I was thrilled to be able to do family photos at Olympic National Park. There were a lot of unknowns. The weather was also a big unknown: how warm it would be, or if it would be raining or if the light would be too harsh. I didn’t know exactly where we would be taken pictures ahead of time (hard to location scout when I’m not there but not impossible).
How Was the Weather for Photos?
It was a gamble to also dress us all in summer clothing because it could have still been quite cold at the higher elevation and even that time of year. We were so lucky to have weather warm enough that my kids didn’t have a problem with what they were wearing.
We took photos around 11am and the cloudy weather of the Washington helped a lot. It was my favorite type of day to photograph where it’s sunny with clouds in the sky. The sun went in and out behind the clouds so I tried to take pictures while the clouds were diffusing the sunlight.
Where Did You Take Photos?
There are so many good locations for family photos at Olympic National Park. I think Ruby Beach would be a stellar place to take photos. The year before we took beach pictures in California so I wanted different scenery. We decided to take photos at Hurricane Ridge so we could have mountains in the background. Matt asked a Park Ranger for some location ideas. We drove to all the places he suggested and then found this one. Once we got there I saw there was another couple taking photos and video. We learned later they were a husband/wife photography/video team.
Actually, it was funny to me because we had three different people offer to take photos for us. The first person that offered I let them take some photos for us. Since I was worried about time and I couldn’t risk people doing things with my camera/arranging us in ways that I didn’t want I politely declined the other two people. I love all of the photos and so grateful for all of them.
What was your Color Scheme and Where did you buy your Clothes?
The color scheme was hard for me to decide this year for some reason. I knew I wanted my youngest son to be in a newsboy cap with suspenders. My youngest daughter had a cute yellow dress that my oldest just wore to a wedding years ago. We ordered a bunch of stuff, tried it all on and then settled on a color scheme of primary colors (Red, Yellow and Blue). I love how it turned out. I love that the colors were bright and happy and perfect for summer.
Youngest Boy- Cap- Amazon, Suspenders and Pants- Amazon (it also came with a light blue shirt and bowtie which we didn’t use for these photos but use to go to church), Shoes- Carters, shirt- Jack and Janie (actually old and his older brother wore it to my brother’s wedding).
Youngest Girl- Yellow Dress (old from Macy’s), Sandals- DSW
Oldest Boy- Shirt and Pants- Gap, Shoes-Amazon. I liked that he asked for a mohawk before we left. Matt cuts his hair and I think it looked so good.
Oldest Girl- Dress- Dillards, Shoes- DSW, necklace- Gymboree (old she actually wore it for these family photos)
Me- Shoes (old from DSW), Dress- Nordstrom, earrings (old Target), heart necklace a gift from my aunt (Costco).
Husband- Pants (Nordstrom Rack), Shirt- Amazon
Thoughts on Family Photos on Vacation
There are definitely some positives and negatives to take family photos on vacation. Taking photos while on vacation takes up vacation time. We could have easily done a hike at hurricane ridge and skipped family photos and been done in half the time. The clothes and shoes for the family pictures did take up extra room in our luggage. Since we did family photos we didn’t hike in this area but we did get to see some beautiful scenery. I like take pictures on vacation because we get to have backgrounds that are not close to home. It helps make the family pictures look different each year. It also aids to my fond memories of the trip. Would you ever take family photos while you are on vacation or do you think it’s a waste of time?
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