This post may contain affiliate links. By clicking on any of the links below, I may get a commission if you make a purchase at absolutely no additional charge to you. This helps offset the costs of running this blog & I appreciate your support. Please see my privacy & disclosure policy for more.
Table of Contents
Just the other day I was looking back at our travel photos from last year and I noticed that I was hardly in any of them. Being the family photographer, I tend be behind the camera more times than I am in front of it. I decided that it was time to hire someone to take our photos while on vacation and it was such a great experience.
Not only wasn’t any of our vacation photos, but I totally hated the ones that I was in; the angles, the lighting and all. I use a Canon 5D Mark IV, as well as a tripod, and I made sure to pack it on every trip to ensure that we could be all be in the photos and could take photos as many times as we wanted without having to bother anyone.
You can click here to see all our camera gear – The Mom Trotter Camera Gear.
Even though traveling with all our camera gear is awesome, it’s also so nice to sit back and have someone take our photos.
Reasons Why You Should Hire A Professional Photographer
1. You Can Be In As Many Photos As You Want
For someone like me who is always the one who takes our photos, it was exciting that I could be in as many photos as I wanted to. If I wanted her to take photos of me all day I could, even though that would be ridiculously expensive, but you get what I mean. With a professional photographer, you don’t have to worry about any family being left out of photos.
Photo below in Orlando, Florida by Shelly Flores from Shelly Delrosario Photography
2. Professional Experience & Expertise
If you can take photos of your kids with all of them looking at the camera and smiling, then kudos to you. Speaking from experience, it can be very difficult, especially with more than one child.
This is when experience and expertise of a professional photographer comes in very handy. They know how to get the kids to smile and look at the camera. They know the best angles, and best lighting as well. They can also guide you on how to pose, where to stand and more.
Photo below in Cleveland, Ohio
3. You Will Get Quality Edited Photos
If you don’t have a professional camera, then this is a double win for you as you’ll be getting quality and beautifully edited photos. It is also a win because I don’t have to spend time editing photos after our vacation.
Photo below taken in Idaho
4. They Know The Best Photo Spots
I usually use google to find the best places to take pictures when we travel, but sometimes when I get there I can’t pin point where exactly the best spot is.
Hiring a photographer takes the guess work out because they already know the best spots. After I found a photographer, she provided a few locations and asked me to pick which I liked best. Easy Peasy!
Photo below in Antigua, Guatemala taken by Janae at Janae Rose Photography
5. Lifetime Memories
Not only do you get to take beautiful photos in the best spots in town by a professional, but you also get lifetime memories. We will forever remember this trip and the memories we made on this trip by looking at these photos.
The precious moments we shared, the things we laughed about and much more. A few years from now the kids will look back and see how much they have grown. Most of all, I now have updated photos of us as a family to put on our wall at home.
Photo below in Zion National Park, Utah by Arika at Zion Adventure Photog
How To Hire A Professional Photographer
There are several ways to search for a photographer when you travel, here are a few below.
Photo below at Keys Beach in Lake Tahoe by Flytographer
1. Instagram
I found the photographer for our Orlando trip on Instagram by using the hashtag #orlandophotographer. There were thousands of Instagram pages using that hashtag so I had many options to choose from. I then sent her a message and then we went on from there.
2. Google
Another way to find a photographer is through google. We had our Christmas photos taken in Mexico last year. I googled “professional photographer Puerto Vallarta” and there were plenty of options. I called as well as emailed a few different photographers before making my choice.
3. Airbnb Experiences
You can now book photographers under Airbnb Experiences. If you search for the city you’re going to under Airbnb and head to the experiences section, I guarantee you’ll be able to find several photographers to choose from.
4. Photography Services
Flytographer & Sweetescape – Both of these websites offer is a photography service with photographers all around the world. This is the easiest way to search for a photographer because it takes the stress out of making sure to hire the right photographer. Last year, during our Paris vacation, we had a session scheduled with one of their photographers but had to cancel because unfortunately the kids were not feeling well that morning.
5. Resorts
Most resorts have photographers on site, and you can simply book from the front desk of your resort. When we visited Costa Rica, Jamaica, Hawaii, etc, all the resorts had professional photographers on site as well.
Tips and Tricks When Booking A Photographer On Vacation
1. Make sure to request each photographer’s website, or scan through their Instagram page to see samples of their work. Every photographer has a different photography and editing style. It is important to make sure that you like their style before hiring them to take your photos.
Photo below taken in St. Thomas.
2. Don’t show up late for your session. Photographers work by the hour, so showing up late will impact your session and the next one too.
If you are taking sunset photos for example, just being a few minutes late can lead to you missing the sun set, so be time conscious. We were running late for a session below and almost missed out on gorgeous sunset photos.
Photo below taken in Puerto Vallarta.
4. Discuss pricing and look at the different packages that each photographer has to offer before your session. Pricing is usually one of the first things that I check. Because we travel on a budget, I want to make sure that I am not over spending.
Photo taken in Cartagena, Colombia by Paola Sanchez Fotografia
5. Always pack at least one nice outfit and/or one matching outfit for your family. You may be on vacation and decide to take professional photos, and it’ll definitely come in very handy. We always pack one, because you never know, sometimes we even just do our own photo session.
Pin For Later
