Family Portraits At Natural Bridges Beach

Family Portraits at Natural Bridges Beach in Santa Cruz

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Living in California, we often take for granted that we live so close to many beautiful beach locations. And scheduling family portraits at the beach is a great idea. The beach is a unique location. However, it does take some planning in order to schedule the perfect session. Here are some family portraits at Natural Bridges Beach in Santa Cruz as well as four things to consider.

Schedule Your Session At The Best Time of Day For Lighting

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The best time to take outdoor family portraits is in the early morning or in the evening. At these times, the sun is low in the sky and creates beautiful soft lighting and vibrant colors. This is especially the case when scheduling family portraits at Natural Bridges Beach (or any other beach). The beach is a beautiful setting for family portraits. However, the times where there is good lighting is limited to just a couple of hours throughout the entire day. You can take family portraits at a place like the park because there are typically trees that can block the harsh light of the sun, provide a lot of open shade. In the middle hours of the day, the beach provides zero shade.

Consider A Weekday Session And Try To Avoid Holidays

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Although Natural Bridges Beach is a beautiful location for family portraits, it is one of the more crowded beach locations. Most summer months and Holidays the beach is packed with families enjoying the beach. This can make is difficult to find locations to take pictures and it is almost impossible to not have people walking in the background of your pictures. If possible, I recommend scheduling the session at a time that is less busy. For example, a weekday evening session. During this time, the beach is a lot less busy. And it is easier to find parking, and take pictures without worrying about people in the background.

Dress Casually And Ditch Your Shoes

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For family portraits at the beach, I recommend more casual outfits. No one really gets dressed up to go the beach 🙂 Shorts, a t-shirt, or a casual dress are good outfit ideas. I also recommend ditching your shoes as well. This subtle outfit consideration will ensure that your outfit matches the beach.

Bring A Coat And Change of Clothes

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Last but not least, I recommend bringing a coat and a change of clothes for families with younger kids. Kids can be unpredictable and there is a more than likely chance that they may get water on their outfit, jump in a puddle, or get sand everywhere. Bringing a back up set of clothes is highly recommended. Along with this, I recommend brining warm clothes that can be worn in between poses. This is especially the case in the evenings when the temperature is cooler and windy.

If you are planning a beach session, family portraits at Natural Bridges Beach in Santa Cruz is great location to consider. Thanks!