what's included
• 5-10 minutes of quality, private time with Santa
• optional gift delivery from Santa
(parents must send gift prior to their session date)
• Online gallery of 10 images
• High resolution digital images available to download
Your custom experience for $449
the santa experience
Digital downloads of pictures you KNOW you love!
imagine...
portrait experience
• Scheduling a time that fits your families needs
• Quiet, no-pressure time with Santa
• No waiting waiting in long lines
• The magic in your child's eyes as they see Santa sneak in the room
• A hand delivered gift from Santa (provided by parents prior)
• Professional, high quality photos documenting the experience
only a limited number of vip reservations are available!
the vip experience
the vip experience
- receive priority booking for the 2023 Santa experience
- expedited editing for 2022 digital downloads
- receive double the total number of images
vip Santa Experience add on for $199
book your session now!
starting at $449 + tax
Come experience the wonder of Christmas through your child’s eyes. Reserve your family's personal visit with Santa Claus at our Northern Virginia Studio and witness your child get their first glimpse of Santa. We will continue capturing the visit as they share their Christmas wish list with Santa and even tug on his beard to see if it’s real (spoiler alert: it IS!)
what you need to know:
Enjoy having the studio space to yourself. Our one-family-at-a-time policy helps prevent your child(ren) from witnessing other children's reactions to Santa before they have seen him themselves, helping to increase the chances of a happier session overall for the whole family. After your session, you will receive an online gallery of 10 images to download as high-resolution digital downloads.
Scroll down for more details on the booking process for these unique sessions!
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The Process
Select below “The Santa Experience” and proceed to reserve your time slot and make payment.
Receive a confirmation email with a link to terms and agreement.
Customize your experience with our client questionnaire.
Decide on your child’s attire for the session
Optional: send a wrapped gift for your child to our studio for Santa to hand deliver
Arrive on the day of your session and meet Santa!
Receive your online gallery via email within 3 weeks of your session.
Reserve your spot Here!
Order affordable, high quality prints directly from the gallery to be shipped straight to you
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Hands down, we had the best Santa experience... Even my husband said he wants to tell all his friends to skip the mall and go to Emily's studio! She was able to capture the sweetest moments of my three little ones meeting Santa. The process was easy and quick, and Emily took every precaution to make it safe during these covid times.
Ali
NEXT ⟶
As a Santa first timer, getting the opportunity to be in a calm and inviting environment and having Santa enter the room (as opposed to handing our daughter off to him) made all the difference for us! Our daughter is still smiling whenever we mention Santa's name. We are already looking forward to our next Santa Experience!
Kaitlyn
NEXT ⟶
We absolutely loved our Santa experience! The setting was so beautiful and Santa was perfect! Our kids really felt the magic and it’s all they could talk about for days afterward! Emily is so talented and always delivers stunning photos! We will definitely be returning next year!
Rita
Santa Bob is a professional Santa For Hire who has worked with the City of Richmond the past couple of years. He has a long history of working with children and the general public. For more than a decade, he was employed with Richmond’s Department of Recreation and Parks as an instructor in developmental games and activities for the physically handicapped and ED / LD youth in the city. His experience working with people of all ages with handicaps and disabilities has gifted him with an immense amount of patience and skill as he steps into his role as Santa Claus. Santa Bob is also an artist and brings a respect for the art of photography. He spends his days running his own business, Want It Framed, a mobile picture framing company where he works inside clients’ homes building custom wall collages and custom frames.
it takes a special someone to make magic happen
Meet Santa Bob
Santa Sessions will take place in our natural light studio in Gainesville, VA, located inside of a private residence. Upon booking, the details and address will be provided for your convenience and planning purposes. On the day of the event you will be welcomed into the studio by the studio assistant.
Where are the sessions held?
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Each family will receive their online gallery from the event of 10 or more high-resolution, downloadable images within three weeks from the time of your session for sharing with friends and family. From the gallery you are also able to share, create a custom album or make prints as gifts.
How will we receive our photos?
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Santa sessions are designated for 10 minutes from your scheduled start time. You and your family will be the ONLY guests inside the studio during your session. Please arrive early and wait in your car to ensure your full 10 minutes with Santa.
HOW LONG WILL OUR SESSION BE?
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No. Not at all! However, if you have more than four children coming, we highly recommend you book two back-to-back time slots to ensure plenty of time for each child to spend with Santa, for a total of 20 minutes.
DO I HAVE TO BOOK A DIFFERENT TIME SLOT FOR EACH OF MY CHILDREN?
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Just for children! That being said, if your child needs to be held by you to feel safe and secure with Santa, that's totally okay! If your child has special needs, feel free to note that on your client questionnaire!
CAN I BE IN THE PHOTOS OR IS IT JUST FOR CHILDREN?
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Our Santa (Santa Bob) is a professional Santa for hire (and yes! with a real beard). He has many years of experience in his role and working with children, in fact he says his favorite holiday event to work is just this-in a private setting with a photographer!!
DOES SANTA HAVE A REAL BEARD? IS HE A PROFESSIONAL?
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Anything festive and comfortable is fine! Some families chose to bring children in their Christmas pajamas, while others prefer a more dressed up holiday look! Burts bees baby, and hanna andersson have great holiday pajamas if you are on the hunt!
WHAT SHOULD MY CHILD(REN) WEAR?
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Our Santa is experienced, knowledgeable, and does everything he can to help them be comfortable. Sessions are 10 minutes (not 1-2 minutes as is common) to allow for a child-led approach. We have tricks to ensure we get a couple of great shots of your child(ren) and Santa without them knowing.
WHAT IF MY CHILD CRIES THE WHOLE TIME?
Ultimately, if your child doesn't want anything to do with the man in the red suit, we will make the most of your session time (with your permission, of course)! We like to take the approach of embracing these memories and allowing the photographs to depict the true activity of the session. It'll certainly make for a great story later!
Covid-19 Plans
We reserve the right to cancel the event altogether if an outbreak occurs in the Northern Virginia area. We also reserve the right to refuse service to any persons who may be traveling from COVID-19 hot spots.
The following policies will be followed during our 2022 Santa Experience Event in Gainesville, VA.
As is always the case, only one family will be allowed in the studio at a time.
SANTA CLAUS WILL CHANGE HIS GLOVES BETWEEN SESSIONS TO HELP PREVENT THE SPREAD OF ANY GERMS.
We will be running an air purifier in the studio 24/7 in the days before, during and after our Santa sessions.
We have adjusted our session time slots to allow time in between sessions for additional cleaning. We will sanitize all frequently-touched surfaces to include the seating in the portrait area, doorknobs, and any toys or books that are used during sessions.
Emily is a DC & Northern Virginia newborn photographer offering lifestyle and studio photography, focusing on the beauty of motherhood from birth sessions through babies first milestones. Serving families in the Northern Virginia & Washington DC area at her studio in Gainesville, Virginia. Emily is available for travel throughout the Virginia, Maryland and DC areas.