How to run holiday mini sessions without the DM chaos

Every October our inbox at The Flash House in Las Cruces looks the same. Someone wants the 10:20. Someone else already said yes to the 10:20 in a comment. A third person paid by Venmo and forgot to tell us which slot. Mini sessions are some of the best money a photographer makes all year, but only if the day runs itself.

Here is the checklist we use, and how we set it up in Proof.

1. Pick one date and one slot length

Name the day, then decide the date, the start and end time, and how long each family gets. Most holiday minis land between 10 and 20 minutes. The grid is back to back, so if your setup needs a reset, put that time inside the slot length.

In Proof you enter the name, the date, the start, the end, and the slot length (anywhere from 5 to 240 minutes) and it builds the back to back grid for you. No spreadsheet.

2. Say exactly what is included

Price per session, how many edited images, where it is, and what to wear. Clients book faster when nothing is a guess. Put the image count and the wardrobe note in the what's included line. Add one strong header photo from last year's setup.

Proof gives every mini day its own booking page with the price, an optional retainer, a what's included note, the location (studio or an address), and an optional header photo.

3. Share one link, not a comment thread

Post one link in your stories, your email list, and your Facebook group. Clients only see open slots. When a time is taken it disappears from the grid, so two people can never grab the same slot.

The link is private and unlisted, so it only goes where you share it.

4. Take a retainer to hold the spot

No shows hurt most on a mini day because the slot cannot be resold. A small retainer fixes that. The retainer is optional. If you set one and connect Stripe, the client pays it in Stripe Checkout to hold the slot, and it is credited toward the session total. Unpaid holds are released so the slot opens back up. Proof does not charge the remaining balance on its own.

5. Keep the roster in one place

On the day you want one list: who is next, their email, a phone number if they left one, and which slots are still open. Proof keeps that roster for the mini day. Clients book with a name, an email, and an optional phone. Each one gets a confirmation email with a link to manage the booking, and you get a note when someone books.

6. After the day

Deliver galleries fast while families are still excited, and invite them back for spring. Proof client galleries can be locked with a PIN so only that family sees them. A mini booking does not open a gallery on its own, send a contract, ask for more than a name, email, and phone, or keep a waitlist. Video upload and streaming inside the gallery are live on Pro, Unlimited, and Teams. Founding is Pro at the locked rate, so it includes video too.

The short version

One date. One link. A retainer on every slot. A roster you can read at a glance. That is the whole system, and it is the reason we built mini session days into Proof for our own studio first.

Mini session days are on Pro, Founding, Unlimited, Studio, and Teams. See how mini session days work, or look at pricing. Founding members lock Pro at $24 a month for life while spots last. If you are also comparing gallery tools, start with Pixieset vs Proof or the Pixieset alternatives roundup.

Proof pricing

These are the same amounts as the cards on the pricing page.

Questions