Three generations in one session, Siesta Key and the Sarasota beaches
Extended Family Photos on Siesta Key
Grandparents, their grown children and the grandchildren, photographed on Siesta Key, Florida, in one hour or ninety minutes. The whole family comes first, then the grandparents with their grandchildren, then each branch. The calculator gives the price for your head count, and you book online.
I am Yuriy. One photographer for all three generations: I am the person you book and the person on the beach.
Group size
Up to 20 online
Grandparents, their grown children and the grandchildren. More than twenty: write to me first.
Length
60 or 90 minutes
Your choice, whatever the head count.
Car to water
3 to 8 minutes
On foot, at the smaller Siesta Key accesses I use.
Price
$350 for five
For an hour, $450 on a Friday to Sunday evening. For a bigger family, the calculator shows the exact price.
01 · What you take home
Family photos with grandparents and grandkids: the six photographs
An extended family session is not one big group photo with a few extras. As an extended family photographer on Siesta Key, I plan it around the grandparents' photographs first, and then the photographs of every family that came with them. These six are the ones I make sure three generations take home from a Florida beach.
01
Everyone together
All of you in one frame, standing and then walking toward me. It comes first, while the children are patient and every shirt is still dry.
02
Grandparents with all the grandchildren
No parents in the frame: the two of them and every grandchild, from the baby on a hip to the teenager who is taller than both.
03
Grandparents with each grandchild
In their arms, hand in hand at the water, a whisper in Grandma's ear. Each grandchild alone with them, all from the same evening.
04
Grandparents with their grown children
With their sons and daughters, first without the in-laws and then with them. Ask your family when that photograph was last taken.
05
Three generations of one line
Grandmother, daughter and granddaughter. Grandfather, son and grandson. One line of the family in a single frame.
06
The two of them
Before the grandparents are done: the two of them alone, close, with nobody to hold. Ask for it even if they say they do not need it.
Each household on its own, the cousins as a pack and the grown brothers and sisters come after these six.
A grandmother and her grandson on Siesta Key at dusk. The two of them. And the small things: a bare foot against a shirt.
02 · How the hour runs
A three generation family session: everyone, then the grandparents
The order is built around the two ends of the family, the oldest and the youngest. Both have the least patience for standing on a beach, so both are photographed while they are fresh.
First: everyone
Plan to be on the sand five to ten minutes before your start time; I will already be down by the water. The whole family in one frame is the first thing I photograph. With a big group I shoot in long bursts, on purpose: with twelve people someone always blinks, and I keep shooting so there is a frame where every pair of eyes is open, the two-year-old's included.
Then the grandparents
Straight after that come the grandparents: with every grandchild, with each one, with their grown children, and the two of them alone. Then their part is done. They can walk back to the car, or stay at the edge of the water and watch the rest.
Then each family, and the children last
Each household follows. The cousins and the children running in the water come last, when they have forgotten about me.
Everyone together comes first: three generations in one row at the edge of the water.
Tell me who is who
After you book, answer the confirmation email with first names: the grandparents, each household, every grandchild. With the names in hand I am the one who gathers each group, and no one in your family spends the hour giving directions. How to write that list is on my family reunion page.
Nine people
He was great with our large group of 9 people and especially good with the children.
Your number before you book
Count everyone who will be in the photographs, babies included. The calculator shows the price and the number of finished photographs for that head count before you pay anything.
03 · The one who would rather not
The grandfather who hates having his picture taken
Many big families have one. I do not ask him to pose. He stands with everyone for the first few minutes, and after that he gets a grandchild in his arms instead of a pose. A man with a grandchild on each arm is not thinking about the camera.
Toddlers get the same treatment. I do not ask a small child to stand still and smile at me. They walk, they run, they get carried, and that is what I photograph.
Both frames here are that: a grandfather carrying two grandchildren up the path, and a toddler walked through the shallows by both hands.
A grandfather with a grandchild on each arm, and a toddler walked through the shallows on Siesta Key.
04 · Sand and standing
Can Grandma manage the sand, and will she be kept standing?
On Siesta Key, by the dune grass, down at a small child's height.
The walk
On Siesta Key I meet families at the smaller beach accesses, not at the big main lot. From the car to the water is three to eight minutes on foot, depending on the access, on a sand path that Sarasota County lists as unpaved. About twenty cars fit at one of these accesses, so share cars where you can.
If someone walks slowly or uses a cane, tell me. The booking form asks if there is anything I should know about the place: write it there. A text before you book or a reply to the confirmation email works too. I will say honestly which access we meet at and what the walk there is like, and the parking pin and the meeting point come to you before the session.
