Where do you shoot at? Do you have a go to for your photo sessions?

This week I’ve been thinking on locations to shoot photography sessions at and trying to get some out of the box ideas going. Knoxville has some great locations but this isn’t a huge city so it seems like all the good, popular ones are overused and busy. So….here are some of my thought processes in coming up with some fun locations! This isn’t Knoxville specific, just to get ideas flowing… enjoy! Your homework can be to grab your kid, dog, hubby, client, or heck, a cool jar or something and go to a new location and try it out!

1. Think out of the box. So often we gravitate towards parks and downtown, the normal things. Now, while that is all well and good (and talked about more down below), challenge yourself to pick something new, something different for you. Or if you go with the old standby of the park, shoot it completely different so this session doesn’t look like the last one at all!

2. Downtown. Ok… way overused here in Knoxville and I am guilty as charged on this location too. I LOVE the urban cool brick and texture look, the dirty alleys, love it! But there are some of you reading that may have never shot a session downtown in your town. Do it! If you are a downtown junkie like me, then either find those corners in downtown that are new to you or broaden your horizon from downtown.

Here is my tip for downtown: Pick a meeting place for you and your clients. Then plan out before you meet them of where you are going to walk (I usually make it a circle around a couple blocks or at least end up where we started), one that has some things you know you can shoot and then keep your eyes open for new spaces along your path as you go. THEN, next client you meet downtown do the same thing but choose a different route! Then you aren’t shooting the same thing every time.

3. Parks. Yes, there is the ever popular UT Gardens in Knoxville. And I’m sure you have them in your town if you aren’t local…those places that are the #1 spot for portrait photographers to have their sessions at and you always see 5 of them when you are there. Here is my challenge…pick a different location! Think outside the box on parks….go to a less popular one you, look into spaces that aren’t necessarily parks (we have the Smokies near Knoxville that give great beautiful places to go)

4. Ask your clients! I always have a conversation about location with my clients. I first ask them what interests them (ie…do they love hiking, do they bowl every week as a family). See if something sparks an interesting location in that conversation. I mean, imagine doing a photo shoot at a bowling alley for a family that loves to bowl…how cool are you and what great memories you just made for them!!

5. The family farm. This goes with #4 but thought it needed its own #:) Some of the best photos come from where your clients live. So after asking about their interests, ask if they have land, know of a cool place that is in their family, etc. Family sessions with babies are the best at their houses I think because it’s memories of their space, the babies toys, room….how awesome is that! fun story: I was talking to one of my bride’s this year the other day about their engagement photos and the location. She mentioned they got engaged at her grandpa’s farm…so we are doing the shoot there! Memories for them to last a lifetime plus an awesome backdrop for me to work with…its a win/win!

ok…now get out there and scout out new locations to shoot at!! Hope this was helpful!