Who knew putting on sparkly tails would make kids truly feel like magical mermaids?!? I had so much fun creating these custom mermaid outfits but really had no idea the kids would feel like they were actually turning into mermaids. So. Much. Joy.

The idea for mermaid sessions stemmed from my daughter’s birthday party. She wanted a mermaid themed party and I love doing a coordinating photo sessions. I made her a custom sequin tail and photographed her mermaid session on Lake Michigan. We had so much fun splashing around and playing with bubbles that I knew I wanted to offer the theme locally to my clients. I visited every local “beach” (any little sand spot with water was a contender) and decided Sleepy Hollow State Park was the best option.

This theme was offered in the summer of 2021-2022 and I wish we would have taken more behind the scenes videos. The first year we had +20mph winds that caused our shell inflatable to continuously blow over. We had big pauses to reset our props, sand in the eyes, and hair in our faces BUT still so many smiles! Despite the wind, we had fabulous sessions and amazingly understanding clients and creating beautiful mermaid images. Year two we had great weather…which led to a crowded beach of people. You would never know from the pictures but we had crowds of bystanders and swimmers to edit out of each image. It just goes to show that beautiful images can be made in many less than ideal circumstances.

We are taking a break from this theme for 2023 but plan to bring it back in the future!!