Where to take family photos in San Francisco Bay Area?

Clients often ask me for suggestions on where to take photos in San Francisco and surrounding areas. Since it's a known fact that a picture is worth a thousand words, I decided to create a visual database of various  San Francisco Bay Area locations. This list will be updated as I discover new spots (I am always on a lookout for new ideas).

San Francisco Locations

Presidio/Lover's Lane

By far, my favorite part of San Francisco and my favorite location for family/kids photos. If you love nature and want to get away from big crowds – this location is perfect for you! A stunning eucalyptus forest provides a gorgeous background. There's a lot of space for kiddos to run around. Tons of shade which helps bring out bright colors and gorgeous depth of a photograph. I guess it's obvious that I just love Park Presidio. 

Family Photo Session in Berkeley | Berkeley Family and Children Photographer

 An outdoor family photo shoot in Berkeley

 Baptism ceremony at an Orthodox Church in Oakland, CA.

Flower Garden Family Photo Session | Palo Alto Family Photographer

An outdoor family photo session in a lovely flower garden in Palo Alto.

Family Photo Session in Park Presidio, San Francisco | San Francisco children's and family photographer

FFamily photo session in Park Presidio, San Francisco

Family Photos in Berkeley | Berkeley Family Photographer

Family photo session in Berkeley, California. 

Family Photo Session At the Palace of Fine Arts | San Francisco Family Photographer

A fun and easy family portrait session at the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco. The weather was perfect, so were the smiles:

Family Photo Session at the Presidio | San Francisco Family Photographer

It wasn't easy to get these three energetic young men to be together in one frame long enough for me take a picture... They definitely made me work! :) I hope I was able to capture their wonderful personalities (they are so close in age, yet so different!) and positive energy. 

First Birthday Photos | East Bay Children's Photographer

First Birthday portraits, done in traditional Korean clothes. I love the beautiful colors!

Palace of Fine Arts Family Photo Session | San Francisco Family Photographer

Chilly and windy weather didn't stop this beautiful family from enjoying their first session as a family of four! Some of my favorites from their session:

Morcom Rose Garden Family Photo Session | Oakland Family Photographer

This was my first time visiting and photographing at Morcom Rose Garden in Oakland. My clients suggested this location and it turned out to be absolutely great. Lots of trees and some very nice flowers, even in November!

Park Presidio Family Photo Session | San Francisco Family Photographer

A family photo session at my most favorite location of all time – Lovers' Lane! This beautiful family includes two dogs, who both posed nicely. ;)

Central Park Family Session | San Mateo Family Photographer

This was my third consecutive year photographing this wonderful family. The first time I did their portraits, the younger boy, A., was only 8 months old. And look at him now, running around keeping up with his awesome big brother, J.

Child Portraits | San Francisco Family Photographer

Yet another quick and fun photoshoot in the Presidio. It is quickly becoming my favorite location – always gorgeous, never crowded. This will be one of the location for this year's Holiday Mini Shoots.

Portrait Session in the Marina | San Francisco Children's Photographer

Working with this young lady was a lot of fun! We started off at the Palace of Fine Arts, then, towards the end, did a few shots at the nearby streets. I hope these photographs convey the intelligence and charm of this beautiful young person!

Presidio/Baker Beach Family Photo Session | San Francisco Family Photographer

On this photo shoot, I was faced with a very unusual challenge! We had 80F weather here in San Francisco and, as a result, Baker Beach was absolutely packed. Instead of a beach session we ended up shooting in the nearby Presidio woods. Afterwards, we went back to the beach and managed to take a few shots with the Golden Gate Bridge in the background. It was pretty hard to frame a shot that did not also include a bunch of sunbathing strangers, LOL. :)
Some of the  family A. photos:

Amelia | San Francisco Bay Area Family Photographer

This was my second time photographing little Amelia! She and her mom met me for a mini-session at Lucasfilm in San Francisco. Love the colors in their outfits!

Charlotte Turns One! | Cake Smash | San Francisco Children's Photographer

We started Charlotte's first birthday photo shoot with a few portraits in her own backyard, then proceeded with a cake smash photo shoot.
At first she was a bit hesitant... Looking at her parents, as if to ask, "Are you sure this is all for me?"  :) The she discovered it was, after all, a lot of fun playing with the fluffy cake!

Josie is ONE | San Francisco Children's Photographer

This young lady is now one year old! When I first met and photographed her, she was a tiny baby and now she's about to start walking on her own.
Here are some of the photos from Josie 1-year photo shoot:

A Family Photo Session | San Francisco Family Photographer

I really enjoyed working with this beautiful family of four. They chose to have their photos taken at their home in San Francisco's Bernal Heights neighborhood. We did some shots inside the house and some outside in the backyard. Kids got to run around and have fun during their photo shoot!

Some of the resulting photos: