Welcome to Your Mermaid Experience
I’m so excited to welcome your little mermaid to the studio.
Getting ready for your mermaid session is simple and fun. This guide will help you know exactly what to expect so your child arrives relaxed, excited, and ready for a magical experience. Whether your little one is joining the Little Mermaid Sessions or the Digital Mermaid Artwork experience, everything is carefully guided once you arrive, so there’s very little you need to do beforehand.
Which Mermaid Session Are You Booked For?
There are two different mermaid experiences available, each designed for a specific age group and stage of development.
Choosing Your Underwater World (Digital Mermaid Sessions)
When you arrive for your Digital Mermaid session, your child will be able to choose their favourite underwater world.
Deep Ocean Adventure
Soft Sea Mist
Golden Sunset Lagoon
During the Session
Sessions last around 10–15 minutes and are fully guided.
You don’t need to worry about posing or knowing what to do. I’ll guide everything step by step in a relaxed, encouraging way so children feel confident and comfortable. Parents can relax and enjoy watching the magic unfold.
From Studio Moment to Finished Artwork
For the little mermaid experience, you can expect to receive your edited gallery of images within five days of your session.
For Digital Mermaid Artwork:
• Images are professionally edited by hand
• Multiple photographs are blended together
• Lighting, water effects, and storytelling elements are added
• Your finished artwork is delivered via an online gallery
Editing takes time because each image is created individually with care rather than using automated effects. I’ll advise you of what to expect at your session.
Answers to Frequently Asked Questions
If you’re wondering about costumes, ages, how the images are created, or anything else at all, you’ll find helpful answers in my Mermaid FAQs here.
Hair styling is completely up to you, but mermaid portraits tend to look most natural and magical when hair is worn loose.
Soft waves, natural texture, or gently brushed hair work beautifully and allow movement and flow within the finished artwork. Tight ponytails or structured styles can look less “underwater,” so if possible, I recommend keeping hair relaxed and down.
Flower crowns and mermaid accessories are available in the studio and can be added during the session to complete the look.
Not at all, every little mermaid leaves the studio with their feet safely attached!
This question actually comes up more often than you might think, especially from younger children who are wonderfully committed to the idea of becoming a real mermaid. The mermaid tail is simply a costume worn during the session, and children can step in and out of it easily.
For digital mermaid artwork, the transformation happens later during the editing process. I carefully combine photographs and create the underwater scene by hand, so there’s no tricks happening during the session itself, just imagination, gentle posing, and a bit of studio magic.
Do you provide the costume?
Yes, everything your child needs to become a mermaid is provided in the studio.
I have a selection of mermaid tails, tops, and accessories available to use during the session, along with headdresses and styling pieces to complete the look. Children change into their costume when they arrive, and I guide everything so the experience feels fun, relaxed, and magical.
You’re very welcome to bring your own mermaid outfit if your child has a favourite, but it’s absolutely not necessary. Most families prefer to travel light and use the studio wardrobe, which has been chosen specifically to photograph beautifully.
For digital mermaid artwork, the final underwater transformation is created later during the editing process using real photographs from the session, so the costume helps bring the experience to life while your child is here in the studio.
For Digital Mermaid Artwork sessions, your child can choose their favourite underwater world when they arrive at the studio.
There are three beautifully styled scenes to choose from, each with its own mood and colour palette. Some feel calm and dreamy, while others are more adventurous or magical, so your child can pick the one that feels just right for them.
The final artwork is then carefully created using photographs taken during your session and blended by hand to bring their chosen underwater story to life.
You don’t need to decide in advance, we’ll look at the options together on the day.
Deep Ocean Adventure
Soft Sea Mist
Golden Sunset Lagoon
Digital Mermaid Artwork sessions work a little differently from my usual portrait sessions.
During these sessions, children are gently guided through a series of specific poses that are later combined to create one finished underwater artwork. Because of this, children need to be able to listen to simple instructions, hold poses briefly, and follow direction comfortably.
Most children are ready for this around age five, which is why this is the minimum age for Digital Mermaid Artwork sessions.
If your child is younger but would still love a mermaid experience, the Little Mermaid Sessions (Under 5s) are designed especially for younger children, with a more playful, relaxed approach focused on imagination and exploration rather than posing.
Mermaid sessions are a little different from my usual portrait sessions.
Rather than creating a gallery of images to choose from, Digital Mermaid Artwork sessions are designed to create one carefully crafted piece of artwork. During your session I’ll photograph a variety of poses and expressions so I have everything needed to build the strongest final image, but these photographs are used as the foundation for creating a single finished mermaid portrait.
Each artwork is individually hand-edited and composited rather than placed into a template, which is why one final image is included per session.
If you would love more than one artwork, additional sessions can be booked to create a collection of unique mermaid portraits that work beautifully together as wall art.
Digital Mermaid Artwork is designed to feature one mermaid at a time.
Each finished image is carefully created from multiple photographs taken during the session and individually hand-edited to build the final underwater artwork. Because of the time and detailed editing involved, sessions are planned around creating one portrait per child.
