Windy Extended Family Session at Burke’s Beach | Hilton Head, SC

Session Sunday | Client Testimonial for Hilton Head Beach Photographer, Elle Michele Photography

Chelsea, Travis, and their family traveled in for a week-long family vacation. There were a set of grandparents, their 2 sons, the son’s wives, and a couple of toddlers, including the sweetest little twin girls! I have a slight obsession with twins, seeing as I have my own identical twin sisters.

We had to move our scheduled session up a little bit because it was calling for rain later that evening, so it was a little sunnier than usual but we made it work. One thing we weren’t expecting when we got to the beach was how windy it was. When checking the weather conditions for a session, it’s super important to check wind speed before you head out. For all my photographers reading this, I have a whole lesson on this in the beach photography course that I’m developing.

After attempting to get a few shots down on the beach, I made the decision to bring the families back up to the entrance where there was more tree cover to break up the wind. The great thing about Burke’s Beach on Hilton Head Island is that there are so many places to shoot at!

Burke’s has a really nice marsh view, a big pretty oak, a nice walkway, and opens up to a beautiful beach with some dunes. I took advantage of the long, wide walkway to get us out of the wind.

Even though the twins weren’t identical, it was so hard for me to keep their names straight! By the end of the session, I had it down though. When there are lots of kids at a session, I make sure we keep everything fun and light-hearted. Lots of singing (the girls loved Jonas Brothers and John Mayer), and little games like ring around a rosy.

The great thing about vacationing at Hilton Head is that even if you’re staying somewhere that doesn’t have immediate beach access, there are plenty of nearby, public options available.

If you’re planning a beach vacation yourself, I highly recommend hiring a photographer to document it! If you’re interested in booking a session with me, check out my services page so I can answer some of your questions!

If you’re a photographer looking to up their beach photography game, be sure to get on the email list for my signature course I’ll be releasing in late spring! Sign up here so you can get first dibs!