Virginia is a beautiful and diverse state that offers so many options to capture you in your perfect environment. However, choosing the perfect space for your portrait session isn’t always the easiest. There are several factors to think about when making the decision, and finding just the right spot may be harder than you think. But don’t worry — I’ve created this guide to help you narrow your list and pick just the right location for your portraits!

Choose A Meaningful Place

When trying to decide where you’d like to have your portraits done, the first step is to think about places that have meaning for you. If you’re booking an engagement session, maybe there’s a place where you met, had your first date, or even got engaged. Other great options include favorite landmarks or parks in your city, places you’ve spent time enjoying the outdoors, or even your home! 

When you feature these things in your photos, it adds an extra layer of sentimental value to those images; you get to reminisce on all the happiness you’ve felt in that place every time you look at the photo!

Find Good Lighting

Lighting is extremely important for capturing the perfect photos. Finding a place that has a lot of natural light and taking the time of day into consideration can give you beautiful portraits to cherish for a lifetime. A sunny afternoon can add a golden softness to your photos, while too sheltered of a place may block out the natural light that gives your photos that lovely glow you are hoping to attain.

Lighting and the artful use of shadow can heavily influence the mood conveyed from your images, so finding just the right balance can make portraits captivating and magical!

Think About Accessibility

The last thing you want to do when you have put time and effort into your appearance is ruin it with mud and sweat! Make sure your chosen space is easily accessible and doesn’t require much exertion to reach. When planning a shoot outdoors, avoid muddy areas or places you’d have to clamber up rocks or avoid limbs that could tear or mark your clothing.

Also, remember that photography equipment or any props you may want to utilize will need to be transported to your space, so you don’t want to risk damaging these items, either!

Consider Possible Distractions

When choosing a space for photos, there are a few different kinds of distractions to avoid for your session. Firstly, you want to make sure that the backdrop will enhance your images rather than detract from them. If your backdrop is too distracting (especially for headshots!), the focus of viewers may shift to the background rather than the subject of the photo: you!

Crowds are another distraction to avoid whenever possible. Too many people in an area can make it difficult to capture the kind of portrait you are looking for, so if you want to get pictures in a popular space, you should try to find a time when the area is less busy.

Consult With Your Photographer

If you have questions about your chosen space, or even if you need recommendations on places for your session, I’m here to help! As a Richmond portrait photographer, I am familiar with many great places in the area to take beautiful portraits. If you need help choosing your space, or if you’re ready to book your portrait session, contact me today!