How to Find & Book the Perfect Vacation Photographer
- Updated: 04/09/2024
- Janice
Are you ready to capture unforgettable moments during your next vacation? Say goodbye to mediocre trip pics and hello to professional photos that showcase you and your loved ones in the literal and figurative best light, creating a lasting souvenir you will treasure.
Imagine strolling through cobblestone streets in the late afternoon—or gathering on a beach at sunset as a skilled photographer expertly sets up and frames each shot, ensuring you return home with stunning photos you will cherish. And all for less than you expect. Learn why to book a vacation photographer, where to find the best ones in any destination, and tips for how to get the most out of your photoshoot in this complete guide.
Table Of Contents
8 Reasons to Book a Photographer for Your Next Trip
Here are eight compelling reasons to book a vacation photographer for your trip.
1. Be in your trip photos. If you are the de facto planner for your trips and reading this article, it is also likely that you are the default vacation photo taker. Outsourcing photos for a 30-minute or hour-long shoot guarantees you will have some keepers with you in them.
2. Get gorgeous backdrops. If you are traveling, chances are that you are going to a beautiful place—a city, beach, or mountains, for example—which will make for an ideal photo backdrop.
3. No bad photos from random strangers. You will not have to rely on selfie sticks and the kindness and skill, or lack of skill, of random strangers to capture great shots.
4. Better group participation. Family groups hiring a photographer can nearly guarantee better involvement from sometimes reluctant kids, teens, and adults who will be more willing to participate in the shoot with a stranger taking the photos vs. a family member. In other words, unenthusiastic participants— especially kids—will rein in poor behavior and scowls, making it more pleasant for everyone and a more successful shoot.
5. Photos make the best souvenirs. High-quality professional keepsake photos will be among the most treasured souvenirs from your trip.
6. Your smiles will be authentic. You will be on vacation. The probability that you have left behind the stresses of day-to-day life is high, and that you will be in a more relaxed and happy state of mind is nearly guaranteed, which will show in your photos.
7. Your photoshoot will be fun. Especially if you book a “photo tour,” which many trip photographers offer. You will see hidden and beautiful areas of your destination that are easy to miss if not pointed out by a local.
8. It is more affordable and easier to find a photographer than you think.
Bonus 9. You now have your holiday card. If you are a regular holiday card sender, your vacation photoshoot will provide the perfect images for your card, helping you avoid the last-minute scramble for acceptable pics.
7 Ways to Find & Book the Best Vacation Photographer
Here are seven ways to find and book the best vacation photographers in any destination.
1. Instagram hashtag searches. For our recent Malta trip, I booked a one-hour photo tour with Danielle Cassar in Valletta, its ancient and beautiful peninsular capital city, where we stayed several nights. I found her by searching on Instagram using destination #hashtag terms like #maltaphotographer, #maltafamilyphotographer, and #maltaweddingphotogapher. I liked the style of her photography and messaged her.
For our Italy trip, I found our intended Amalfi Coast photographer, Andrea Gallucci, much the same way. I tracked him down on Instagram, loved the style of his work, and scheduled a 30-minute Positano shoot. However, much to my disappointment, the Amalfi Coast weather was abysmal on the day of our shoot, and we had to cancel without rebooking because we were leaving the next day.
Since our Amalfi Coast photoshoot cancellation, I learned to book photographers on the first day of our stays so that I have time to reschedule due to weather or other unforeseen circumstances. See more photo shoot tips.
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2. Airbnb Experiences. Search for your destination and scroll through the Experiences until you see a photo experience you like.
3. Flytographer. Search for your destination to see options. View online photo portfolios and reviews. Book through the site.
4. Localgrapher. Similar to Flytographer.
5. Local Lens. Similar to Flytographer.
6. Search “Hire travel photographer in (your destination)” on Google or other online search engines and click a few pages through the results. Not all destination photographer websites are optimized to rank highly on search engines. It pays to dig a few pages in.
7. Contact your lodging or tour guides for photographer recommendations before your trip. Smaller properties and businesses are often well-connected locally and can make suggestions. And larger hotels have concierges who may be able to help.
8 Tips to Make the Most of Your Vacation Photoshoot
Before you book your vacation photoshoot, keep these eight tips in mind to get the most out of your experience.
1. To keep things affordable, find a photographer yourself and book directly. Expect to pay higher prices when arranging sessions through booking sites like Airbnb Experiences or Flytographer.
2. Check out the style of your photographer before you book. Take time to scroll through their online portfolios. Make sure you like their work. On our Malta trip, I got an initial recommendation for a photographer from my day-trip tour company. After visiting the photographer’s website, I found their style too contrived and prop-heavy for my tastes, so I kept looking and found Danielle.
