Table of Contents:
- Why Incorporate Activities Into Your Vermont Family Photos?
- 33 Unique Activities + Ideas for Your Vermont Family Photos
Welcome to my comprehensive guide to activities + ideas for your Vermont family photos! If you’re looking for a way to make your next family session special, you’ve found it. I’m glad you’re here.
Why Incorporate Activities Into Your Vermont Family Photos?
I know what you might be thinking: “Ali, why would we need to plan activities for our family photoshoot? Won’t we just be smiling at the camera and posing for the perfect Christmas card?”
My friend, let me break this to you in the most gentle way possible: your family photos deserve so much more than stiff hugs, awkward smiles, and forced poses that don’t ring true to you. That don’t feel representative of the way you move through life together; the way you share a hug every morning when you get out of bed, the lopsided, toothless grin of your little as they eat a bowl of ice cream, the soft whispers of “goodnight” when you tuck them in.
Your photos deserve to tell a story; the story of your life, your love, your family. Key word… YOU. The story of your day-to-day, the story of your family as it is right now, in this season of life, one you can preserve to look back on as you grow, evolve, change together through the years. Wanna know the best way to do this? Pretend your photographer is just following you around on a normal day in your life, as you perform your regular rituals, routines, tasks, and activities with your kiddos.
By including activities in your session (big or small), you breathe life—real, raw life—into your photos. You allow your family’s human experience to come alive even behind a screen, creating a beginning, middle, and end to your session. So that every time you open your gallery to relive these moments, you feel like you’re moving through a story. Your story.
Choosing what activities to incorporate into your session can feel tricky, though: Does it have to be something complicated? Can we keep it simple? Do we have to spend any money on these activities? Can we just do the activities our kids love most?
Answers: no, yes, no, and YES!
To make your job easier—because let’s be honest, you don’t need any more responsibility on your shoulders—I’ve compiled this list of 33 unique activities + ideas to include in your Vermont family session. These range from $0 activities you could do right in your own backyard, to low-cost arts and crafts for encouraging creativity, to excursions into your neighborhood or out in the city.
And don’t feel like you have to incorporate all of these… in fact, please don’t! Pick one or two that make sense to your unique family dynamic, and how you want to document the current season of your life. Save the rest of ‘em for your next few annual family sessions, Christmas card photos, etc. 😉
33 Unique Activities + Ideas for Your Vermont Family Photos
Family Photo Ideas at Home
1. Run through the hose or sprinkler
Who doesn’t love a lil’ barefoot chaos in the backyard? Lather on that sunscreen and let the kiddos loose in the grass, dashing through the sprinklers or waving the hose in their new favorite swimsuits—or their good old fashioned birthday suit.
2. Have a water fight
Get out those water guns, or keep that hose out and turn it into a fun water fight! Nothing is more fun than targeting your siblings or parents with your finger over the hose nozzle, water spraying wildly in all directions. Or, if you wanna take it up a notch, and you’re not afraid to get a little dirty… why not make it a mud fight?
3. Create sidewalk chalk masterpieces
Find your bucket of chalk in the garage and head out to the driveway for a chalk art show. Draw flowers, trace each other’s shadows or handprints, write love notes on the driveway. Maybe even create your very own game of Hopscotch on the sidewalk?
4. Blow bubbles in the yard
Bubbles are endlessly fun to chase, no matter your age (parents, don’t be afraid to have at it). Whether it’s a tiny bottle of bubbles or a big bubble wand your kiddo begged for last Christmas, bubbles look great in photos—they catch the light, they look a little magical, and they encourage lots of giggles. Win-win-win.
5. Fly a kite on a breezy day
Even if it nose-dives every 10 seconds or gets lost in the wind, the joy is in the trying. Let your kids pick out their favorite one to bring into the backyard… maybe it’s Spiderman, a Minion, or a butterfly? No wrong answers here.
6. Read books cuddled in a hammock
Or on your porch swing, or lounging on a blanket in the grass. Get out a book they’re loving right now, and let the snuggles + silly voices do their thing. Read together, read it aloud to them, or have them read it for you.
7. Sit on the front steps and watch the sunset
The perfect end to a session, creating a moment to pause and slow down; one you’ll want to remember forever. Snuggle up on the steps together, legs and limbs tangled up in a warm, safe embrace as you look at the beautiful light, watch the clouds move through the colorful sky, hear the birds chirping around you before night arrives.
8. Eat popsicles on the porch
Sticky fingers, neon tongues, and sugar-fueled grins… pure summertime magic, I’m telling you. Pick your kids’ favorites—Otter Pops, Fudgesicles, those new ones you found in the shape of their fave TV show character, anything goes. Pair this with #7 to bookend your session with quiet moments on the porch, starting with yummy popsicles and ending with quiet sunset moments.
9. Hunt for leaves, shells or rocks
Or fairies, gnomes, and toad mushrooms—use your imagination! It’s not about what they find: the adventure is in the looking. Create a brand new world right in your backyard, or in the woods by your house… your own little fairytale to come back to when you could use a little magic.
10. Feed the chickens or water the garden
Truly, nothing is more adorable than tiny hands pouring watering cans, carrying egg baskets, or running fingers along soft feathers. Take a moment to care for your home and the land you inhabit, whether that’s through feeding your animals, mowing the lawn, watering the plants, or simply admiring the weeds that look like the prettiest wildflowers they’ve ever seen.
11. Hang laundry on the line
There’s something timeless about clothespins, sunshine, shadows through well-loved fabric, and wind-tossed linens. Grab your laundry basket and have your kids help you attach the clothespins one-by-one to each piece of clothing, little fingers slowly reaching up to hang it on the line on tippy-toes.
