My absolute favorite time of day to capture your newborn and family photo sessions is at sunset! Sunrise is great, too! Listed below are my top reasons for adoring sunset sessions with your families.

When you book family photos, what are some of the first things you do? Start shopping for outfits? Scroll through the photographer’s Instagram, adoring all of the gorgeous photos and picturing your own family captured so beautifully?

Well, what if I told you that all of these things are important, yes, but the lighting during your photo session might just be the most important planning consideration?

Do you see the light in the above photos? What do you notice?

What I notice is a captivating combination of warm and cool colors. I notice that skin looks healthy with pink and orange undertones. I notice the highlights are warm and the shadows are cool, creating contrast.

How did I achieve all of this?

It wasn’t a preset with a magic button click. No amount of editing a photo can get you color and contrast like this.

It was, as you’ve probably guessed, that I shot these images during golden hour – the hour before the sun had set.

I know there are objections, especially in the summertime. For families with little ones, sunset is normally associated with bedtime. I get it! And in the middle of the summer, sunset is at almost 9 at night!

I completely understand these objections, having five kids five and under ha! But I want to make the case for making an exception one day a year, keeping the kids up a little later than normal, and getting some stellar images!

Now I’ll explain all the reasons I love shooting at sunset.

The Angle of the Light at Sunset Sessions

The angle of light during sunset creates flattering images because it’s coming from the side instead of overhead. When taking outdoor photos in the middle of the day, the sun will be overhead, so let’s talk about overhead lighting.

At best, some clouds cover this up, but the fact remains – the light is coming from overhead and that simply isn’t as flattering on a human face. Think about it, do you want the shadow of your nose and eyebrows to be below your nose and eyebrows and pointed down? I don’t! Thinking Squidward here.

At worst, the sun is harshly beating down on your face and I don’t think I even have to make the case that this won’t give you a beautiful, soft, glowy aesthetic in your images. Harsh light like this is also very difficult to work with during editing if you want a soft and natural look to your photos. Even if your photographer is able to work with the light in editing, it will probably have been edited to the point of LOOKING over-edited and nobody wants to pay good money for family photos they’re embarrassed to hang on the wall.

The best times of day for outdoor portraits are sunrise and sunset because the angle of light at these times is much more flattering than in the middle of the day when it is more overhead.

The Colors at Sunset Sessions

Images from sunset sessions always turn out with beautiful colors.

Not only does skin just look creamy and healthy, but the contrast created between the highlights and shadows is very striking and beautiful.

The highlights, the places in the image where the light is brightest, are warm because the light is coming straight from the sun and as it sets, it looks warmer and warmer. That’s a physics discussion I’ll post about another day.

The shadows, since they are on the other side of the warm light source, are cool and blue. Midday, you can’t get this kind of color contrast, so if you want these stunning highlights and shadows, we need to do a sunset session on a clear night!

The Glowy Light on Your Skin at Sunset Sessions

In the past, I’ve striven for even light in portraits, especially on the face. But now I understand the power of uneven lighting. The power in it is that it creates interest.

The uneven lighting I use now can either create a soft look, as in these pictures…

or a high contrast and super glowy look, like these pictures!

I honestly love both and will aim to provide a variety of different lighting situations in your gallery.

By the way, don’t you LOVE these baby baskets? I photograph your babies in my Design Dua Malaika Bassinet and Changing Basket. If you want to know how I style these baskets at sunset sessions, just read my blog post on it here!

Book Sunset Sessions For Your Family

If you’re in the Fort Worth area and are looking for a newborn, family, or milestone sunset session, I offer self-booking for every Saturday at sunrise and sunset. Here’s the link to book a session with me! Can’t wait to get some pretty pictures of y’all!