They say that by the time a child turns 18, parents have already spent nearly all the in-person time they ever will with them. If true, that’s an eye-opening thought. Life is fleeting. The time we have with our children is priceless— and that’s why preserving our portraits matters.

In a world where so many memories stay digital and can easily be lost or forgotten, transforming your senior’s portraits into heirloom artwork becomes even more important. That’s why I believe one of the most meaningful ways I serve my clients is through my Image Reveal & Ordering Night.

---

Why Reveal Night Is So Important

1. It Ensures Your Portraits Get Printed — Not Just Left on a Hard Drive

We live in a digital age. We snap hundreds of photos, upload them to USBs or social media … and then life gets busy. Too often, those images never become tangible. But technology fails. Formats change. Hard drives crash. USBs get lost. Social media accounts go inactive.

Prints, on the other hand? Those are timeless. They can be handed down generation to generation. That’s why I prioritize turning your session into art for your home — not just files in the cloud.

2. You Don’t Have to Do It Alone

Some people love scrambling through galleries, picking their favorites, and placing print orders. But many don’t have the time for that. On Reveal Night, I guide you through everything. You don’t need to make decisions in isolation. We sit together while you decide and we design what’s going to hang on your walls or be displayed in your album.

3. It’s Quality Time — Not Just a Transaction

Reveal Night isn’t just a business meeting. It’s a moment to reconnect. When clients come into my studio, I welcome them with a cookie cake (thank you, Shannon Warren!), decorated with one of my favorite images from their session. We catch up over cake, they tell me what’s new — school, work, dreams — then, we move into my office.

The lights are soft. A musical slideshow begins. Their full gallery plays for the very first time.

Cue tears (yes, I always have Kleenex). That slideshow is more than a display — it’s a re-living. Every laugh, every pose, every tender look. And it’s in that moment that I watch families really see the session, see what I saw, and start to choose what will matter to them forever.

---

The Heart of the Reveal: Choosing What Really Matters

As the slideshow plays, I watch parents and their senior closely. I see their eyes light up on certain frames:

• The moment by the water when she turned toward the light, maybe thinking about what comes next.
• The candid laugh, the glance — a wave of nostalgia.
• The way she cradled the bouquet — gentle, reflective, full of quiet emotion.

Just ask Sloan’s mom, Sonya: “As soon as the music started playing, the flood of emotions hit and all I could see on the screen was this precious blonde headed, snaggle toothed toddler had turned in to this incredibly beautiful and stunning young lady! It hit me like a ton of bricks, the reality that she is now getting to the stage in her life that she must fly….”

These are the images that strike a chord, and they guide the decisions for prints, canvases, albums, and collages. The emotional highlights become the art in their lives.

---

From Slideshow to Keepsakes

After the video, we dive deeper. I lay out printed proofs of every single image — yes, every one — and we go through them together. We talk about which ones tug at the heart, which ones feel like them, and which deserve a place in their everyday world.

They get to keep those proofs. They also get the slideshow video. Over the course of the night, we design what their home’s art will look like: which photos for the living room wall, which ones in the album, which in a fine-art print for Grandma’s Christmas gift.

It’s a process that’s both deeply personal and thoughtfully curated. And yes — sometimes it takes some time. But it’s worth it. It’s what I am here for.

---

---

Final Thought: Don’t Let the Moments Slip Away

You may not remember how many emails or to-dos you had on the day of your session. But you will remember how it felt watching your images for the first time — how your heart fluttered, how your eyes welled up, and how you realized what really matters.

Time is finite. Those years with your child — they fly by faster than you think. By the time they’re 18, that window is already narrowing. That’s why printing, preserving, and cherishing your portraits isn’t just nice — it’s essential.

If you’re ready to book a session and invest in a Reveal Night, let’s talk and let’s make something that lasts.