If you have siblings who would both love the experience, you’re very welcome to book a session for each child. Many families choose to display the finished artworks together as a beautiful matching set on the wall.
For younger children attending Little Mermaid Sessions, sibling images may be possible depending on ages and confidence levels, so just let me know when booking and we can plan what will work best.
Digital Mermaid Artwork is created in two stages: the studio session and the artistic editing process.
During your session, I focus on capturing the perfect foundation photographs. Your child will wear a mermaid top, tail and headdress, and I’ll gently guide them into relaxed, natural poses while we chat and play. The goal isn’t a long photoshoot but creating the ideal expressions, movement and lighting needed to build the final artwork.
After the session, the real magic happens in my editing suite. Each image is carefully handcrafted using professional compositing techniques, blending your child’s photographs into a detailed underwater scene. Every artwork is individually created rather than placed into a template, allowing me to refine lighting, colour and atmosphere so the finished portrait feels cinematic and believable.
The studio session itself is short and relaxed, while the artwork creation takes many hours behind the scenes to bring your mermaid image to life.
There are two different Mermaid Experiences available at the studio, each designed for a slightly different age group and style of photograph.
The Little Mermaid Experience (Live Action Session)
Designed especially for younger children, this experience takes place in my live mermaid studio set.
Your child enjoys a fun, relaxed mermaid photo shoot using my costumes and styling pieces, with plenty of natural movement and interaction. These sessions are photographed as traditional studio portraits, and all edited digital images from the session are included for you to download and enjoy.
This experience focuses on capturing joyful moments and a collection of beautiful photographs from your child’s time as a mermaid.
Digital Mermaid Artwork Experience
Designed for older children, this session is created with one goal in mind: producing a single handcrafted piece of mermaid artwork.
During the session, I photograph your child specifically to create the perfect base image for digital artwork. Afterward, I carefully hand-edit and composite the photograph into an underwater scene to create a finished wall-art portrait.
Because each image is individually designed and created by hand, one fully edited Digital Mermaid Artwork image is included in the session fee. Additional artworks may be commissioned separately if desired.
Both experiences include use of mermaid costumes and styling, guidance throughout the session, and a calm, supportive studio environment designed to help children feel confident and enjoy the magic of becoming a mermaid.
If you’re unsure which experience is right for your child, you’re always welcome to get in touch.
his depends on which Mermaid Experience you choose, as there are two different styles of session available.
Little Mermaid Experience (Live Action Session)
These sessions are photographed as a traditional studio photo shoot in my live mermaid set. Your child will be photographed naturally as they explore and enjoy the experience, and all edited digital images from the session are included for you to download.
You’ll receive a collection of beautiful photographs capturing their time as a mermaid.
Digital Mermaid Artwork Experience
This session is designed to create one finished piece of mermaid artwork rather than a gallery of images.
During the session, I photograph your child specifically to build the perfect base image for a handcrafted digital composite. Afterward, I carefully create a fully edited underwater artwork designed as a wall portrait.
Because each image is individually created by hand, one completed Digital Mermaid Artwork image is included in your session fee. Additional artwork images can be commissioned separately if you wish.
If you’re unsure which experience is right for your child, the main Mermaid Photo Shoot page explains the differences, or you’re always welcome to ask.
That depends who you ask.
In the studio, we believe mermaids are absolutely real for a little while. The aim of these sessions is to create a magical experience where children can fully step into the story, use their imagination, and see themselves as part of an underwater world.
Through costume, storytelling, and carefully handcrafted artwork, I create images that help bring that magic to life. For many children, the experience feels wonderfully real and that sense of belief is exactly what makes these portraits so special.
Of course, this officially applies only inside the studio. If you’re asking whether mermaids are swimming around in the ocean… I’m about 99% sure they are.
The best age depends on which mermaid experience you choose.
For the Digital Mermaid Artwork Experience, I recommend ages five and up. These sessions involve more guided posing so that I can create the perfect base image for the handcrafted artwork. Children need to be able to follow gentle direction and hold positions briefly, which helps achieve the beautiful final result.
For younger children, the Little Mermaid Experience is designed especially with them in mind. This live studio session is more relaxed and playful, allowing little mermaids to explore, interact with the set, and enjoy the magic at their own pace while I capture natural moments.
Both experiences are created to suit different ages and personalities, so your child can enjoy a mermaid adventure that feels fun, comfortable, and age-appropriate.
My mermaid images are digital artwork, but they are not created using green screen or AI image generation.
In the studio, I photograph your child using carefully planned lighting, posing, and real photography techniques to create the perfect base image. This gives me complete control over shadows, perspective, and expression so the final artwork feels natural and believable.
The magical underwater scene is then handcrafted by me during the editing process. Each image is individually created rather than generated automatically, which means your child’s portrait is completely unique and designed as a piece of wall art for your home.
Because your little mermaid cannot see the finished scene while in the studio, it can help to show them an example image beforehand so they understand the adventure we’re creating together.