Book a Family Photoshoot
in Les Baux

This happens all the time, and our family photographers are prepared for it. The secret is that the best family photos don't come from asking kids to pose — they come from play. Your photographer will turn the session into a game: racing along the beach at Biarritz, feeding ducks in Annecy, hunting for gargoyles on Paris' old churches, storming the towers of Carcassonne. Tantrums and shy phases get waited out with a break and a pain au chocolat, and sessions are scheduled around naps and meals. Even a session that feels chaotic in the moment produces wonderful genuine images — often better than the ones where everyone behaved.

There's no wrong age — each stage photographs differently and beautifully. Babies bring quiet, tender close-ups; toddlers bring motion and hilarious candid moments; school-age kids love the adventure of exploring châteaux and beaches on camera; teens relax once they realise nobody is forcing stiff poses. Multi-generation shoots with grandparents are among the most treasured bookings we see, especially on family reunion trips to Provence or the Loire. The one practical tip: with children under five, book morning sessions when energy and light are both at their best. Your Photo France photographer adapts the pace and games to the ages in your group.

Aim for a coordinated palette rather than identical outfits: two or three soft colors that everyone wears in their own way. Creams, soft blues, sage and sand tones look wonderful against Paris' pale stone, Provence's ochre walls and the Atlantic's grey-green sea. Skip big logos, characters and neon shades. Dress kids in clothes they can move and play in — the session will involve running, climbing steps and sitting on beaches or lawns. Bring a change of clothes for little ones (French fountains and beaches are irresistible) and comfortable shoes for cobbled lanes. Your photographer will send simple styling tips for your specific location and season when you book.

Professional photoshoots in Les Baux and Saint-Rémy start from €310. Packages vary by duration and the number of edited photos — from an hour in the village lanes at opening to a longer morning that adds the olive groves, Glanum and the Alpilles ridges.

The castle plateau at the top of Les Baux for the widest view in the Alpilles, with the Val d'Enfer quarry landscape below; the pale stone lanes and archways of the village; the olive terraces on the road down. In Saint-Rémy: the plane-tree boulevards, the cloister of Saint-Paul-de-Mausole where Van Gogh spent a year, the wheat field beyond its wall, and the Roman arch and mausoleum of Glanum standing in open ground across the road.

It is possible and it is difficult, so treat it as an experiment rather than the backbone of a session. The old quarry hall projects paintings across walls thirteen metres high: the light is beautiful, constantly moving and very dim, tripods are not allowed, and the room is shared with everyone else. A couple of striking frames are realistic; a full portrait set is not. Book the village and the Alpilles for the session and the Carrières as a bonus at the end.