How Long Should Family Photos Be With Young Kids?
For most of my family photos with young kids, I recommend about an hour. That doesn’t mean your child needs to sit still, smile, or “cooperate” the entire session. The extra time gives kids a chance to warm up, explore, play, and take breaks without anyone feeling rushed.
“There is no way my toddler is going to last an hour.” I hear some version of this all the time from parents before their first family session with me. And I completely understand why an hour sounds like a lot when your child barely sits still for dinner.
But here’s the thing: I don’t need your kids to sit still for family photos.
In fact, I love working with little kids who don’t sit still.
In fact, them simply being kids is what creates some of my favorite images: the real laughter, hand-holding, little curls blowing in the wind, dandelion picking, rock collecting, and families actually playing and having fun together.
So how long should family photos be with toddlers and young kids?
For my style of candid family photography, about an hour gives us plenty of time without asking your kids to “perform” for an hour. It gives them time to warm up, explore, play, take a break if they need one, and eventually forget quite so much about the camera.
And that last part is usually when some of the best photos happen.
Is an Hour Too Long for Family Photos With Toddlers?
Not when the session is built around your child.
An hour of sitting, posing, smiling and following directions? Yes. That would be a lot to ask of almost any toddler.
But that’s not what we’re doing.
During a family session with me, we might walk around together, explore the location, play, cuddle, look for bugs or find the coolest stick on the trail.
I might ask your child to go give Mom a giant hug or show Dad their favorite rock.
Sometimes they’ll say no.
That’s okay.
We move on.
As much as we’d all love to control exactly how family photos go, we can’t, and I don’t think we need to. Kids are going to have their own ideas, especially little ones. I’d much rather work with your child’s personality than spend our time trying to make them cooperate.
How long does it take kids to warm up during family photos?
In my experience photographing families, most kids need about 15 minutes just to warm up.
They’re meeting someone new. I’m holding a camera. They’re in a new location. Mom and Dad might be acting slightly different because everyone knows they’re having their pictures taken.
They need a minute.
Once kids realize I’m not going to spend the next hour telling them to stand still and say cheese, I usually start seeing more and more of who they really are.
That’s one of the biggest reasons I don’t offer a lot of mini sessions.
A 15-minute session can absolutely work for some families. But I don’t think a mini is automatically the better choice simply because you have a toddler.
Are mini sessions good for toddlers?
Sometimes, yes.
There isn’t one perfect session length for every child. Some photographers find that short sessions work particularly well for young children because they’re over before kids lose interest. Other photographers prefer longer sessions because they give shy or slow-to-warm children more time to get comfortable.
I’ve seen the second scenario happen over and over in my own work.
If your child is outgoing, warms up immediately and you mainly want a few updated family photos, a mini session may be perfect.
But if your child tends to be shy around new people, needs time to explore a new environment, or you want a larger variety of candid photos and interactions, having more time can actually take some of the pressure off.
That’s the part that sometimes surprises parents.
They assume:
My child can’t sit still very long, so we need the shortest session possible.
But your child doesn’t have to sit still.
And when we aren’t racing against a 15-minute clock, we don’t have to panic if the first thing we try doesn’t work.
What happens if my child refuses to cooperate?
I expect it. Seriously.
Kids will refuse to do things during family photos. They’ll decide they don’t want to stand there. They won’t want to hug their sibling. They’ll want to pick up a stick when we’re trying to walk somewhere else.
That’s childhood.
If something isn’t working, we move on. I don’t need your three-year-old to follow every direction I give them in order to create beautiful photographs of your family. Instead, I give kids little things to do.
Go give Mom a hug.
Can you find a bug?
What’s the coolest rock you can find?
Can you run to Dad?
Show me what you found.
And sometimes I don’t need them to do anything at all. I let them explore and photograph what’s already happening.
That’s where we get the real laughter, the hand-holding, the tiny details and those little expressions you recognize immediately because that’s your kid.
Why the location matters when you’re photographing little kids
Where we take your photos matters, especially with young children.
That’s why I keep a list of family-photo locations that I know work well for kids.
I want somewhere they can safely explore and move around. I don’t want parents spending the entire session saying, “Don’t touch that,” “Stay right here,” or “Come back.”
If kids have room to move, there’s more for us to do.
And if everyone, including Mom and Dad, is actually having fun, I can photograph that.
The location isn’t just a pretty backdrop. It’s part of the experience.
What about late summer family photos with little kids?
This is another big worry I hear from parents.
Summer evenings in the Portland area can mean later family sessions because we’re working with that beautiful evening light. Parents of toddlers sometimes look at the start time and immediately think:
There is absolutely no way my kid is going to make it.
I’ve had plenty of parents come into a session convinced their kids would fall apart because it was later than their normal schedule.
And afterward, they’ll tell me they can’t believe how well their kids did.
Part of that is because we’re keeping them engaged. We’re moving. We’re playing. They’re exploring somewhere new.
I’m also paying attention to them throughout the session. If something isn’t working anymore, we change it.
Does a longer family session mean we’re taking pictures for an entire hour?
Not really.
I’m photographing throughout our time together, but a full session isn’t 60 straight minutes of asking your children to look at my camera.
There are natural little resets.
We walk to another spot. Your child finds something interesting. Someone needs a snuggle. We change what we’re doing.
That’s also why an hour tends to fly by.
There’s enough time to create variety without feeling like we’re racing through a checklist.
Interestingly, many photographers don’t universally agree about session length. Some recommend short sessions for toddlers because of their attention spans, while others find that 45–60 minutes gives young children more flexibility to settle in and creates more breathing room for candid play.
My experience falls much closer to the latter.
It’s not because I expect more from kids during a longer session.
Because I can expect less from them.
We have time.
How do I know if a mini or full family session is better for my child?
Think less about how long your child can “behave” and more about how your child responds to new people and new situations.
A mini session may be a great fit if your child warms up quickly, your family has worked with the photographer before, or you mainly want a couple of updated photos.
A full session may be a better fit if your child needs some time to warm up, you have multiple young children, you want lots of candid variety, or you know that having only 15 minutes is going to make you feel rushed.
And that’s important, too.
Your kids notice when you’re stressed.
I don’t want you spending your family session worrying that we’re running out of time or repeatedly telling your kids to smile because you think we haven’t gotten “the shot” yet.
I want you interacting with them.
I’ll worry about the pictures.
So, how long should family photos be with toddlers and young kids?
There isn’t one perfect number for every family.
But don’t automatically assume your toddler needs a short photo session because they can’t sit still.
For the candid, playful family sessions I photograph, around an hour gives us room to let kids be kids. They can warm up, explore, refuse something, try something else, play with you and eventually forget quite so much about what we’re doing.
And that’s exactly what I want.
Because years from now, I don’t think you’ll care that your toddler wouldn’t stand perfectly still and smile at the camera.
You’ll see the little curls blowing in the wind.
The way they held your hand.
The dandelions they insisted on picking.
Their real laugh.
And your family actually enjoying being together.
Looking for a candid family photographer in Portland that is great with kids?
If you’re worried your kids won’t sit still, you don’t need to wait until they’re older to have family photos taken.
My sessions are built around movement, play and letting kids be themselves. You can [learn more about my Portland family photography sessions →] or [get in touch and tell me a little about your family →].
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