Family and beach maternity photography along California’s beautiful coastline and sunsets are very popular. And this is especially true in Orange County, where these sessions can happen year-round. However, there are several factors to consider when it comes to family and beach maternity photography.

Beaches have the harshest of lighting because there’s little to no shade. That’s why there’s only a small window of ideal time when shooting at the beach. These are sunrise and sunset times. If you don’t mind waking up before the sun, sunrise beach maternity sessions are beautiful. 30 minutes before the sun rises is what we call “blue hour.” And the lighting is just as pretty as right after sunrise. Once the sun has risen, I really only have about 30 to 45 minutes of amazing lighting.

While I enjoy photographing in the light of a sunrise session, nothing really beats a sunset session for me. The hour before the sun begins to dip into the horizon is what we call the “magic hour.” This is the time when we have a softer, warmer, and more consistent light possible.

Now, because of our incredible California weather, you will surely find any amount of people at the beach all year. Though, nevertheless, the busiest time of year for our beaches is during summer vacation. And while I welcome any surprises, I always prefer photographing at three beach locations in Orange County. They are Seal Beach, Newport Beach, and Corona del Mar. I’m a bit more of a type-A personality, and I like to know what I can expect to work with lighting wise, the amount of crowd, high tide/low tide, etc.

Here are just a few of my favorites.

* Because of its popularity, I only offer weekday sunset sessions during the summer at Corona del Mar.

If this is something you would love for your family, please click here to get in touch with me. You can also email me directly at jess@jessyoungphotography.com.