Standing
The grandparents are photographed in the first part of the session and are not kept waiting while the other families take their turn. I would rather you know one thing before you come: the county lists no shelters at the smaller accesses, so do not plan around a covered place to wait. If someone cannot stand for long, write it in the booking form or text me, and once their photographs are done they are free to walk back to the car.
A wheelchair
A wheelchair and soft sand do not go together, and I would rather say so here than on the beach. The paths at the smaller accesses are unpaved sand, with no mat and no beach wheelchairs. The county's main Siesta Beach park at 948 Beach Road has both: a 454-foot access mat that runs toward the Gulf and free beach wheelchairs from Sarasota County, signed out at the main pavilion concession stand during the day. There is more on this in the grandparents section of my reunion page. If someone in your family uses a wheelchair, text me or write to me before you book. A walker is hard on an unpaved sand path too, so text me before you book in that case as well. For a cane, a line in the booking form is enough.
Restrooms and bare feet
The county lists no restrooms at the smaller accesses; the nearest public ones are at the main park, so stop there or at the rental before you drive over. Shoes can stay in the car. The county describes Siesta's sand as nearly pure quartz that never gets hot under the sun, which matters for a barefoot toddler.
From a grandmother
He was very patient with my 3 year old granddaughter which I am very grateful for.
Ask first, or go straight to your price
If the walk or the standing worries anyone in the family, ask me before you book. If it does not, count everyone and see your price.
05 · Heat, light and bedtime
Morning or evening with grandparents and toddlers
June to September: the morning
Heat is the thing to plan around in summer. NOAA's hourly averages for this coast, measured at Tampa, the nearest station with hourly records, put the hour before sunset at about 83 to 85 degrees from June to September, and it feels like 88 to 91. The hour after sunrise is about 76 to 80. With grandparents and babies a summer morning is kinder: the sand is cool, the beach is almost empty and parking is easy. Bring water for everyone.
November to April: either one
The hour before sunset sits between about 67 and 77 degrees, with lower humidity. Sunset is early, about 5:36 pm at its earliest in late November and early December, so an evening session is over before dinner and before a toddler's bedtime. The cold one is a winter sunrise, 56 to 59 degrees from December to February: bring a layer for the baby and one for Grandma.
Summer evenings run late
In late June and early July the sun sets at about 8:29 pm, the latest of the year. An evening session ends by ten minutes after sunset, which is past many small children's bedtime. If your family wants the summer sunset anyway, plan a late nap for the youngest and an early supper for everyone.
Which day of the trip
One of the first days, once everyone has arrived. I go by the real sky on the day, not the forecast icon. If the evening is truly lost to rain, I move the session to another morning or evening and the deposit stays with it, and an early date leaves a spare day to move to. Sunset for every month is in my guide to the best time for family photos on Siesta Key, and fitting a session into a trip is on my vacation family photography page.
Storms on the evening, photographs the next morning
We had storms roll in on the evening of our shoot and he was very quick to get us rescheduled for the next morning. Love so many of the photos he was able to capture!
Two evenings on Siesta Key: the last minutes before sunset, and the pink sky a few minutes after it.
06 · When the beach is not possible
If sand is too much: photos at the rental, or from your own door
Some families have one person for whom the beach is simply not possible. They still belong in the photographs. I also photograph at rental houses: by the pool, on the lanai, in the living room with the grandchildren around their grandparents.
The online calendar holds mornings and evenings only. A session at the house around midday is arranged by message: write to me with your dates and I will answer with what is possible.
Longboat Key: from your own door
If you are all staying on Longboat Key, the session can happen on the sand in front of the place you rented. For the grandparents no walk is shorter than that.
Lido Beach: restrooms and a pavilion
The main beach on Lido Key has restrooms, a pavilion and a concession, and county lifeguards who lend free beach wheelchairs during the day. Lido Key, Siesta Key and Sarasota are all included, with no travel fee. Longboat Key adds $50.
At a rental house, by the pool: the older couple watching from behind.
07 · After the session
One gallery for every branch of the family, and the files are yours to print
How many photographs
An hour for up to five people is 70 finished photographs. The number grows with the family and with the length of the session, and the calculator shows yours next to your price.
One gallery, every household
The gallery arrives in 2 to 5 days at the email of the person who booked: one gallery for the whole session, every photograph edited by hand, no watermarks. Forward the link and each family downloads its own. People look like themselves; retouching is light.
