Choosing the best time of day to schedule spring family photos in Baltimore can be challenging, especially if you have small kids. Trust me, as a mom of five, I totally get it. I talk about this a lot with my clients so decided it was time to make a post about how to choose the best time to schedule your family photos and all of the things you should consider.
Timing Your Spring Family Photos in Baltimore
So technically, the best time of day for outdoor family photos is going to be either 60 minutes after sunrise, or 60 minutes before sunset. Yep, you read that right. Two of the most complicated timeframes to schedule with children, AND get yourselves ready too! But before you freak out, hear me out.
Photographers call these timeframes “golden hour”. The sun is lower in the sky so everything has a beautiful warmth to it that we lose as the sun rises higher in the sky.
Aside from the beautiful highlights on the hair and gorgeous glow, this time of day also gives us a lot of flexibility in terms of where we can shoot at your outdoor location. Because the lighting is softer, shadows are softer and we aren’t struggling to find areas of shade. Because it’s everywhere! The only thing I need to focus on is keeping the sun behind your backs and looking for those authentic moments.
This session took place around 6pm and we had plenty of places to run with two very active toddlers. The further along we get into spring and summer, 6:30 may even be better for an evening family photo session.
Morning Spring Family Photo Shoot in Baltimore, Maryland
As I mentioned before, morning sessions were my jam for a really long time. I actually went against the grain and scheduled two or three hours AFTER sunrise because that’s when families wanted to meet. I did this for many many years without issue and never even considered evening sessions.
It gave the parents some time to get ready, kids were their happiest around 9am and generally, the sun wasn’t super high in the sky.
While this did leave us with some challenges, I am super particular about the outdoor locations I choose to shoot in and only go to areas that I know have great backlighting options and open shade. I’m a huge fan of open shade and even used to teach how to make the most of it in my photography classes years ago.
This session was scheduled at 8:30, but by the time we got to this particular spot, it was closer to 8:45/9. The sun kept peeking in and out of the clouds so we did have a little overcast on our side, but this particular spot would have been totally direct sunlight by 9:30am.
Mid Day Spring Family Photos in Baltimore
Ok so let me make you feel a little bit better now. We don’t *have* to get up at the crack of sunrise or wait until an hour before sunset for spring and summer family photos. If you want to, and your kids are happy, I’m game. However, there are ways around it that are just as beautiful. I’m going to be working on some more posts to go more into that over the coming weeks considering I have mid day sessions scheduled ALL week. In Baltimore City, with very little shade. I’m so excited for the challenge!
As I mentioned earlier, I ask that families trust the process and if you want outdoor photos, there are things to consider when choosing the location. Access to open shade is one major one if you can’t meet during those golden hours. I have a few locations I frequent and love that I can suggest.
Open shade at 9:30 am at Cylburn Arboretum in Baltimore City
Are you a Baltimore or surrounding area mom thinking about scheduling your own spring family photos in Baltimore? Great! Reach out and tell me all about your family! I’d love to talk more about capturing YOUR story.
xo Kim
