When people search for extended family photography, they are usually looking for a way to hold on to something that feels like it is changing faster than they can keep up with. Goodness me, my daughter is now 8 months old, I can’t believe it, and we’ve just booked our family photo shoot as a small family this year. Children grow, grandparents slow down (well, mine don’t, they’re 85!), families spread across different towns, sometimes different countries. And yet, when everyone comes back together in one place it HAS to be documented.

When you want more than a small res phone selfie, that is usually when I get the call.

Over the years, I’ve photographed grandparents, parents and grandchildren all together for the same reason. Not because someone wanted “nice photos”, but because they wanted something lasting. Something physical. An album on the coffee table. Framed portraits on the wall. The kind of images that outlive phones and hard drives.

This is what extended family photography has become for most of my clients in Kent. Something deeply special. Let’s get into how to book an extended family photo session.

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TLDR

How do you do it? Book an airbnb or go to the grandparents huge house with well-loved garden, get a date in the diary, and put an hour or so aside for photos. Then book a separate date to have your private viewing and decide on which high-end wall products you’d like to purchase.

Extended family photography is about bringing multiple generations together for natural, relaxed portraits that feel real rather than posed. In Kent, families book sessions to celebrate treasured time together, often around milestones or ageing relatives.

What will you get out of it? Timeless printed albums and framed artwork that surpass the value of digital-only galleries.

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Contents

1. What is extended family photography and why it matters
2. Why families in Kent are booking these sessions
3. My approach to photographing multi-generational families
4. What a session actually looks like
5. How to prepare and book your shoot
6. Investment, albums and printed legacy pieces
7. Final thoughts and how to enquire

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What is extended family photography and why it matters

Extended family photography is the art of photographing multiple generations together in a way that feels natural, relaxed and emotionally honest. It is not about rigid posing or formal studio arrangements. It is about relationships and making your way through different arrangements of groups. The way a grandparent looks at a grandchild when they think no one is watching. The laughter that happens when everyone is finally in the same place at once. The quiet in-between moments that often matter more than the obvious ones.

Traditionally, family portraits were more formal. Carefully arranged, often quite stiff. Today, families want something different. They want joy, movement and authentic connection. Something that actually feels like them.

At a wedding I encourage couples to go for fewer group shots so they can enjoy memories with their loved ones. Extended family photo shoots you can afford to make a bigger list of shot varieties because the sole focus isn’t the wedding couple, it’s individual relationships worth celebrating.

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Why families in Kent are booking extended family photography

Have you seen “About Time?”

If you haven’t, go watch it, it’s currently on Amazon Prime.

If you have, you’ll know that time goes fast, and there is a deep sentimental experience that happens as we age. And with photography you get to pause those moments in their tracks.

Now, I’ve only ever lived in two counties, but I know that Kent is full of families who have big families and love to celebrate them. People move out of little towns like Deal, or Margate, but they often end up travelling back to see parents and grandparents that have ALWAYS lived here.

When everyone is finally in the same place, often for a birthday, anniversary or holiday, families decide to mark it properly and that’s why families in Kent are booking extended family photo shoots.

There are usually three core reasons behind a booking:

• Grandparents are getting older and families want to preserve this stage of life
• The family has grown significantly and hasn’t been photographed together properly before
• There is a desire to create something physical, like an album or framed artwork, that becomes part of the home

It is rarely about social media or digital files. It is about creating something that future generations can hold.

If you want to see how I approach these sessions, you can explore my Kent family photography work here.

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My approach to extended family photography

My background started in fashion and studio photography, which means I am comfortable directing when needed. But the heart of my work now sits somewhere between documentary storytelling and natural editorial portraiture.

In practice, that means I will release you to be yourself and it’s up to me to produce the fashionably aesthetic compositions for your photographs.

I want families doing something together rather than simply standing in rows. That might be a walk along the beach in Deal, a picnic in a Kent park, or a weekend stay in a large countryside Airbnb or stately home where everyone is staying under one roof.

These shared environments change everything. People relax and conversations happen naturally. Ultimately you get some treasured moments with your family and your not just in studio for an hour. My priority for you is always the same: to encourage you to make treasured moments captured in a way that feels stylish, honest and timeless.

