaki pants sits on steps between white columns.
Family of four sitting together on outdoor steps between classic white columns.
Child in light colored outfit stands on tree-lined sidewalk with hands near face.
Toddler in light blue dress stands barefoot on a tree-lined sidewalk.
Two children walking together on a tree-lined pathway in coordinating outfits.
Couple in green dress and white shirt pose together on tree-lined pathway.
Couple stands together on a sidewalk lined with tall trees.
Baby in blue dress and white bow takes steps on concrete path with adults in background.
A parent crouches with a baby on a tree-lined walkway during a sunny outdoor portrait session.
A family of four poses together on a sunlit pathway surrounded by trees.
A woman in a green dress holds and laughs with a baby outdoors among trees.
A heartwarming moment between a woman in green and a child captured in natural outdoor lighting.
A woman in a green dress walks hand in hand with a child along a tree-lined path.
A young child in light colored clothing leans playfully against an iron railing near water.
Two children sit together on a red surface outdoors during a sunny day.
Children sit on a red surface while an adult stands nearby during a sunny outdoor photoshoot.
Two small children sit together on a red surface during an outdoor photo session.
A child in casual attire poses playfully against an iron fence near water.
Family poses playfully on concrete path surrounded by greenery in coordinated green and khaki outfits.
Family shares candid moments together on a sunlit outdoor walkway with iron railings.

These last images of the whole family right by the fountain ended up being my favorite of the session, but there wasn't a single image with all 4 family members looking in this spot. I ended up having to do some photoshop magic to get an image where all 4 are looking. This can be a lot of work, but luckily I had two almost identical images, just with heads turned different ways and was able to merge the two into a seamless image with everyone looking.


I call that a SUCCESS for the day. I LOVE LOVE LOVE these images and so honored to have been able to capture them.


This post was originally published on 4/30/25 but was migrated to my new site on 07/15/2025