We're in the middle of the hard-core winter, yet you're starting to dream about warmer weather. You can feel your feet in the sand, and the kids enjoying the cool breeze while playing in the water. I hear you!!! My heart is in summer already, I can close my eyes and SMILE going through our Cape Cod family memories. That place is EPIC, magical. I pinch myself that we have it SO close to Boston. I would drive much more for my summer love. Today I'll pour my heart into sharing why I love this location for beach family photos!
Yes, that's me with my family at the Cape. I preach by example, my soul needed memories in my happy place. My soul wanted so badly what I create for my clients, so in the summer of 2020, I took my family to my favorite place on earth! It was a dream come true. Still, in 2022, I have these memories displayed all over my walls at home. Cape Cod family portraits are so poetic and epic!
Discovering what the sand looks like at my favorite Cape Cod beach was such a wild dream. The first time I saw this sand, I felt beyond inspired. So much, that to this day some of my personal favorite Cape Cod portraits don't include water. Can you believe that? it's a paradise, say HELLO to textured sand dunes!
Even when the light is almost gone, that sand inspires the gods. As a photographer, I feel in heaven and kids go crazy exploring the beach. I've had families book me minutes after I posted the photo below, mom was craving memories surrounded by this signature sand. I get it and share their love!
I've never experienced a sunset like the ones in Cape Cod. There is something magical about the sun setting in the water. It's so nostalgic and beautiful. It takes your breath away!
Some Cape Cod beaches allow for HUGE open sand fields on low-tide days, this means that there are fewer crowds. This allows for kids to be kids and run wild, for parents to let their guard down and enjoy. Craving low tide does limit the number of beach sessions I can host at the Cape, but for me, it's 100% worth it and non-negotiable. ATP is all about the experience. I want you to have the best sunset experience at the beach, no pressure or crowds, just joy.
This is another plus, even in lovely (I say lovely because I just ADORE summer and would never judge the heat) hot summer afternoons, there is a cool breeze that makes you smile. That breeze allows for the most epic movement in dresses. Movement adds personality to your portraits. I crave windy days at the beach, it's just THE perfect prompt to create magic.
This is the best part. Beach sessions take place during sunrise and sunset and the Cape allows for BOTH types of sessions! We have breathtaking beaches that face the sun east and west. The alternatives are tons, everything within a doable drive. How about this gorgeous portrait with the boat in the background?
For me it is, yet I'll drive with my family ANYWHERE chasing epic sunsets. If you're spending summer at the Cape and you're sleeping there, then there is NO DOUBT that beach portraits at the Cape will be your dream come true.
If you're driving just for the sunset photo session, then it can be tiresome. It all depends on how adventurous your family is. My husband and I LOVE family road trips, we don't mind driving at night, that's when we can actually TALK tons... haha... the kids collapse in the back and we have hours to bond. That's our thing!
The bright side is that sunset sessions END after sunset, which can mean dinner time or ice cream time! Grabbing some food and driving back to Boston is 100% doable with good music in the car, I did it ALL summer last year. I drove to the Cape just to photograph families at sunset. Sunrise sessions are even better, you get to drive when it's still dark outside (no traffic & kids sleeping in the pajamas). Then you get to the beach JUST in time for sunrise and the kids are well-rested! :)
If you are CRAVING family memories at the beach yet you don't see how to convince your significant other to drive back and forward, I have GOOD NEWS. There are amazing alternatives to the Cape that are a short drive from Boston, a beach session will be totally doable on a weeknight after work.
At the end of the day, regardless of the beach location, your experience will be EPIC and your memories will bring happy tears today and a decade from now. All the sessions are with me (super yay!), you'll have my heart and passion in Duxbury, Gloucester, Cape Cod, or Newburyport. Pick the destination that works best for your family and the magic will happen! My twin's beach session took place in Duxbury and it was magical!
I can't wait to capture your family's essence this year. Beach sessions are the best investment, you'll have the most breathtaking and epic memories that will live in your heart forever. You'll have ART created with your family's story.