Client Interview Series: Over The Years with The Gavlaks
These client interviews are created to share unedited feedback from families I’ve worked with over the years. Included are family photos, shared with their permission.
Meet the Gavlak Family.
I met Heather and Bobby in 2014 (yes, NINE years ago… gulp). We bonded easily and quickly over our love of jokes and donuts. I got to know their oldest daughter Grace before she became a gorgeous, wonderful teen. Met their middle before he was - oh wait, nope, he’s the same sweet and ornery Mitch he’s always been. And I met their youngest, Andy, at her newborn photography session the following year. They’re dear friends now. I look forward to their sessions, and if you read to the end I’ll share a funny (at my expense) story.
Needless to say, my photos have changed in nine years, so enjoy the fun of watching me grow as well as them.
Here’s what Heather had to say…
Me: Tell me about originally connecting with me and how your first session went. Was it as you expected?
H: We were originally connected with you through our neighbors. Not only did your husband (Aaron the boy) work with our neighbor, but you also did family and newborn pictures for them. Our original appointment was easy, you were family right away. You were honest, funny and you kept reassuring us that all kids are turds during photo sessions. We expected a regular family session and what we got were amazingly candid photos and a friend - win/win.
Me: You contacted me for another session, and another and another... tell me why.
H: We keep coming back for more not only because you are an amazing photographer who cares deeply about her trade (more like passion), but also because you are an amazing human being. You are real, fun and make every session easy. Honestly, we like being around you and the fact that we get some of the best photos, that capture who we really are, is just a bonus. I love that you come up with ideas on the fly, that you are honest about the type of photographer you are, and that the photos you take tell a story about the moment in time we are in; about that season of our life as individuals and family.
Me: What would you tell a friend about how I connect with your kids, or about getting a spouse on board? Tell the truth about how they all feel about working with me. (Seriously, you can say "they hate being dragged in but we have fun and get great pictures anyway"... no rules).
H: Two Words: Rubber Bunny. I remember when our son was really little and you put a rubber bunny on top of your lens so that he would look at you and laugh. You laid on the ground, made funny faces, chased them, led them, gave them breaks, captured them being animals…..all while reassuring us that again, “all kids are turds during these sessions. The bad news is that our kids only last about 4 min during a photo session before the “sit and smile” is no longer an option. The good news? That is when you come alive…. once that 4 min expires. I truly believe you’ll do whatever it takes to make each session ours. I tell myself that you do it because you love us most, but the reality is that I know it’s just who you are - someone you loves everyone as they are. You just have that extra something that allows that to be seen and felt in a photo.
Me: Tell me one of your favorite photo session moments or photos captured.
H: My favorite session with you was definitely the one at the church on Home Rd. We made the decision to let each member of the family wear whatever they wanted and our then 5 year old chose a princess costume. We looked like the land of misfit toys and somehow you turned out photos that were both beautiful and hilarious. You highlighted Andy’s clear dominance and authority over our family (she’s royalty after all), Mitchy’s soft, sporty nature, Grace and Bobby’s love for all things Nike, and my simple love for all of them. You captured us as we really are and you LOVED and encouraged us to be just that - who we really are. No need to pose, you got this.
Bonus Material from Heather: I remember when Mitchy was 2 years old and he smiled really big for the first photo. You looked over at me and said, “Is that cheese face his real smile?” I laughed and said that it was and your response was, “I am so glad, let’s go."
Hanging out with the Gavlaks is a delight. I have to share one (rather embarrassing) story of my own from just this past summer.
It was mini session day for my Story Club members (my photography membership program, if you’ve never heard of it). I rented a cute studio for the evening and got there early, set things up, and went out to my car to grab something before the Gavlak family got there, they were my first group. The studio door closed behind me and - ohhh crud - I was locked out. No studio key, no car keys, no phone, no anything except my self-pity. So, as I do, I start panic crying.
The Gavlaks were the first to arrive, and I was in actual crocodile tears. They pull up in matching Christmas jammies, having decided to use this for holiday card pics, and having driven all the way from Delaware…and I know them well enough that I walk up to the window right by Bobby and I lean in crying and blubbering to their family “OhmygoshI’msoSORRRRYYYY. I got locked out and I’m so embarrassed and I don’t know how to get back in and all these families are coming and I don’t have the studio person’s info, it’s on my phone. And I’m crying in front of you, I’m so embarrassed. And I can’t take your pictures and you’re all ready to go and dressed and got your kids ready…(wah wah, cry cry)…I’m so so sorrrry!”
Because they’re amazing humans, Heather just says “It’s fine, no worries” and Bobby says “What can I do? Do you need me to break you in?” and I get to finally laugh (thank goodness) and they say “You do what you need to do, we’ll do our session another time”, and they just totally let me be an idiot and send them away as I tried to figure out how to get in this studio. (Which I eventually did for the next group, phew.)
The point is, I love my people. Many of them become friends. I watch their children grow, I get to know them as parents, as couples, as the lovely people that they are. I’m so very lucky. These are the relationships I want with my clients.
