An End of Life Session is a time set aside with family and friends to say goodbye to a beloved one whose time is short.
I offer my services for families grieving the approaching death of a family member and for those who must euthanize a beloved family pet.
Though painful, End of Life Sessions are among the most beautiful. I believe that documenting those moments can be healing experiences for family together at a time such as this. These images can be such a comfort for those left behind.
End of Life Sessions are offered pro bono for loved ones who are facing a 3 month prognosis or sooner.
My heart is with you.
First, please let me know as soon as you are able that you'd like to hold an End of Life session, so that I can reserve time for you. Sometimes these sessions come at short notice, and I will do my absolute best to be there for you.
Next, depending on your loved one's capabilities, we will choose a location. It can be in your home, in a beautiful field, or at the hospital or veterinarian.
We will go at your pace. The most important part for me is to give each family member time to be together and also have some time one-on-one with your sweet one. I hope there will be some laughter. There may be tears too, and that's okay.
My pro bono sessions are 30 minutes and include at least 15 images. Outdoor sessions are held close to sunset and are presented in color; indoor sessions are held mid morning and are presented in black and white.
I will be in touch by three weeks after your session with your beautiful gallery and slideshow, which are yours to download and print.
As these sessions are pro bono, please consider a donation to any of the following:
Capturing Hopes, which is an organization I volunteer with to offer photography for NICU babies,
your local Hospice,
Beloved Companions Little Pet Chapel Project, which builds memorial pet chapels across the Triad for grieving pet owners,
PAW Alliance New Leash on Life, the training program where we got our Bean
any Humane Society, shelter, or pet rescue that is close to your heart.
All are beautiful organizations to support in any way you wish.
_Lyndsay T.
_Malcolm B.
My favorite part about being an Emily Richardson family is just that, when Emily is taking our photos of me, my wife, and son I feel like we’re all one big happy family, and that she cares just as much as we do about the outcome of the session, it is because of this that even before I see the final product I know with absolute certainty that they will be beautiful.
_Jill E.
I will treasure the images forever from our amazing Mommy & Me session with Emily. She is so talented--she knows how to pose us naturally and beautifully, and she also stepped back to let us "just be together" and play to capture this chapter in my daughter's and my life together. The session itself was so much fun and so easy. The images she delivered bring me right back to the fun we had together. Thank you, Emily, so much! We are overjoyed!
_Morgan T.
Joining Emily’s “Parenthood Collective” was one of the best decisions we could have made when we found out we were expecting a sweet baby! We’ve had 3 sessions with Emily so far (pregnancy announcement, maternity, and newborn) and words wouldn’t do justice to how thankful we are for her encouraging instruction, fun personality, and beautiful eye for creatively capturing memories. We look forward to continue working with her through the years as our family grows!
_Lynn B.
My four-legged beloved companion and best friend Andra was diagnosed recently with a fast-growing sarcoma. We had to accept that she would be dying very soon. Emily's radically natural and deeply soulful documentation of our family's last field trip with Andra has solaced us during this extremely emotional time. Emily has given us memories that will last a lifetime and beyond. Grateful, so grateful for her compassion and for the way she gently encourages playful, joyful, honest postures that capture the hearts of her subjects.
_Nell T.
Emily is a fantastic photographer who goes above and beyond for her clients. At our last family photoshoot, we realized we needed something we hadn't brought with us--and Emily actually jumped in her car, drove to the nearest store, and bought what we needed. She wouldn't even let us pay her back! Beyond that, all the photos she took were amazing. I ended up purchasing all of them. I'll definitely be using her for family photos every year until my daughter is grown.
_Jennifer F.
Emily is so kind and great to work with. She has done a family session and a heirloom session for us so far and will be capturing our son in a personality session very soon. Emily's work has been nothing but beautiful every time. I would definitely recommend her to everyone.
_Symone W.
Emily was AMAZING! She has such a warm and fun personality, which made it easy for everyone to relax and enjoy the moment. Our 6 year old was raving about how much fun she had, and our photos turned out beautiful. We will definitely be using her for years to come.
_Gabby P.
Emily was fantastic! From session planning to execution and finished product, we could not have been happier. She was so patient with our little one and our dog in order to get the perfect shots that really captured the personality of our family. We will definitely use her for any upcoming photo needs!
_Patricia F.
