Summer Family Portraits at the Farm and Cottage

Summer family portraits—whether in the city, at the farm, or at the cottage—provide excellent opportunities to document your family enjoying life together. The longer days, warmer weather, and relaxed schedules create ideal conditions for both formal portraits and candid lifestyle photography. These sessions capture not just how your family looks, but how you play, connect, and celebrate summer.

Beyond the Formal Session

This image was taken in Erin, Ontario, shortly after finishing a multi-generational family portrait session. Instead of immediately packing my camera, I kept shooting after the kids were rewarded with pool time. This decision—to stay present and keep documenting—often yields the most treasured images. The formal portraits matter, but so do these moments of pure reward and relaxation.

The Reward System

These children had done a wonderful job sitting still and smiling for group photos. When their grandmother gave them freezies and permission to jump in the pool, it sparked genuine joy and extra fun—including a spontaneous best-dive competition. This last child in the pool could finally enjoy a quiet swim while others had moved on. That peaceful solitude, earned after performance and play, creates a contemplative image with editorial depth.

Documentary Photography After the Session

The best family photographers understand that valuable moments don't stop when the formal shot list is complete. By staying alert and keeping equipment accessible, I documented the natural progression from structured portraits to unstructured play to this quiet, solitary moment. It's day-in-the-life photography that honors the complete arc of a family gathering.

Multi-Generational Dynamics

Multi-generational sessions involve coordinating many people with varying energy levels and cooperation capacities. Grandparents want their cherished group photos. Parents want beautiful images. Kids want to swim. By structuring sessions to accomplish formal goals first, then allowing freedom and play, everyone's needs get met—and the photographer captures both the posed and the authentic.

The Last One In

There's something poignant about being the last child still in the pool—a moment of peaceful solitude after the chaos of competition and play. This image works editorially because it balances action (implied through context) with stillness (the actual captured moment). It's contemplative without being static, peaceful without being boring.

Fun, Candid, Day-in-the-Life

My approach prioritizes capturing real family experiences alongside traditional portraits. The formal multi-generational photo matters—but so does documenting grandmother's freezie distribution, the dive competition that erupted spontaneously, and this quiet swimmer enjoying earned pool time alone. Together, these images tell the complete story of your family gathering.