I am passionate about travel, and I often think about how we can best give our children travel experiences, and how we can best capture these moments. I’m not vain, but I certainly prefer a great photo of myself, and Iove that I have photogenic kids. On our last family holiday, back to America, we had a Travelshoot. As the name might suggest, they send out a photographer to meet you on your travels.
As a mum of 3, and after flicking through collections of images on my phone, I’ve noticed there’s great photos of the kids, there’s great photos of them with my husband (thanks to me), but not so many photos of the kids and Mum. Unless I’m using a selfie stick or the flip feature on the iPhone. Photos of us 5 are pretty much non existent, unless you’ve asked a random passer by to assist (and those photos don’t always work out either).
I’ve also noticed a bit of a trend. Too often mums opt out of being in photos. Why? Is this because they are the one’s taking the photo? I don’t want my kids to look back on our family photos when they are grown up and comment, “where was Mum?” So let’s make sure we are all getting in the photos!
Fellow Mums like me, you’re going to love the Travelshoot concept. They are helping us get back in the picture.
…and we all want beautiful photos captured in foreign and exotic places, right?
When I got married in 2007, we opted for a destination wedding. The destination was Fiji, and I still recall all the research online (and anxiety and stress) to confirm a photographer to capture our special day. We honeymooned in Vanuatu as well. If only Travelshoot was around back then, I would have been really keen on using their services for our Destination Wedding, and even our Honeymoon.
Now I have a family. Travel is still a big part of our lives, and even though we are in the age of selfie sticks, iPhones and IPads, have you ever gone travelling with the family or friends and wished your photos were of a professional standard? So the ones you were in, you looked natural, relaxed, and fabulous?
If I was to look on my husband’s phone, there would mainly be photos of just the kids. I need to I ask him specifically to take a photo to include me. That’s just how he rolls. So let me tell you about Travelshoot, and walk you through our morning with Erin.
The Company
Travelshoot is an Australian based company, connecting travellers with local photographers in popular destinations around the world. These locations include Australia, Canada, the United States, Europe and Asia. Travelshoot takes out all of the hard work of finding affordable and professional photographers in beautiful locations so you can capture your trip of a lifetime!
Not only are you getting quality images at a fair price but the bonus is these photographers are locals. They know their city and they know who to get the best angles.
So How Does it Work?
Step 1: Book your travelshoot.
With a worldwide network of 90+ local photographers, find your location and pick the package option that works for you and your budget. During the booking process you fill out a form giving Travelshoot a few details so they can capture your photo shoot to your liking. We had the Economy option – $399 AUD (1 hour / 10 edit images), but there is also a Business package – $599 AUD (2 hours / 50 edited images), and a First Class package – $899 AUD (4 hours / 70 edited images).
Step 2: Meet your photographer.
Travelshoot will connect you with the best available local photographer that meets your brief. Through their online portal, you will learn more about the photographer via sample photos of their work and a small profile. Our photographer, Erin, was great at communicating by email, and by phone, beforehand to further discuss my creative ideas and my family. It was great to learn she also had kids, and understood the challenges of getting them all to follow direction at times. She even had a back up plan in case the weather continued the way it was in the days prior. When I requested we change the time so we would miss Chicago traffic to get downtown she was agreeable.
Step 3: The big day.
You and your photographer meet up at a pre-arranged location for the Travelshoot day. We went with the Chicago Riverwalk so we could capture iconic buildings and landmarks. Having a personal connection to the city (my husband is from there) I wanted the location to feel like it was sixth member of our family. I wanted our Chicago shoot to feel like we were visiting our home away from home.
Step 4: See your photos.
Within 48 hours, you receive a few pictures from your shoot. Within 7 days you’ll receive your whole album digitally where you can upload, download, and even share on Facebook. Who doesn’t want to share their great travel photos, and be the envy of all your friends, not currently travelling. A pleasant surprise was Erin, our photographer, made sure we had our photos within 4 days!
“Despite the fact that we had to combat cold weather (it was snowing in Springtime, and I can still hear the kids complaining) did we have fun on our shoot? Yes!”
Is It Worth It?
Would I have my family do it again? Yes. Next time, as we are a family of 5, I would probably go for at least the Business package. The more time you spend with your photographer the more locations you can squeeze in (and the more memories captured).
What I also like about Travel Shoot
I now own the photos. The rights are all yours for any personal use – social media, print outs, canvas art, Christmas cards – anything!
The booking process went really smoothly, and although Travelshoot would love at least 4 weeks notice, I can personally tell you I was going to be boarding a plane in 24 hours when I first made contact. Last minute bookings can usually be accommodated.
Travelshoot for All Occasions
Travelshoot has you covered for holidays, elopements, honeymoons, surprise engagements, babymoons, and maternity / newborn shoots in Brisbane are now also available. I highly recommend Travelshoot to capture the memories of your next trip.
A Travelshoot can be booked on it’s own or incorporated into a holiday package. Talk to our travel agent if you need help planning your next family holiday.
The content and opinions expressed here are based on Denna Szwajkowski’s personal experience with Travelshoot. Special thanks to Travelshoot for providing a photo shoot.
