The Best Richmond Neighborhoods for Charming Family Photo Sessions

Lifestyle PhotographyFamily PhotographyMaternity Photography

Oct 1

I’ve been photographing families all over Richmond since 2011, so I’ve seen my fair share of what Richmond has to offer in terms of neighborhoods, parks, and charming photo locations. The clear winner of the unofficial Charming Richmond Neighborhood Photo Location contest is The Fan, with the Museum District, Jackson Ward, Oregon Hill, and Church Hill pulling in close behind. The classic row house architecture, the old trees, the uneven sidewalks, the murals… if I lived in any of those neighborhoods, I’d never want family photos anywhere else.

A toddler laughs hysterically while his parents try to remove him from his dad's shoulders on a walk through their neighborhood.

You’re probably looking around your own neighborhood, wondering how it compares to those classic spaces. Unless your neighborhood has also been around for 200+ years, it’s probably best to stop comparing now and just accept that the suburbs are unlike any of the charming spots in the City of Richmond.

But that doesn’t mean your neighborhood is unphotographicable though. Yep, made up that word. Could have also used “photogenic” but that’s not as fun.

Mother and son walk hand-in-hand along a sidewalk in The Fan in Richmond, Virginia. They are walking past a large, old, white-brick building with stained glass windows, and there are a lot of leaves on the ground.

So what does a neighborhood need to be charming, cute, and a worthy location for family photos?

Practically, it would help if your neighborhood had trees. But my family lived in a neighborhood for 14 years that had nearly zero trees, and I took photos there all the time. So that’s not necessarily a requirement.

A toddler boy swishes through knee-high leaves on his street during a family photo session. His dad walks behind him and offers his fingers to the little boy, who holds them while he walks.

Late Victorian architecture would be a real bonus, but again, not really necessary to be considered for lifestyle photography. I really enjoy the resurgence of Craftsman style homes, but as long as a house mimics the personality of the people who live inside it, that’s really all that matters.

Really, there are only two things that a neighborhood needs, to qualify for family photos. One is safety - either sidewalks or streets that aren’t used as major throughways and are safe to wander. The other qualifier is connection. If you have no connection to that space, it will mean far less to you to have your photos in that location.

An extended family takes a walk in their neighborhood during a family photo session in Midlothian, Virginia.

If you spend your mornings and evenings walking your dog on those streets, and your weekends teaching your kids to ride bikes on those streets, you’re more likely to feel a connection to photos of your family on those same streets.

Yes, we can meet in an ultra-cute, classic Richmond neighborhood that isn’t yours, to wander around and take photos. But if you have no connection to that space, it’s the same as meeting in a random park or field. It’s just a pretty backdrop, not a place you want to remember with your family.

Choose wisely. (Also, I’m here to help with that.)