When Toddlers Run the Show: A Balmoral Beach Maternity Session with a Mum and Daughter Duo
There’s a moment in almost every family session with a toddler where a mum looks at me with wide, apologetic eyes and mouths the words “I’m so sorry.”
This one came about 2 minutes in.
Her beautiful, spirited two-year-old had decided that today was not the day. Not for photos. Not for posing. Not for standing still on a beach at sunrise with her Mum and the light hit the water just right.
This little girl had opinions. Loud ones and one of them was "no".
Balmoral at Sunrise - The Perfect Setting for an Imperfect Morning
Balmoral Beach is one of my absolute favourite locations on Sydney’s Lower North Shore for maternity and motherhood sessions. The calm harbour water, the soft sand, the way the late afternoon light turns everything gold, it’s genuinely hard to take a bad photo here. The rotunda. The boatsheds. The way the headlands frame the whole scene like a painting. It is truly breathtaking, especially at sunrise.
We had all of it. We also had a toddler who had well and truly decided today was not the day.
This mum had been so organised. She’d chosen a soft, flowing dress and then wanted to change midway through. She’d timed the booking for sunrise because she thought that would work best for her daughter. She’d sent me outfit choices. She had a vision.
Her daughter had a different vision. Her daughter’s vision involved sitting with Grandma and no where near the waves crashing onto the beach.
How We Actually Got the Shots
Here’s what I want every mum to know before a session with a little one: I have not met a toddler I couldn’t eventually win over! Sometimes it takes time and sometimes it just sometimes takes creativity. Or, in this case, the entire Wiggles back catalogue at full volume from my phone with me singing at full blast.
I am not even slightly embarrassed to tell you that I stood on Balmoral Beach at sunrise one morning singing Hot Potato at the top of my lungs.
I crouched in the sand singing Wheels on the Bus until the tears slowed and the suspicious toddler squint appeared - that look that says I don’t trust you yet, but I’m intrigued. I’ll take it. That look is halfway to a laugh, and she did. She laughed and she pointed at me saying “Rosie”.
Why the “Messy” Sessions Actually Make the Best Images
When mum first saw the gallery, she messaged me saying she couldn’t believe what she was looking at. She’d spent most of the session convinced a lot of the photos would be unusable.
But that’s exactly what made them magic, the images show a genuine connection between mother and daughter, they show interactions and love rather than just all smiles directly into the camera lens.
This Is What Matrescence Looks Like
Matrescence - the transformation into motherhood - isn’t a polished moment. It’s not a Pinterest board come to life. It’s singing nursery rhymes on a busy beach without caring who hears. It’s the way you look at your toddler even when she’s driving you completely mad. It’s loving two children at once, one already here, one almost.
That’s what I’m here to photograph.
If you’ve been putting off a maternity session because you’re worried your toddler won’t cooperate, then this post is for you. Bring them. Bring the chaos. Bring the Wiggles if you have to.
I’ll bring the rest.
Book Your Maternity Session
I photograph maternity, newborn, and family sessions across Sydney, including Balmoral, Chinamans Beach, Little Bay Beach and North Curl Curl.
Sessions start from $325, and I’d love to hear about your family.