And yes, this is a service that many families are happy to invest in properly. Often in the thousands, because the value is not in the shoot itself, but in what remains afterwards.

Albums. Wall art. Printed legacies that become part of family homes.

Think about your home and your parents home. What’s on the walls? It could be printed artwork, original artwork, or photographs.

This is also where my experience matters. I have worked with so many families over the years. Aside from that with my editorial work I’ve worked with high-profile clients requiring NDA’s and been featured in places such as Italian Vogue’s Best Of category. That experience helps me stay calm in complex group settings, and gently guide large families without forcing anything unnatural.

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What a session actually looks like

No two extended family sessions are the same, but the structure is usually familiar.

We begin by choosing a location that suits the family dynamic. In Kent, this might be:

• A coastal walk in Deal or Whitstable
• A private garden or countryside estate
• A large holiday house where everyone is staying together
• A meaningful family home where generations have gathered before

The session itself is not rushed. But it is structured.

We start with everyone together for the main family portrait, then naturally break into smaller groups. Grandparents with grandchildren. Siblings. Individual families. Then we move into more candid storytelling moments.

It is not about perfection. It is about the record to look back on. Seeing your family as they actually are, right now.

Here’s a little example of how you could plan your shot list for your extended family photo shoot.

Full Family

• Grandparents + all children + spouses + grandchildren

Grandparents

• Grandparents together
• Grandparents + all grandchildren
• Grandparents + all adult children
• Grandparents + adult children + spouses
• Grandparents + each individual family unit

Individual Family Units

Family 1

• Adult child + spouse + children

Family 2

• Adult child + spouse + children

Family 3

• Adult child + spouse + children

Adult Siblings

• The 3 adult children together
• The 3 adult children + spouses

Couples

• Grandparents
• Adult child 1 + spouse
• Adult child 2 + spouse
• Adult child 3 + spouse

Grandchildren

• All grandchildren together
• Grandchildren by sibling groups
• Individual grandchildren if requested

Individual Generational Groups

• Grandparents + oldest generation below them
• Parents + children
• Three generations together
• Grandparents + grandchildren + parents

Optional Extras

• Grandmother + daughters
• Grandfather + sons
• Sisters together
• Brothers together
• Cousins together
• All women
• All men
• In-laws together
• Each grandparent individually with each family

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How to prepare and book your extended family photography session

Booking is usually straightforward, but a little planning makes a big difference, especially with larger groups.

Here is what I typically advise:

• Choose a date when everyone is already gathering if possible
• Keep travel and logistics simple to avoid stress on the day
• Think about locations that allow space for movement
• BUY SNACKS & DRINKS
• Avoid over-coordinated outfits or crazy patterns and brand names, aim for complementary tones instead
• Allow time afterwards for a meal or gathering, so the experience continues naturally

When you enquire, I help guide everything from location choices to timing. My role is not just to turn up and take photographs. It is to make the entire experience feel considered and chill from start to finish.

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Investment, albums and printed legacy pieces

Extended family photography is not designed to live on a screen.

You can either look back at your photographs now and then on your phone, or you can look at them every day in the proud display of your home.

After your session, I create carefully curated galleries to display to you at your live viewing, usually at one of the grandparents houses. I connect my laptop to the biggest TV and show you the best photographs of the day.

This is where families choose their final images. Prices for wall products start at around £90.

Most families then invest in printed artwork, whether that is handcrafted albums or framed pieces for the home. I take direct bank transfer there and then to make the decision easy for you.

Years from now, those prints become part of the family environment. Children grow up seeing them on the wall. Grandparents are remembered through them. New generations come to understand their place in the family story. It’s really special.

This is why I treat the editing and presentation process with as much care as the shoot itself.

It is also why many families choose to invest more heavily at this stage, often building full collections and collages rather than single images.

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Final thoughts and how to enquire

Extended family photography is not about creating perfect portraits. It is about preserving something real before it inevitably shifts again.

If you are thinking about booking a session in Kent, especially with grandparents involved or a full family gathering planned, the best time is always before the moment passes you by.

Or get in touch to start planning your family photography session.