Family photography at the beach: top tips to get the most out of your session
Are you thinking about having your family photography at the beach? I am based in the South West, where we have a multitude of really beautiful beaches. Unsurprisingly, I carry out a lot of my family photo sessions by the sea. The coastline is such a beautiful backdrop, and the beach can be a fun location for children of all ages. Lots of families contact me, as they are on holiday in Devon or Cornwall. Having some photos by the sea can be a really great way to remember the time together.
I have photographed hundreds of family beach sessions over the years, and I can give you lots of advice to help get the best photos for your family. I thought it would be helpful to put together some top tips to help you plan for your photo shoot. With a little bit of preparation and consideration, you can make sure that you all get the most from your photography. I’ll always book in a call with you before your session so that we can chat through everything. You might also find it helpful to read through this information as well.
What to wear
This is probably one of the key things that families ask me ahead of their beach session. I’ve written a whole blog post about what to wear for your family photography session, so I’d recommend reading through this. But there are a few key points below that are particularly relevant to beach sessions:
- All families are different. Some people choose to come in their normal clothes and keep things very low key. This is obviously fine, and the photos are for you, so please do wear whatever you would like. Most families prefer to put a bit of planning into outfits, just to get the most out of their photos. If in doubt, then a generally neutral colour palette always works well (browns, greys, whites, creams) with the odd bit of colour thrown in. You don’t all want to be matching, but clothing in tones that work together will always help to ‘knit’ your family together in the photographs. You can read more detail about this in the main blog post here.
- Unless you desperately want to keep your shoes on, I’d really recommend being barefoot on the beach. It’s nice to walk along the shoreline, and the wet sand can be really beautiful for reflections. Similarly, if you want to paddle, then think about having bare legs, or wear trousers that can be easily rolled up.
- If you wear glasses, then avoid adaptive lenses, or you’ll be in dark glasses for all the photographs. Do wear sunglasses if you need them, but I’d suggest taking them off while we are creating photos.
- Try and avoid having large items (phones, keys, etc.) in your pockets, as these often show up clearly in photos. You are welcome to bring a bag with everything you need, and you can put this down near to where we are shooting.
- Please apply sunscreen at home when you are getting ready, not right at the start of the session. This gives it plenty of time to be absorbed into the skin, and hopefully helps avoid white smears or shiny patches on your faces from freshly applied cream.
- Hats for adults are fine if you prefer them, but I would suggest avoiding them on smaller children. If children are wearing a hat and spend a lot of time looking down at the sand, sea, etc., then we won’t see their face in any of the photos!
Time of day
The time of day is such a key consideration, particularly if you are planning a summer photography session. The beach will be really hot and bright on a sunny day, and many beaches get very busy through the summer months. There is no shade at the beach, so avoid the middle of the day.
The best light will always be at the beginning and end of the day, when the sun is softer. An evening beach session in the summer can result in really beautiful photos, with soft, golden sunlight. Most young children find it fun to have an evening session on the beach, even if it’s unusual for them to be out at this time of day. I’d really recommend this time of day for the best summer sessions. Having said that, it’s ultimately most important that your children are happy. So, if you think that your own family would prefer daytime, then I’d suggest first thing in the morning instead, like this one here.
Time of year
Beaches are fabulous locations for photography at any time of year, it’s not just about summer sessions. The light during the winter, or spring or autumn, is so much softer throughout the whole day. It’s always quieter on the beach during the cooler months, but it’s still just as gorgeous as a backdrop. Some of my favourite beach photography sessions have been during the winter months (like this one here), so this might be a good option to consider.
Weather
If you are planning for a session on the beach, you are probably hoping for sunshine. However, we are in the UK, and therefore pretty much anything could happen..! I’ve included lots of photos from different beach sessions on this page. You can hopefully see that you will still have really beautiful photos, whatever the weather does. I’m always flexible with really bad weather, so we can postpone a session if the forecast is really bad. I usually get in touch with you a couple of days before the session to discuss the weather and look at options.
Tide times
When we get close to your session, we’ll be able to check the tide times and see how this impacts us. Depending on the beach you have chosen, a high tide might mean very little space. I’m a big fan of receding tides, as you get such beautiful reflections from the wet sand along the shoreline. However, it’s not really possible to plan for this! I’m always happy to tweak timings or location if this works better for your session and the tide. Chat to me and ask advice if necessary.
What to bring
Do feel free to bring a big bag of anything you might need – extra layers, snacks, drinks, spare clothes, etc. We can make a base on the beach near to where we are, and leave anything here during the session.
It can be really lovely to have a rug to sit down on, so this is often worth packing. Beyond this, I’d usually say that this is probably enough. I think that you tend to get better photos without any extra props – I’ll usually give you plenty of guidance on what to do, and I think that the beach usually has enough interest without adding in extra things. I might get you walking along chatting together, or having a small game of tag, jumping waves, having a story sitting together, playing hide and seek in the sand dunes, etc. However, it very much depends on your family and what you think would work. If you have children, and you’d like to have toys or games included, then do feel free to bring these!
Bringing dogs
Lots of my families bring their dogs to their session. Pets are part of the family, and it’s really lovely to include them in the photographs if you would like to. Let me know if you are planning to bring your dog and we can plan for this. We can make sure that we select a beach where they are allowed, as lots of places have restrictions, particularly in the summer months.
Which beach to choose
Now, that is the hardest question… there are so many really wonderful options around the South West. The beautiful beaches of South Devon, the amazing flat sands on the North Coast, the soft shingle in East Devon and Dorset, the entire stunning Cornish coastline… I have a blog post with some of my favourites listed here, and there are lots of other secret spots that I can also suggest if you ask me very nicely. Or maybe you have a favourite to share with me?!
Here are some different beach sessions for you to see a little more of:
A morning family session in North Devon
