Family Pictures and blended family

I don't see any issue with taking a picture of just you with your minor children. If you'd like to extend beyond that, invite everyone and they can choose to attend or not attend. Whoever shows up is in the picture. But then my Dad has a million siblings - all the same parents, but let me tell you - getting all those people together was next to impossible. I believe there is only 1 picture that exist of the entire family, taken when the youngest was a newborn (and the oldest was in his mid-teens). After that someone was always missing.

I'd do a shoot for the family you two have created and extend an invitation to the older children. If they show up, do one with everyone. If they show up, ask to have the following:

You and the oldest
You with the two minors
You with your three
Him with his oldest
Him with all of his kids
Maybe one with just the kids, all of them

This way you can get a family picture of all of you, the 4 of you and then some of the older ones who may not want a picture with the step parent.

I would take the photo. invite the other children and let them know you'd love for them to be apart of it. If they don't show, it's on them. My DH has a daughter from his previous marriage. She's older and out of the home. We have 2 kids together. We have photos of just the 4 of us and photos of all 5 of us. She knows we love her. We always let her know if we are doing photos. If she can come, great. If not, no big deal.

I agree with the others, invite everyone and then take pictures with those that attend.

I would book a session for family pictures.

Extend an invite to all the other (adult) children to join you. That is all you can do. Don't try to force it. They either will or won't come. That's on them.

Know for sure that you will have pics of you, dh, & the two minor children together.

Include any other kids that come. And have a bunch of different people combinations of pics. Siblings together. Just you & dh. Single person portraits.

Work with what ya got.

my father had kids again when I was 18 and I had no issue at all with him having pics of just him, his partner and their kids.
Being the budding photographer back then I typically took the photos anyway

We are that blended family. I have steps, halves, and whole siblings. (Add to that we are all either currently married or divorced with blended families of our own.)

(Keep in mind that we are not a formal portrait picture family)

We are a close family and get together all the time. The joke is that if someone gets a new pair of shoes, we grill out and have a party. But getting us all together at the same time is damn near impossible. We do an informal family photo every holiday and the general make up of it is different every year-but no one gets their feelings hurt because all are always invited. And I will be honest, no one every gets their feelings hurt if someone hands off a camera and say 'take a picture' to get the one of the person and their 'whole sisters' with their parent, or if the steps want a photo with the wholes and the halves.  (For the record: we don't generally identify that way-we call each other sisters.)

Anyway, I think that all of that is possible because my folks (technically my mom and step father but again, we don't distinguish very often) spent a lot of time making sure that all felt welcome. If we get together, every one is invited-even if you don't live in town. So maybe if you invited everyone (more than once even) then if they don't/can't make it, they still will feel included. And I would extend the invite more than once-young people forget stuff, and this is something you want to give them an opportunity to come to if they can.

My half brothers are 14 and 17 years younger than me. Each Christmas, we take family photos at my Grandma's. We took a family photo - me, husband, my 2 kids, dad, stepmom, half brothers. Then, my dad said "I would like a photo with my family." - meaning just the 4 o them. That was the most hurtful thing ever - didn't you just take one with your family? I would recommend inviting everyone and if someone doesn't show up, that is on them - not you.
Stacy

I would invite everyone, and make it far enough in advance that they can try to be there. If they can't, no big deal and display your picture proudly. As long as everyone is invited, you are doing the right thing and if they don't want to be in the picture it's not your problem.