Spring is finally here, and with the warm weather comes a popular time for outdoor photos. Here are 5 tips to make your outdoor photoshoot a success.

1. Location, Location, Location

Just as in real estate, the location of your photo shoot is super important. Your first instinct may be to defer this decision to your photographer. After all, they’re the professional, right? That’s not to say that your photographer won’t have some suggestions that you love, but you’ll at least need to provide some input so they can make an informed decision. If you hate sand, getting photos done at the beach is not going to make you happy! Think about what types of activities you like to do, places you hang out, and places you feel most comfortable and work with your photographer to find the perfect spot.

It’s always a good idea to have a few ideas in mind before discussing location with your photographer, especially if you have something very specific in mind. Sometimes locations are hard to work with as a photographer (high traffic areas or poor lighting, for example), so it’s good to have options and to be open to suggestions.

2. Pick The Right Time

Once you’ve nailed down a location, the next big consideration is time of day. Photography is all about light, and getting the right light for your outdoor photos is critical. That means picking the right time of day, which usually means morning or evening when the sun is low in the sky and provides ideal lighting conditions. Morning and evening also have the added advantage of having cooler temperatures, which will make everyone involved more comfortable.

Time of day can be critical if, for example, you are keen on sunset photos. On the other hand, the time of day is irrelevant for some locations. If you’ll be indoors or in full shade, then any time of day could work, really.

3. Dress For Success

What to wear (and what NOT to wear) to a photo shoot is worth it’s own article for sure. So, for the purposes of this tip I’ll keep it short with some basics.

If there’s more than one person, co-ordinate! On the day of the shoot is not the time to surprise everyone with your new outfit. Make sure colours match, and that everyone’s outfit works together.

Dress for the location and theme of the shoot. Don’t dress for the beach if your shoot is in the forest.

Be comfortable and dress for the conditions. Don’t wear shorts to a fall shoot. If you plan to be crawling around with kids, don’t wear a suit. Makes sense, right?

Avoid clothes with prominent logos or designs. You probably don’t want your photos to look like an add for a shoe or clothing company, so it’s a good idea to keep things a little more simplistic.

Most importantly, be you. Wear something that makes you feel comfortable.

You may also want to consider bringing some extra clothes (especially for kids!) in case something gets dirty (that never happens with kids!). Layering can also be a good idea if you want to get different looks throughout the session (you can take off your sweater, for example).

4. Bring a Blanket

Having a blanket to sit on is a great option, especially for family photos with small children or pets. In those scenarios, your photographer will almost certainly end up asking you to kneel or sit on the ground at some point during the shoot. Although, that may sound odd, there are good reasons for it.

Small children are obviously much shorter than their parents. In order to get more intimate photos where everyone’s head is in the picture the kids either have to be lifted, or the parents have to sit. Both can make for nice photos, but after some lifting, sitting is a good idea. Especially if the kids aren’t so little anymore!

Sitting together is a pretty natural place to be for parents with their kids or pets. It’s how you sit and play at home, and can really help to relax kids (and parents!) and provide some candid moments.

The blanket can also serve as a nice element in the picture, (as well as saving your clothes from getting dirty) so it’s important that it’s a blanket that you like! Your photographer may have a blanket for you to borrow, but if you absolutely hate the colour or the pattern, you’ll not want to use it. Consider bringing a nice blanket from your own closet.

5. Be Prepared To Reschedule

Now that you’ve put all of this thought into your shoot, and made all the arrangements… What if it rains? What if it’s super cloudy and there’s no sunset? No snow for your winter photos?

It’s important to keep in mind when dealing with nature there are no certainties, especially if you are booking a shoot weeks in advance. Anything could happen, and although a professional photographer can deal with many of those situations, sometimes you just need to reschedule. It may even be a good idea to arrange a “rain date” if possible.

Oh, and don’t forget to have fun!