3. Confirm they offer the kind of photo session you want. When searching for a photographer, if their website or profile portfolios show only engagement, wedding, or honeymoon photoshoots, know that they typically offer other services—such as family or solo shoots. Because special occasion shoots make up the bulk of a vacation photographer business, this is what they typically showcase. Message the photographer to confirm they offer other session types—they usually will.
4. Determine the image package included in your shoot. Then find out the cost for additional images. Our Malta session with Danielle included 20 finished and edited digital images. We loved her work so much that we purchased another 30 pictures at a very reasonable price per image.
5. Check their reviews. If your photographer has an online business presence, search online to read their reviews. For example, check out these stellar Google reviews of Andrea Gallucci, my recommended Amalfi Coast photographer. Reading photographer reviews will help you better understand their professionalism, communication style, and skill, reconfirming that your choice is a good one or indicating you should keep looking.
6. Book your shoot for the first day you can. Avoid my Positano mistake! Schedule your photoshoot for the first full day you are in a location. That way, if there is bad weather or the need for a last-minute cancellation, you still might have time to rebook. While in Positano, I scheduled our Amalfi Coast photographer, Andrea Gallucci, for our last afternoon of a three-night stay. Since the weather was terrible that day, we had to cancel and had no time to rebook. I learned this one the hard way.
7. Plan your outfit(s). Especially if you are scheduling a shoot for a group, try to color-coordinate outfits if you can. You will love how the cohesive colors will look in your final photos. However, and despite the obvious benefits (!), I have never been able to convince my skeptical family to do this. So, for our family vacation photoshoots, it is enough that I can get everyone to bring one nice outfit and know it will still work out.
8. Communicate with your photographer. Let them know if you have specific types of photos or a time of day in mind for your shoot. If you are feeling out of your depth and do not feel comfortable providing direction, let your photographer know this too. They are professionals. The best ones readily take direction or supply it—according to the needs or requests of their clients.
Finally, relax and enjoy. You have done your research and can be confident knowing you can rely on your photographer’s expertise to capture the most attractive light, prettiest backdrops, and the most flattering poses to create beautiful photos that will be a cherished reminder of your unforgettable vacation.
Related Reading
Pair my vacation photographer resources and tips with these related articles to ensure your best trip.
- 49 Things You Need to Do to Plan Your Best Trip (Free Travel Research & Planning Checklist)
- Itinerary Template for a Trip: Free Downloadable Examples & More Resources
- The Top Travel Apps I Use for Better Travel
- Pack Faster & Better With This Universal Printable Packing List
- 25 Expert Packing Tips to Help You Travel Better
- Pre-Trip: A Practical Checklist to Close the House & Pack
Additional Trip Planning Resources
To further help you with travel planning, I share my go-to resources for every trip below.
Google Flights. My first research stop for affordable flights for every trip. Learn why here.
Google Hotels. Use its “Where to stay” button to discover the best neighborhoods to base your visit.
Booking.com. For hotel and rental bookings, I appreciate its flexible cancellation, candid user reviews, discounts, loyalty program, and easy-to-use interface.
Viator, Get Your Guide, & Airbnb Experiences. Quickly find and book highly-rated tours and activities on these sites.
Google Travel Things to Do & Google Maps. Find more things to do in your destination on Google Travel, then record where you want to visit on a custom Google Maps list.
AllTrails. Love to hike? Me too. I religiously use AllTrails to discover hiking and biking trails and download its offline maps to manage my hikes.
Guide Along. 5-star self-guided audio tours that are GPS-compatible for US road trips and national parks. We loved the Glacier National Park tour.
Insure My Trip. I never travel internationally without trip insurance. Learn why here. My preferred place to shop and compare policies is InsureMyTrip.com.
Plus, check out the 15 travel apps I use on trips, my preferred guidebooks, and my free customizable travel itinerary template, downloadable in four file formats.
About the author: Janice Moskoff is a travel writer and blogger who loves hiking, exploring the world, and reading. She writes to inspire travel-loving families, adult friends, and couples on her blog, Gather and Go Travel. Check out her bio, learn how she became a blogger, and discover how to work with her. Sign up for her monthly Discovery Newsletter to get her latest travel recommendations and how-to’s.
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Affiliate Disclosure: Some of the links on this page may be affiliate links, and at no additional cost to you, I earn a commission if you make a purchase. I only recommend products and companies I use. And the income goes to keeping the site community-supported and ads minimal.
Welcome to Gather and Go Travel, a blog inspiring families, adult friends, and couples to explore US and international destinations and to get outdoors. I am Janice, an experienced traveler to over 50 countries and a travel writer, book lover, and blogger. Learn more about me, read our story, and how to work with me.
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2 Responses
Thank you for taking the time to share, and have a great trip!
Thanks for also talking about the kinds of packages that I could expect when planning to find a good family photography service. I’m interested in looking for one because I will be having a nice family vacation in a few months. Being able to have nice pictures of us taken will be quite exciting.