Planning a family photoshoot while visiting Valencia?
After photographing families here for years, there are a few things we’ve learned that can make the difference between a session that feels like another appointment on your holiday itinerary and one that becomes part of the experience itself.
From choosing the right location and time of day to wondering whether your toddler will cooperate, here are nine things we wish every family knew before booking.
1. Choose the location for the feeling, not just the view
Valencia gives us completely different settings within a relatively small area, and the location you choose will influence how your photographs will feel.
The City of Arts and Sciences is modern, bright and architectural. It’s perfect if you’re drawn to clean lines, open spaces and a slightly more editorial look.
Patacona Beach feels relaxed, warm and Mediterranean. Think bare feet, movement, sand, sea and beautiful evening light.
Valencia’s Old Town gives you something completely different again: historic streets, warm stone, little plazas and that unmistakable feeling of being in Spain.
There isn’t one perfect location.
The question we usually ask is: What do you feel more drawn to? That’s a much better place to start.
2. What is the best time for a family photoshoot in Valencia?
This is one of the questions we get asked most often.
An early session can be a game changer during a Valencia summer. Temperatures are cooler, popular locations are quieter and younger children are often much happier first thing in the morning.
But golden hour and sunset are incredibly special if you’re after those beautiful warm, golden tones.
Which one do we recommend? It depends on the season, your family, your schedule and many other things. That’s why we always like to know a bit about you and your plans, so we can recommend the best options for your family.
3. Don’t plan around your toddler’s ability to pose
If you’re worried that your three-year-old won’t stand still and smile at the camera, we have good news:
They don’t need to.
The best photographs usually happen when children are moving, exploring, running, cuddling or simply being themselves.
We might walk together, play a little game, let them investigate something they’ve spotted or give them a moment when they’ve had enough of us grown-ups.
A family photoshoot doesn’t need to mean asking your child to perform for the camera for an hour.
Our photographers know how to work with children, making the entire experience more relaxing for everyone.
4. Choose a photographer who knows how to work with kids
Beautiful photography is important, of course.
But when you’re choosing a family photographer, look beyond the portfolio.
Working with children is a skill of its own.
An experienced family photographer should be able to create genuine moments quickly, keep things fun and adapt when your child has other plans. Because they will occasionally have other plans. 😂
A shy child might need a little time. A toddler might suddenly decide they’re going in the opposite direction. Someone may simply be DONE.
That’s normal.
Your photographer should be able to read the situation, change direction when necessary and keep the experience relaxed rather than forcing a predetermined list of photographs.
5. Wear something you can actually move in at your photoshoot
Coordinated doesn’t have to mean matching.
Neutrals, soft colours and beautiful textures photograph particularly well against Valencia’s architecture and beaches, but the most important thing is that you still feel like you.
Choose clothes you can walk in, sit in, pick up your children in and actually enjoy wearing.
You don’t want to spend your photoshoot constantly adjusting an outfit or telling your child not to touch something because you’re worried about their clothes.
After booking, we send our families a styling guide to help with colours, coordination and putting everyone’s outfits together without making the whole family look identical.
6. Leave room for the unexpected
Some of our favourite images happen between the “planned” photographs.
A child suddenly running back to mum.
A look between two people.
Someone bursting out laughing.
A hug that wasn’t prompted.
Those moments can’t always be planned, and that’s precisely what makes them special.
We’ll guide you throughout your session, but we also leave enough room for your family to simply be together.
Sometimes the photograph we didn’t plan is the one that ends up on the wall.
7. Don’t underestimate the everyone-looking photo
We love candid photographs.
Those that capture the hugs, the laughter, the little expressions and those fleeting moments you didn’t even realize were happening.
But here’s the thing. A beautifully captured family portrait where everyone is together, everyone looks great and, miraculously, everyone is looking at the camera?
Priceless.
Especially when children are growing quickly.
So yes, we’ll create the natural, emotional photographs.
But we’ll also make sure you have that beautiful family portrait your parents will probably want framed too.
8. Good things happen fast
You don’t need a two-hour photoshoot to create a meaningful and varied collection of family photographs.
In fact, especially with children, longer isn’t always better.
Most of our family sessions last between 45 and 60 minutes. With thoughtful planning, the right location and gentle direction, that gives us plenty of time to create a mix of natural moments, beautiful portraits and everything in between, without the experience taking over your day.
A 45-minute session is often the perfect fit for a smaller family, particularly when young children are involved. Sixty minutes gives us a little more breathing room, more variety and, where suitable, the possibility of exploring more than one setting.
Our 90-minute sessions are generally best suited to larger or extended families, where photographing different group combinations naturally requires more time.
The goal isn’t to keep you in front of the camera for as long as possible. It’s to create something meaningful while the experience still feels relaxed, enjoyable and part of your time in Valencia.
9. A family photoshoot that makes you remember how it FELT
Years from now, you probably won’t remember whether everyone was standing perfectly or whether every strand of hair was exactly where it should have been.
You’ll remember how small your child looked holding your hand.
Their laugh.
The way they ran toward the water.
How your family felt during that particular chapter of your lives.
That’s what we want your photographs to give back to you.
Not simply proof that you visited Valencia.
Your family photoshoot in Valencia
You don’t need perfectly behaved children, matching outfits or experience in front of the camera.
We’ll help you choose the perfect location and timing for your family, and we’ll guide you throughout the session so you can relax and enjoy being together.
Because ultimately, the goal isn’t simply to come home from Valencia with beautiful photographs.
It’s to come home with photographs that feel like you.
Planning a family photoshoot in Valencia? We’d love to photograph your story.
