Four Seasons Naples Family Photos | A Beach Club Family Session
There are a lot of beautiful places to take family photos in Naples, but photographing a family at Naples Beach Club, A Four Seasons Resort is a little different.
I recently had the opportunity to photograph the Haq family during their stay at the Four Seasons Naples. They were visiting from the Tampa area for a long weekend, and their session ended up being a great example of why I love photographing families at resorts.
There is no need to pack everyone into the car, find parking, or worry about moving from one location to another. We can simply start at the resort and let the session unfold from there.
This particular session also happened during our rainy season here in Southwest Florida, which can take a little more planning than a session during the dry season. Even though it may rain almost every day during September and October, that doesn’t mean the entire day is going to be a wash. It just means you need to be a little more flexible with your timing.
For this session, sunset was around 7:45 p.m., but with rain in the forecast we planned to keep our start time flexible and aim for a window somewhere between 5 and 7 p.m. As the weather changed throughout the afternoon, we eventually decided that 6 p.m. was the right time to start.
It ended up working out perfectly.
Why Four Seasons Naples Is Ideal for Family Photos
Being at the Four Seasons is ideal for family photos for a lot of reasons.
First, the beachfront location is hard to beat. Naples Beach Club sits directly on the Gulf with 1,000 feet of white-sand beach, giving families plenty of room to move around and enjoy the beach without needing to leave the property. Four Seasons
But the beach is only part of what makes the property work so well for family photography.
The resort grounds are beautiful, with a mix of landscaping, architecture and open spaces that give us a lot of variety without ever feeling like we are traveling from one location to another. The contemporary coastal design and clean, understated architecture also make a great backdrop for family photos because they add something to the image without taking the focus away from the people in it.
If you’re staying at the Four Seasons and looking for a photographer during your visit, you can learn more about my Four Seasons Naples family photography
And then there is the convenience.
For this session, I met Mom and the kids in the lobby while Dad finished getting ready upstairs. That actually worked out really well because it gave me a few minutes to meet the kids and let them get comfortable with me before we even started taking pictures.
Instead of everyone having to meet me somewhere across Naples, we were already right where they were staying.
Once Dad joined us, we headed out to start the session.
Finding the Light Around Four Seasons Naples
The light ended up being amazing.
A storm had moved through earlier in the day, and once it passed, we were left with some beautiful evening light. This is one of the things I love about photographing families in Southwest Florida during the rainy season. A forecast calling for rain doesn’t necessarily mean you need to cancel. Sometimes the weather changes completely, and the light immediately afterward can be some of the best of the day.
That is why I always try to leave some flexibility in the timing when we are planning a session during the summer and early fall.
For this family, being flexible with the start time meant we were able to take advantage of that window.
The property was perfect for it.
The white walls and elegant, minimal design of the Four Seasons gave us a clean backdrop that kept the focus where it should be: on the family. The architecture added a subtle sense of elegance without taking over the photographs.
We spent some time moving around the resort, looking for pockets of good light and different backgrounds. The family was completely on board with roaming the property with me and seeing what we could find.
The kids were especially easy to work with because we weren’t asking them to get into a car, drive somewhere else and start over. They were already familiar with their surroundings and could simply walk around the resort with their parents.
That makes a difference.
It usually takes kids a few minutes to warm up to the idea of being photographed, especially when it is their first family photo session. This was the Haq family’s first family photography session, so part of my job was simply giving the kids some time to get comfortable.
Having kids myself definitely helps with that. I don’t expect children to immediately stand in the perfect spot, look at the camera and smile. We talk, move around, find something interesting, and before long the camera becomes much less of a big deal.
Letting the Kids Run the Session
I always say that the kids run the photo session.
As long as the kids are on board, everything else usually falls into place.
Sometimes the trick is keeping everyone moving and active. Other times it is slowing down and giving the kids a little space to have their own moments. The important part is reading what is happening as the session unfolds and adjusting how we photograph it.