12. Play a game of tag
Who doesn’t love a classic game of tag? This is an easy (and fun) way to get your kiddos moving and running around the yard, perfect for blurry photos of feet dashing through the grass, hair blowing in the wind, shrieks of laughter and joy when they feel a touch on their shoulder… tag, you’re it. Double it up with a water fight or run through the sprinklers afterward to cool off.
13. Have a lemonade stand
Teach your kids about the economy and get adorable photos all in one! Maybe that first part isn’t so important yet… but come on, how much do we all love a lemonade stand run by humans who aren’t even old enough to know how money works? Set up a table on your sidewalk and let your neighbors know what you’ve got going on. Bonus points if you squeeze the lemons by yourselves, or have a few fresh ones placed on the table for an extra pop of yellow in your photos.
14. Wear silly costumes
I recently had a family tell me they were in a “What Does the Fox Say?” phase, so they put on their fox costumes during their family session. Embrace the weirdness, the quirks, the silliness that makes your family who you are… fox ears, wagging tails and all.
15. Ride bikes or scooters around the block
I love me some messy helmet hair, wobbly wheels, and proud little smiles. Trikes, bikes, scooters, bring ‘em all and ride the familiar streets of the neighborhood you call home.
Outdoor Family Photo Ideas
16. Visit your favorite park/playground
Head to your go-to playground and let your littles have a blast climbing the monkey bars, gliding down the slides, whispering to each other through those old-school talk tubes. Maybe you join them, or maybe you sit on the bench nearby, seeing the grins and listening to the laughter that will never get old.
17. Find a scenic nature trail
Enjoy a slow stroll along a nature trail in your area, tiny hands holding yours as you lead the way. Through the woods, by the beach, next to a lake, whatever is accessible to you and will get you outside, enjoying the scents and the sounds of nature together.
18. Walk your dog
Simple, sweet, and one of those natural, unscripted moments that makes for the warmest photos. Nothing fake or forced—rather, something you do on a daily basis anyway… I’m just tagging along for the adventure to document every step.
19. Play in a kiddie pool
Get out your kids’ favorite water toys—buckets to fill up and pour out over and over again, torpedoes, floating figurines—and make a (kiddie-sized) splash.
20. Pack a picnic with your leftovers
Grab some crackers, fruit, and cheese, and head to a field, the backyard, or even the living room floor. Sticky fingers holding brightly-colored fruit always makes for vibrant photos, full of so much life, joy, and flavor.
21. Go to a petting zoo
Are you and your kids big animal lovers? Head to your nearest petting zoo (or regular zoo) and enjoy time with some furry friends. The joy that comes with seeing a giraffe, a panda, or even a barn donkey is unmatched when you’re a kid, and what fun to capture that delight on camera!
22. Pick dandelions and make a wish
Find your nearest patch of dandelions and let your babes gently make all their wildest wishes. Whether they wish for a new toy or the opportunity to see a dinosaur in real-life, it’s not about what they want: it’s about the excitement and hope that comes with being able to dream.
23. Play a game of basketball/softball/t-ball
Have a little friendly competition of your kiddos’ favorite sport—and everyone who participates gets a yummy sweet treat afterward.
24. Make sand castles at the beach
When I think of pure childlike joy, I think of being at the beach; toes in the sand, gritty fingers and sun-kissed shoulders, building sand castles like there’s no tomorrow. Or, more accurately, like there aren’t any waves to wash them away. Bring your buckets and shovels, and let ‘em go crazy with their creations.
Indoor Family Photo Ideas
25. Make cocoa and snuggle under a blanket
Hot cocoa and cozy blanket snuggles were made for those chilly fall and winter afternoons, when everyone wants to pile in close and put on a favorite movie. Bonus points if the cocoa is topped with an absurd amount of gooey marshmallows, of course.
26. Bake cookies or muffins together
Golden light streaming into the kitchen, butter-kissed fingers, flour on the counter, batter on their noses, wooden spoons in small hands, and something warm in the oven… what could be better?
27. Indoor or outdoor movie night
The ideal catalyst for popcorn fights, pillow fights, and laughter-filled sugar highs.
28. Have a dance party
Grab a speaker (or record player, if that’s more your vibe), put on your favorite playlist, and go crazy. This could be a collection of songs that hold meaning to your family, songs your kids are currently loving, or that TV show theme song that never seems to get out of their heads.
29. Build a fort
I don’t think any kid has ever turned down a fort-building night. Indoor or outdoor, let them create a space of their own—filled with imagination, creativity, and endless blankets + pillows.
30. Play a board game
Open up that board game cupboard and pull out something that’ll be fun for the whole family, and maybe grab a snack tray to go with it.
31. Have a little arts & crafts time
Scissors, cardstock paper, string, markers, paint; anything that’ll allow them a space to be creative… and maybe get a little messy. Friendship bracelets (or family bracelets, in this case) are always a good idea!
32. Play hide ‘n seek
Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one… cutest family photos ever, I’m coming to find you.
33. Flip through a family photo album on the couch
Got a photo album that you and your kids love to look at every so often? Squeeze in tight on the couch and thumb through it together, reminiscing on memories, moments, trips, and people you cherish.
Family photos become treasured memories when they actually hold meaningful, intentional moments—moments that tell the story of your life through the seasons. I hope that one (or more) of these activities resonates with you and helps represent your family authentically + wholeheartedly in your next family session!
And if you need a Vermont family photographer to make it all happen… I’m your gal.
Picking activities and ideas to incorporate is a key part of my process when planning sessions, so I’ll be there to guide you every step of the way. To figure out what makes you tick, and how we can capture that through storytelling images.
Reach out here and tell me all about your fam—I’ll take care of the rest.
For more family session tips, ideas, and insights from a local Vermont photographer, browse the Blog. Or, check out three of my favorites below:
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