Family Photography with Teenagers North London

Today I’m thrilled to be sharing a few favourites from a wonderful family photo shoot with teenagers in Hampstead in North London. This is one of my favourite places for photography as it’s wild but accessible, with infinite possibilities for pictures as well as being relatively close to home (which is always nice on a Sunday morning!).

This was one of those joyful photo shoots which make me feel so grateful for being able to make a living doing this craft that I love. A photo shoot filled with interesting conversation, lively and beautiful subjects and, my favourite thing, lots of sports and movement for creative photography.

When I arrived for the photo shoot and we were having a quick cup of coffee before heading out it turned out that the family knew my brother, what a small world! The girls, who are all incredibly sporty, were keen ski-racers like my niece, a fascinating sport that I’m learning more about.

We headed out to Hampstead Heath nice and early to beat the crowds and to get the best of the weather. It was one of those perfect February days, bright and fresh with low sunlight creating amazing shadows. Bright sunlight is always a challenge for photographers, making sure that shadows add to the image rather than detract from it and providing opportunities for some very creative portraits.

We also found our way into the shade for stunning headshots and images where the soft light illuminated the girls faces without distracting sunbeams. It’s fun working with the light on the day and, apart from pouring rain which I’ll admit isn’t ideal, different lighting situations all have their pros and cons. It’s one of the things I enjoy the most – working with the light the on the day. As light is never the same twice so too images are never the same twice and this uniqueness is a big part of what makes photography fun.

Including the family dog in the pictures was a big part of the day and Freddie was such fun to photograph. Treats had to be deployed on occasion to distract from all the wonderful smells of Hampstead Heath, but he joined in for some family photos and then, back at the house, posed in the hall for his portraits as if he was the Sphinx rather than a very happy and loved black Labrador.

One of the things I really enjoy on family photo shoots, as well as making sure I have some beautiful portraits and group shots, is photographing hobbies. The things that make the children tick, the musical instruments, the sports.

After our walk around the heath and some pictures in the garden we took some sporting photographs. I love seeing a family enjoy games together and this kind of sustained activity creates a lot of opportunities for pictures.

I hope you have enjoyed todays blog from my family photo shoot in N6. If you like what you have seen of my approach to photographing teenagers and would be interesting in booking a photo shoot of your own family, then please do get in touch. I’d love to hear from you and together we can plan a photo shoot that everyone will enjoy and which will create images that you, ad your children, can treasure for many years to come.