With this family, we balanced their sons energy with the energy of their daughter. We were able to do that by getting some of the larger group photographs finished first and then spending more time photographing each parent with the individual kid.
That gave everyone a chance to interact in a way that matched each child and how they were feeling.
Instead of asking everyone to behave exactly the same way for an hour, we could adjust as we went.
That is a big part of how I approach being a Four Seasons Naples family photographer. The goal isn’t to force a family into a certain kind of photograph. It is to pay attention to the family in front of me and find the photographs that feel natural for them.
Starting at the Resort and Finishing at the Beach
The back of the hotel was the perfect place to start the session while we waited for the sun to drop lower over the Gulf.
We were able to use several different areas around the resort while the light was still a little too high for the beach. Then, as the sun got lower, we made our way toward the water.
This is one of my favorite ways to photograph families at a Naples resort.
We don’t have to rush everyone directly to the beach because the beach isn’t the only beautiful location. We can use the resort itself first, let the kids get comfortable, and then move toward the water when the light is at its best.
And because everything is on the same property, there are no extra logistics involved.
No loading everyone into the car.
No driving to another beach.
No finding another parking spot.
Just walking together and stopping whenever we find a good background or a pocket of beautiful light.
I’ve talked more about this approach in my post about Family Photos at Your Naples Resort.
Family Photos on Film at Four Seasons Naples
I photograph my family sessions on film, and the Four Seasons was a great example of why I continue to love working this way.
The soft evening light, the neutral tones of the resort and the colors of the Gulf all work really well with film. More importantly, I think film fits the way I approach family photography.
I’m not looking for perfectly posed photographs where everything has to be controlled.
I want the photographs to feel like the family actually felt that day.
The way a child looks at a parent. The way everyone walks together. The little moments between the bigger photographs. The expressions that happen when nobody is thinking about the camera.
Film gives those moments a quality that feels timeless, which is one of the reasons I have chosen to photograph families this way.
Why I Photograph These Sessions on Film
This entire session was photographed on film.
I love the way film works with the natural environments at these resorts. The soft greens of the landscaping, the neutral tones of the architecture, and the warm evening light all photograph beautifully on film.
But the bigger reason I choose film is because of how I want family photographs to feel.
I don’t want your images to feel overly processed or tied to whatever photography trend happens to be popular right now. I want them to feel soft, natural, and timeless.
That feels particularly fitting for a maternity session like this one.
They’re not just documenting a vacation. They’re documenting the last days of being a family of three before welcoming another child.
Those are the kinds of photographs I want you to still love looking at years from now.
You can read more about why I choose to photograph families on film .
Planning Family Photos During Your Stay at Four Seasons Naples
If you’re staying at Naples Beach Club and considering family photos, one of the biggest advantages is that the session can be built around your family and your stay.
You don’t need to know Naples or figure out which beach to drive to. You don’t have to coordinate parking, directions and another location.
We can meet at the resort, spend some time using the property, and then make our way to the beach as the light gets better.
That can be especially helpful for families with young children, since you’re never far from your room if someone needs a snack, a change of clothes or a quick break.
It also gives us more flexibility with timing.
And as this session showed, that flexibility can be especially important during Southwest Florida’s rainy season. A forecast showing rain doesn’t necessarily mean we need to give up on the session. Sometimes we simply need to watch the weather and adjust the start time.
A Relaxed Family Session at Four Seasons Naples
What I liked most about this session wasn’t just the location.
It was how easy the whole thing felt.
The family was willing to be flexible with the weather and the timing. The kids were given time to warm up. We moved around the property instead of forcing everyone to stay in one place. And when the light finally opened up, we were already right where we needed to be.
That’s what I want family photography to feel like.
Not another thing you have to manage during your vacation.
Just some time together, walking around a beautiful place, letting the kids be themselves and documenting what your family looks like right now.
If you’re staying at Four Seasons Naples and would like to schedule family photos during your visit, I’d love to hear from you.
