Creative Family Photography in Hampstead NW3

The weather has been mixed recently but this has led to some fantastic family photo shoots with really varied activities and adventures and I’m thrilled to be sharing a sneak peek today from a family photography session in Hampstead. This was my second session with this wonderful family and I was really looking forward to it. Our last session was just before the pandemic began, a newborn shoot where I remember discussing the news but with absolutely no idea of what the next year would bring. It was brilliant to meet again as things are unlocking and life is beginning to return to some kind of new normal.

We had a brilliant time as I knew we would, a session filled with laughter even in the face of toddler tantrums and pouring rain – life throws those curveballs but what’s so fun about family photography sessions is just going with the flow, finding a new direction and working to get brilliant photographs whatever the day brings. These last few weeks have seen a lot of rain, but I find that rainy day shoots tend to result in brilliant pictures as we add more variety into the sessions dodging the weather and working indoors as well as outside.

On this session we had planned to spend the whole morning taking family photographs on Hampstead Heath but after the heavens opened and the umbrella broke and even a giant bourbon biscuit couldn’t restore equilibrium we retreated back home. A game of Monopoly later the weather had calmed and we were out in the garden before an early lunch and a trip to the park – just perfect. We ended up packing so much in and the pictures are such great fun.

Of course, having such a varied and exciting morning on our Hampstead family photo shoot meant choosing a single image for my sneak peek was impossible, there are just so many lovely family pictures. It’s also fun to showcase some variety here on the blog to give new clients who are discovering my work for the first time a good indication of the type of images I take.

So here are three pictures to give a flavour for our day. First up a family photograph in front of iconic Kenwood House on Hampstead Heath. I seem to have done a lot of family photo shoots on Hampstead Heath recently, it goes like this I find, I’ll work somewhere a lot for a couple of months and then might not visit for a while. It’s one of the lovely things about working in London, there are so many brilliant locations for family photography. I’ve also seen all the weather on Hampstead Heath recentl, from such bright days the challenge has been finding the shade, to amazing skies like this one. But I love the grey mist of the rain on this family shoot, it gives the image an otherworldly feel and encapsulates so much of British childhood – walks on rainy days and finding the fun whatever the weather. As you can see, we definitely found the fun. I love this shot, everyone’s expressions are brilliant as Max throws his younger daughter in the air to her evident delight.

Second up a shot from the back garden. Here I used the panning technique of slow shutter speed and moving my camera with the action to capture the speed and excitement in this beautiful father and daughter portrait form our Hampstead family photography session. I love pictures like this using creativity and camera technique to produce something special.

My final picture is a beautiful portrait. Once a nap and some biscuits had seen off the earlier trauma of not being allowed to play with a dangerously broken umbrella it was all smiles and laughter from my littlest subject and I love her expression here. The climbing frame creates a beautiful dynamic for this lovely composition as well as providing context to the picture, the playground at the local park where the family love to play.

I hope you have enjoyed these images, todays sneak peek from my recent family photography session in Hampstead. If you would like to book your own session then do get in touch, July is very booked up, but I have some availability in August and I’d love to meet you and your family. Drop me a message via the contact form and we can come up with a plan for the perfect family photo shoot for you and your children.