Smiling family of four posing outdoors in a field of autumn foliage, with two boys, a man in black and a woman in a green dress.
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Why I Love Fall Family Photo Season in the Temecula and Murrieta Valley


This is my favorite time of year because I absolutely adore photographing families, and fall is when everyone suddenly remembers they need family photos.


Would I love for spring and summer to get the same enthusiasm? Absolutely. I promise I’m still a photographer in June.


But I’ll take what I can get, and right now I’m pretty happy getting all these families in front of my camera. Fall family photos in Temecula and the Murrieta Valley give me plenty to enjoy, especially when the leaves start adding a little color to the background.


Yes, I love the fall colors. But I love photographing your family more.



I’m certainly not going to complain about golden leaves and pretty outdoor backgrounds. In this session, I love how the green dress looks against the yellow leaves and reddish brush. The boys’ gray shirts and Dad’s dark shirt work so well alongside it.


The color is a lovely part of these photographs, but what I enjoy most is having everyone together. A photograph of the whole family. The boys side by side. Mom with her sons. Dad with them, too.


Those are the photographs I want families to have. Everyone belongs in the pictures, including the person who usually takes them.

A woman in a green dress and two boys in blue shirts lean on a wooden rail fence in a sunlit autumn field with golden trees.
Two smiling boys in gray button-up shirts sit close together on a large log outdoors, with golden autumn shrubs and trees behind them.
Man and two teen boys in dark shirts pose together behind a rustic wooden fence with golden autumn trees in the background.

 

Family photos don’t stop being important when the kids get taller

 

I love photographing little kids, but I also really enjoy working with families whose children are getting older.


They don’t have to be toddlers for you to want photographs of them with their arms around each other. And you don’t have to wait for a graduation or another big occasion to get everyone in front of the camera.

Sometimes you look at a photograph and realize just how much your kids have changed since the last one. They’re standing a little taller. Their faces look older. Suddenly, you’re wondering when that happened.


That’s one reason I like including photographs of the siblings together as well as the whole family. You get to see them as they are now, both on their own and with the people they’ve grown up beside.

Family of four walking hand in hand along a dirt path beside a wooden fence, surrounded by trees in warm, golden outdoor light.

I like making time for the smaller groups, too


The full family portrait matters, of course. But I wouldn’t want that to be the only photograph from a family session.


In this gallery, there are photographs of each parent with the boys, the brothers together, and the parents as a couple. I love having that variety.


Parents spend so much time arranging things for their children that a photograph of just the two of them can get overlooked. I’m glad we included one here. You can have photographs with your kids and still have a few together without them.


I also like the difference between the family standing close together and the photographs of them walking along the path. They give the gallery a little variety while keeping the same simple fall feel.



Two teenage boys in matching gray button-up shirts and dark pants lean on a rustic wooden fence with golden autumn trees behind them.
Couple walking hand in hand along a sunlit dirt trail lined with wooden fences, surrounded by autumn trees, the woman in a green dress.
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You don’t have to arrive knowing how to pose


Getting everyone dressed and to the session is already a job. I don’t expect you to take on mine, too.


I’ll guide you through where to stand, what to do with your hands, and how to get close enough that you look like a family instead of four people waiting in line.


There’s room for photographs looking at the camera and a few looking at each other. You don’t need to rehearse either one.


For me, good direction is part of helping people feel comfortable. You can show up with your family and let me help with the photographs.

Family of four holding hands and standing on a rocky riverbed, with a woman in a green dress, a man and two boys in autumn light.

 

And yes, I’ll happily photograph your family in June

 

Fall gets a lot of attention, and I understand why. These colors make a pretty convincing argument.


But I’d love to see spring and summer become family photo season, too. Your children are growing in those months as well, and a family photograph doesn’t need falling leaves to earn a place on your wall.

I love the idea of choosing a time that works for your family, instead of feeling as though you have to fit one more thing into an already busy fall.


For now, though, I’m enjoying the autumn colors and every family I get to photograph. Keep bringing me your little kids, your taller-than-you kids, and the whole group.


I’m very happy to have you in front of my camera.

Family of four posing by a rustic wooden fence in an autumn park, with a woman in a green dress and three smiling males.
Smiling family of four, a man, woman and two boys, posing outdoors in an autumn forest for a professional family portrait.

I photograph families throughout the Temecula and Murrieta Valley. You can find more about my family sessions on my family photography page, including how to get in touch when it’s time for yours.

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