Emily is absolutely amazing. I was extremely comfortable with her the minute I met her. She made my son feel comfortable and was able to capture his personality perfectly. My entire experience was incredible, from first reaching out, meeting her to try on a dress from her wardrobe, to the shoot, all the way through photo selection and purchasing. She is very responsive and helpful throughout the whole process. I 10 out of 10 recommend Emily!
_Kelsey H.
Emily was truly a dream photographer! She was amazing with our all of our kids and just so kind and thoughtful throughout the entire photo shoot. Our pictures turned out absolutely stunning and you can tell she is a natural expert and such an incredibly gifted photographer. Her personality and helpfulness were added benefits to the gorgeous family photos we could never replicate!
_Dot M.
The images of my sweetheart and I are exactly what I wanted to capture. She even left a few goofy outtakes which are favorites.
She caught what it feels like to have been together for 20 years and still really really love each other.
If you are thinking of having Emily capture some family photos, go ahead a book her. If it’s just a couples shoot, immediate family, children or an extended multi-generational memory you want, I truly believe she can deliver your goal. Filling out her questionnaire beforehand and being as specific as possible with my answers and intentions really helped her lead me to the best place and time of year and the way she guided our session.
_Dee A.
LOVE, LOVE, LOVE our family photos from Emily Richardson Photography! Emily was amazing to work with! She made the planning process so easy and the time we spent with her was so relaxed and comfortable! I made an entire gallery wall of photos in my living room from our session with her and am constantly getting compliments! Highly recommend!
_Lindsay B.
I cannot recommend Emily highly enough! From the moment we met, it was clear that she truly understood how to create a welcoming and inclusive environment for everyone, especially children.
Our 3-year-old can be a bit shy, but Emily made her feel comfortable and at ease so quickly. She took the time to connect, engage, and even brought along some fun props to make the experience enjoyable. She also has the patience of a saint and helped our daughter hunt for mice between pics, lol.
The final photos were stunning! We’ve used her on more than one occasion and look forward to booking her again in the future!
_Kristin W.
Words cannot describe how grateful we are for you. The photography session for Flash and our family was so beautiful. I cannot thank you enough.
_Jen M.
My at-the-time 18-month old daughter and I did mommy and me pictures, and they will truly be something I cherish for the rest of my life. Emily was so thorough about the process beforehand and even though we only did a 20-minute session, we got so many great photos from it. Emily made us feel so comfortable, and she is a gem of a person.
_Shyleen C.
I recently had Emily do a family photo shoot for us and it was the best experience we have ever had getting pictures taken! She was so patient with us and made the whole experience calm, loving, and free. My son can be iffy when it comes to meeting new people and he instantly took to Emily. She captured so many beautiful pictures of his personality and got amazing family pictures of us together. I will definitely recommend her to everyone that’s needs a photographer!
_Meghna B.
Emily is absolutely amazing! She has taken pictures of our whole family and also just me and me and my daughter. Emily is patient, creative, and fun. We especially loved how good she was with our big puppy. :) The pictures are perfect for our living room and to gift to the grandparents. We highly recommend Emily!
_Marion E.
Thank you so much for your kindness [...]. I will be forever grateful to you for capturing my sweet boy!!
_Taylor J.
I looked at tons of photographers in Winston Salem and surrounding areas and made the right choice by picking Emily Richardson. It was such a stress free experience, which is not what anyone typically expects when we’re talking about family photos. She guided us in choosing outfits, had every detail thought out on the what/where/when/how to create the perfect photos, and truly made the actually photo shoot fun. I love that she captured such a great variety of photos and I can’t wait for them to be the center piece of our family room. I had a tough time picking my favorite photos. Be prepared to want to book more photo sessions!
_Shannon M.
Emily did our boys' photos this year and the experience and photos were AMAZING! She was really easy to work with and had a great demeanor and patience with our wild boys! The boys were all really comfortable with her and the session was also a lot of fun. I am still impressed at how many fantastic pictures of our boys she was able to capture especially given that they are so crazy most of the time.
_Rachel R.
Emily took our first ever set of family pictures and they are absolutely GORGEOUS! She was so easy to work with, is the kindest soul, & her communication is so prompt and friendly. She’s one of those people you meet one time and feel like you’ve known them for years! We will absolutely be recommending her to all of our friends & will absolutely be using her in the future! Thanks so much again Emily!
I cannot wait to get started planning the session of your dreams!
Hi friend! I would to hear from you!