Most people book fall family photos wanting one great picture for the holiday card and a few for the wall. What they get depends far more on the order of the session than on the location. This is how a recent one-hour fall session ran, start to finish, with a family of four: Mom, Dad, a big brother in glasses, and his baby sister.
Session date: October 24, 2026. One-hour fall session, Kansas City metro.
The timing
We started a little after 5pm, about an hour before sunset. By then the sun was low enough to come through the trees from the side, which gives faces warm light without squinting, and the leaves glow instead of looking flat. Kansas City's color usually peaks in the last week of October, so a session on the 24th caught the woods close to full color. A week later, one windy evening can strip a lot of it.
If you're choosing a date, the fall photo locations guide covers when the color peaks and where it lasts longest.
The order of shots (this is the part that matters)
With a baby, everything that needs all four faces happens first. Here is how the hour went:
- The whole family, standing. Two minutes, a few frames, done. This is the safe shot for the card.
- On the blanket. Sitting together on a cream blanket in the leaves, then lying head to head while I shot from above. Kids relax when they're allowed to lie down, and the overhead frames are some of the family's favorites.
- Big brother and baby sister. He held her on the blanket, then lifted her up. Older siblings take direction well when they're given a real job.
- Each parent with the baby. Mom touching noses with her, then lifting her into the air; Dad lifting her overhead. This is where the laughing photos come from.
- Walking together. Arm in arm down the trail, the boys a step ahead. Walking shots hide stiffness and give the photos movement.
- Big brother on his own. There was a stick fort along the trail, and he went straight for it. Giving a child something to explore makes a far better portrait than asking them to smile.
- Baby on her own. Last, on the blanket, while she explored the leaves.
What they wore
Cream, plaid, burgundy and denim. Nobody matched, but everything came from the same warm palette: Mom in a cream sweater, Dad in a blue plaid flannel, big brother in a cream and burgundy raglan, baby sister in a floral dress with a burgundy top. Against orange and gold leaves, that palette looks rich without anyone disappearing into the background.
The rule that makes this easy: choose three colors and give each person one, with one pattern at most. The what to wear guide has palettes for every season.
The gear, for anyone curious
A Sony a7 IV with a 28–75mm f/2.8 zoom. The zoom matters with kids: I can stay back while they play and still get a tight frame, instead of walking up and breaking the moment.
What the family received
The one-hour fall session promises 35 or more edited images. This family's gallery has 129, color-graded in warm fall tones, with black-and-white versions of the favorites, delivered in a private online gallery they can download from and share.
If you're planning your own
- Book the date early. The peak-color weekends go first, often weeks ahead.
- Feed and nap the baby first. Sessions go best when the youngest arrives rested.
- Bring a blanket and one small toy. The blanket gives everyone somewhere to sit; the toy gets the baby looking toward the camera.
- Let the kids explore once the safe shots are done. Some of the best portraits come from what they find.
Family sessions start at $185 for a 20-minute mini with 15+ edited images; the one-hour session is $275 with 35+. See family photography in Kansas City for every option, or the Christmas mini sessions on November 15 and 16 at Loose Park.