[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]I know they’re out there cause I am one too– mom’s that have their own small business, working out of their houses. They often hold down full or part-time jobs outside the home, but they make it work because they’re super passionate about what they’re creating, allowing their creative juices to flow because it fulfills them. Kayla Kaye owner of The Kitch has managed to pull off this role and then some. From the moment I walked into her home I knew she had managed to be able to create work-life balance with grace and passion.
I left her home smelling of delicious baked goodness, a smell which thankfully lingered for several hours. Kayla spends most of her week working outside the home, and then uses Thursday and Friday to bake upwords of dozens of challahs for customers in her surrounding neighborhoods. She has both sweet and savory flavors that she carefully stuffs into and also drizzles on top of her delicious fluffy bread. She uses only fresh ingredients, herbs, roasted garlic, and sauteed onions, sprinkles, cookie butter, cookies, chocolate and crumb topping just to name a few! She spends her time coming up with new creative flavors which she rotates from week to week.
If you could believe it her operation is essentially a one woman show. She spends her time baking alone, with just the lull of the cooking station from a small TV perched in her kitchen as background noise to cut the silence. She carefully makes batch after batch, weighing each ball of dough to make sure its the right weight, allowing it to rise, stuffing it with toppings (or not, she makes plain too) and finally shaping it beautifully into challahs. She bakes everything out of the double oven in her kitchen. It is truly a labor of love.
Her passion in her business has not distracted her from her family life. She makes time for her kids, has lazy Sunday mornings, makes time for family game night, and just has fun spending time with her husband and kids. Her in-home session was truly a blast in case you’re wondering. Besides her super adorable family, she was super relaxed about allowing me to photograph in her home. The results were an incredible representation of family fun, memories that are often dismissed and undocumented.
I know the hesitation with having a photographer enter your home to take portraits of your family. It’s a hard sell taking photos in your mess, without a gorgeous backdrop. It gets a little too real, but let me try and ease your anxiety about it, and if you’ve got any other concerns do not hesitate to drop me a quick note and I’ll get back to you.
Objection #1 My house is a freak’n mess!!!
So in all honesty it probably isn’t as bad as you think! I often come visit clients homes before in home sessions so I can find the best LIGHT in the house. I find one or two locations that have great light and possibly a nice backdrop that would work. In this case we used two very specific locations one was actually their daughters room that had this beautiful bird wallpaper, and the other was a lovely bay window that I had them climb into. These two spaces were small snippets of their home. It really isn’t important how your WHOLE house looks, only how it looks in the frame which is honestly a small portion of one room in your home.
Objection #2 I want pretty scenery, not my messy house!
Firstly, see above. Secondly, I get that the background isn’t a scenic park with ducks but, I think we can all agree that family pictures are really about your family. The background should really be secondary to the humans that are in the foreground. You can also get a much more intimate, relaxed connection when you are in a familiar environment that is cozy. This is especially true with younger kids that often get uncomfortable with strangers. The home manages to create an intimate setting where everyone can relax and be themselves.
Objection #3 I would love to document an activity with my family, but I don’t bake!
Lifestyle family photography that documents an activity should ONLY be about what your family is about. If you don’t bake that activity is not for you. There are hundreds of ways to photograph your family in this way. You can play outside in the backyard, jump in puddles, blow bubbles, jump on the bed, make breakfast, play boardgames, build a fort: whatever you and your family love to do together is what will make these pictures special!
Hopefully this dispelled any hesitation or curiosity to either photograph your family in your home, or document an activity that your family loves to do together. If not, springtime is just around the corner and I’ll see you in the park!
Kayla Kaye and her delicious challah can be contacted by email at thekitch.ny@gmail.com or on instagram @thekitch_ny
If you’re interested in being featured as a small business owner in my blog please contact me at carrotseedphotography@gmail.com or on facebook/instagram @carrotseedphotography.
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