Prints for the grandparents
The files are full resolution and yours to print wherever you like, and I always share a print release. If it is easier, you can also order prints right through my gallery. Nobody calls you afterwards to sell you anything. If the gallery holds more photographs than your session includes, you choose your included ones first; buying more is entirely optional.
A mother, her mother and two girls
I traveled to Florida with my girls & my mama for a quick vaca and was determined to get family pictures. 7 & 4 is hit or miss ages for cooperating for a photoshoot but Yuriy captured them better than I could have ever dreamed of. I would go back to Sarasota just to have him capture my family again & fully plan on it.
Children, visiting from Germany
We were particularly impressed by the patient and loving way the children were treated, which made the atmosphere totally relaxed. The result exceeded our expectations!
08 · Your number, then your date
Price and booking for three generations in Sarasota
Three generations book the same family session as any family, and bringing the grandparents is not a separate fee. A family hour is $350 for up to five people: mornings any day and Monday to Thursday evenings. Friday to Sunday evening is $450. Each person after five adds a set amount, and that amount gets smaller as the group grows. Ninety minutes is on the calculator too. I keep the numbers in one place: the calculator on the large families page shows the exact price for your head count before you pay anything, and the Sessions page has every session I offer.
For a big family the Friday to Sunday evening extra gets smaller and then disappears, and the calculator applies it for your head count.
How the family shares the cost is up to you; nobody else needs to book or pay me separately. The calculator counts up to twenty people; if you are more than twenty, write to me first with your dates. A cancellation more than 7 days before the session is refunded in full.
If you are ten or fewer and want something shorter, a thirty-minute mini session gives 35 photographs and covers the whole family and a few groupings. Minis run on Siesta Key only, in fixed time slots.
Count everyone who will be in the photographs, the one on the shoulders too.
- 01
Count everyone, babies included, and open the calculator. Pick an hour or ninety minutes; the price and the number of photographs update as you go.
- 02
Pick a date and a start time. The calendar opens four months ahead, offers only the mornings and evenings I actually shoot, and closes 12 hours before a session.
- 03
One person holds the date with a 30 percent deposit; the rest is paid after the session. The booking form has a line for anything I should know, such as who walks slowly; the confirmation comes by email, and a reply to it reaches me.
A question first? Text me or write to me. You will be talking to me, the person who shows up with the camera.
Multigenerational family photos on Siesta Key: FAQ
What is an extended family photo session?
Grandparents, their grown children and the grandchildren photographed in one session: everyone together, then the grandparents with the grandchildren, then each family on its own. On Siesta Key I do it in an hour or ninety minutes.
How long does an extended family session take with grandparents?
You choose an hour or ninety minutes; there is no minimum for a big family. Ninety minutes gives more combinations and an easier pace when there are several households.
Does it cost more to include the grandparents?
There is no extended family fee. The price depends only on the length of the session and on how many people are in the photographs, and the calculator shows it before you book.
We are nine people. Is that a regular session or a large family session?
It is the same family session. Up to five people are in the base price and each person after five adds a set amount that gets smaller as the group grows, so for nine you enter nine in the calculator and see the total.
Can we book for just the grandparents and the grandchildren, without the parents?
Yes. It is the same family session, and the price follows the number of people in the photographs.
Can a grandparent who cannot stand for long take part?
Yes. The grandparents are photographed in the first part of the session and are not kept standing while the others take their turn. Write it in the booking form, or text me, and I will say honestly what the walk from the car is like. If sand is not possible at all, I photograph at the rental.
How many photos does each branch of the family get?
The gallery is not split by branch: it is one gallery with every grouping in it, and each household downloads what it wants. The calculator shows the number of finished photographs for your head count. Put the combinations that matter most on the list of names you send me.
What if the toddler melts down in the middle?
It happens, and it does not spoil the photographs. I do not ask a small child to stand still and smile; they walk, run and get carried, and that is what I photograph. The photograph of everyone is taken at the very start, before anyone is tired. A late nap that day and a snack in a pocket help more than anything.
What should three generations wear?
Two or three related colors, with every household choosing its own clothes inside them; my what to wear guide has the details. For the grandparents: whatever they are comfortable walking on sand in. Bare feet are fine.
What if one household is late and the grandparents are already there?
I begin with whoever is on the beach, the grandparents included, and the late household joins the moment it arrives. The session still ends at the booked time, because the light sets the clock. Ask everyone to be there five to ten minutes early.
Bring the grandparents
Count everyone, see your price, and hold the morning or evening that suits the oldest and the youngest in the family.