When you book a family session with me, I’ll work with you to choose our location! Some people come with suggestions, some people are open to ideas and some people just want me to choose for them… all of these are fine! I love to work with people from my local area, so I’ve often visited the place you’re thinking of, but I also love when clients have new ideas of locations for a shoot!

There are really only two things to think about when it comes to location… 1) are you comfortable there? and 2) will it look good? Let’s go in-depth below…

*Benjamin, Rebecca, and Summer at Streamleze Park in Yate, South Glos*

Are you comfortable there?

This will mean all sorts of things to all sorts of different people - every family is different!

If your children are younger, or just generally a little shy around new things, it might be best to go somewhere you often visit as a family… if they’re used to playing there, and you’ve played there together, this will shine through in your photos,

If you’re looking for a some loved-up couples photos, you might be more comfortable somewhere that’s not too busy (and probably on a weekday, rather than a Saturday morning…),

If you’re bringing your fur baby, you might want to go somewhere they’ve been for walks before, or somewhere you know is more enclosed,

If one of your family is Autistic, you might want to visit the location together before the photoshoot day so you can show them what it’s like and talk about what to expect (see my inclusive sessions here), or you might want to let them choose a place they really love, like your local park.

Will it look good?

The answer to this is… yes! If you’re happy and comfortable, this will show in your photos, and a skilled photographer can get good shots anywhere. Having said that, here are some of the things I look for in a good photography location:

Light! I’m a natural light photographer, and the sun is the top thing I think about when planning a shoot. Your photo shoot will usually be late morning, early afternoon or late afternoon, when the sun is softer and lower in the sky. If this is the case, I want the sun to be behind you (in my eyes!), so I would check if this is possible at any location, or if the sun would be hidden.

Background objects! I combine considering the sun with thinking about what will be in the background of your photos. If I want the sun to be behind you, what else would be behind you? We want to avoid bins, cars, other people’s front room windows, and busy roads, for example.

Height! If there’s a hill, we’ll probably use it! This gives you a lovely sky behind you and nothing to distract from the wonderful faces in the photos. If there’s a rock to climb or a log to balance on, we’re there!

Interest! Are there a few different looking spaces at this location? Can we move from open field, to woodland, to water in just a few steps? Perfect, that will give us lots of variety in our photos!

Popularity! You might think going to a place everyone loves would be a winner, but actually this often means there will be people everywhere and you might end up with someone you don’t know in the background of your photo. I can edit this out, but I much prefer those special little locations off the beaten track, don’t you?

Logistics! Can we park nearby? I don’t want to waste any of the session just getting to the location! Can we find each other? Is it safe for little ones? Are we going to end up in a huge muddy puddle? Can we easily find each other?

*Amy, Opal, Amber and Noel at Yate Common, South Glos*

If all of that sounds like just too much to think about, let me choose for you! When you book a session with me, you’ll get a little questionnaire to fill in - this helps me get to know you and your family, and helps me to build the perfect session around you. When you’ve done this, I’ll use that information to choose some locations and tell you all about them! I love pairing up families with wonderful places to go, so if you’d like me to pick your location, just let me know.

*Alex, Hannah and Otis at Yate Common, South Glos*

I hope that’s given you a little insight into choosing a location for your family photo shoot! There are a few more things to consider, but let me worry about that for you. All you need to do is arrive ready to have fun, then sit back and wait for some beautiful photos to hit your inbox!

If you’d like to read more about what a family photo session looks like, you can find that here.

Already convinced? Book your family photo session here!