When I was 14, my dad gave me my first camera and a roll of 35mm film. He taught me how to properly expose an image, and then sent me off into the world to explore with it. I shot a lot of the things we shoot when we’re new — flowers in the woods, old windows in alleys, your basic, overly-artsy, angsty teenager subject matter.

We went to a local dark room (those were still around back then), and I learned how to develop my own film, use an enlarger, and print images. I was immediately in love with the whole process.

A year or two later, I went to stay with a friend in L.A. for a week in the summer. We both slung our cameras over our shoulders and proceeded to Venice Beach to shoot street photos. Later the following day, when we went to process our film and make prints at the darkroom, we found on the drying rack somebody else’s images of us. In hindsight, this is pretty creepy. But at the time, I recall being struck by what a small world this is (a feeling I still get when I travel).

I learned that day that, while there’s ample subject matter available at home if I’m willing to look around for it, there are some shots that I can only capture in unfamiliar conditions.

These days, our family gets to travel quite a bit. As I look back through our past adventures, I find that on each trip we take, I practice and integrate a new skill into my photographs. Perhaps this is because travel photography is such an immersive experience — every moment, everywhere we go, I have a camera over my shoulder, ready for the next once-in-a-lifetime shot.

In Mexico, I learned why I actually love shooting in full sun.

In Hawaii, I learned about committing to getting to the perfect spot, and a did a deep dive on night photography (which I’d never had the courage to really dive into previously).

In Scotland, I learned about the magic of golden hour and post-processing pano shots.

In Iceland, I committed to light chasing, and being patient and dedicated while waiting for exactly the right magic moment even when I’m jet-lagged.

This year, our family has just returned from three weeks in South Africa. (If you’ve never been, run, do not walk, to South Africa. I do not have enough good things to say about this place.)
As with any other trip, I learned some new skills behind the lens on this adventure. First, I learned that, if at all possible, it serves me well to hire a guide or at least inquire of locals about their knowledge of the area. On our way into Kruger National Park, I kept shouting at my husband to pull our car over so I could take pictures. He insisted that we proceed with haste to our guides on the other side of the park (“But there’s a giraffe RIGHT THERE!"). As much as it pains me to say this, my husband was right. Every photograph I took from our car was culled from my final galleries. They couldn’t hold a candle to the vantage points and subject matter I got when we were with our professional guides.

I also experimented a LOT with shooting video on this trip (more on this later)! I’ve never spent much time shooting video, and I can say that I did not return from Africa a videographer. I did, however, come back with a new interest to pursue from behind my camera.

Most importantly, today travel photography teaches me that, while there are new skills to be learned while out there exploring, I have everything I need right here at home! I’m reminded that immersive learning experiences are available to me in my daily life so long as I pick up my camera and shoot; that I don’t have to be somewhere far off to master new techniques; that truly my favorite subject matter, anywhere on the planet, is the connection that humans share with one another, and the beautiful art they become as they simply move through their daily lives; and that our greatest journey together starts wherever we are.

Any photographer will tell you that, sometimes, things just don’t work out as planned. Despite all we can do, occasionally there are circumstances that are beyond our control. I recently had one of these experiences.

I’ve known and loved Laura and David for about ten years now. I had the pleasure of (finally) meeting their two little ones last weekend. Both of our families were going to be in San Diego at the same time, so we decided to schedule a family photo session.

I’m not from San Diego – I’m a Colorado girl at heart (not that I don’t love the ocean!) – but I’m pretty familiar with the area. I researched some locations, we set a time that worked for everyone, I got to know the kiddos (who are the absolute sweetest). Everything was all lined up.

But when it came time to do our actual photo session, we hit some snags. They got hung up at dinner with family; they didn’t have their rented car when they thought they would; they didn’t have time to make it to our location before we lost the light; they weren’t wearing the outfits they’d brought for our shoot; the toddler was getting cranky; the baby fell asleep. You name it, it was going wrong (except the weather – let’s face it, the weather always cooperates in San Diego). Additionally, mom and dad were very concerned that their toddler (who “never smiles for photographs”) wasn’t going to tolerate this at ALL.

In the end, despite all of these extenuating circumstances, we ended up having a really fun photoshoot, and wound up with some beautiful pictures. There are a few things that really helped along the way.

1. Make your location work
Even if it isn't what you originally picked.

Not gonna lie - when I found out we couldn’t do our session at the location I’d picked, my first instinct was to panic. I know the area, but not intimately. I’m still VERY reliant on GPS in SD. I asked where they were having dinner, and what was nearby. Then I high-tailed it down to the area, and started scouting for a nice spot.

Lo and behold, there was the lovely little old schoolhouse, surrounded by palm trees and cacti. And the light was starting to come in perfectly. I took a couple laps around the place, and found a few spots that would work well. It turned out to be a really fun location, and I wouldn’t have otherwise found it.

2. Roll with the toddler punches

Gigi was not thrilled about this session at first. She’d had a long day traveling, she was getting tired, and the last thing she wanted was me pointing my camera in her face.

Mom and dad started trying to cheer her up and have her pose with the family. I assured them that she was just fine as she was. After about 8 minutes, she saw how much fun mom and dad were having with her little brother, she decided she wanted in. She brightened right up, and helped us all to make a fun and memorable game out of the experience.

3. Accept imperfection
It’s more realistic

I know this family packed some really cute outfits to wear for our shoot, thinking that they would have time to go back to their hotel and change before we went out. Alas, it didn’t work out this way. Dad showed up sporting his favorite NFL team; toddler was, of course, wearing her favorite Elsa dress and toddler high-heels; mom…well, mom looked amazing, because, duh, she’s mom.

This wasn’t what they had so carefully planned, but in many ways, this more accurately depicts who this family is – their actual lifestyle. I could not be more ok with this.

4. Have. Fun.

Remember, family lifestyle photography is about capturing memories and documenting those moments of connection that we share with one another. Our primary purpose is to have fun.

Why Travel Photography Was My First Love

What to Do When a Photography Session Doesn’t Go as Planned