Florida
Miami gives a photographer more saturated colour than any other city in this catalogue and less usable midday light. The Art Deco facades on Ocean Drive, the murals in Wynwood and the water off Key Biscayne are all genuinely as vivid as they look; what is not obvious from the photographs is how brutal the sun is between ten and four for eight months of the year. Work happens at the ends of the day here, and that is not a stylistic preference. It is also the most bilingual market on this site, and the one where WhatsApp is genuinely the default way people arrange things rather than a fallback. Quinceañera, engagement and family work all run in Spanish as often as in English. The permitting is fragmented because the region is many small municipalities rather than one city. Miami Beach has its own film and photography office and enforces it on Ocean Drive and Lummus Park. The City of Miami is separate. Miami-Dade County parks — Crandon, Matheson Hammock, Bill Baggs — run their own scheme again, and Bill Baggs is a Florida State Park on top of that.
November to April is the season: dry, clear, warm, and the reason the entire city is busy then. May through October is hot and humid with a near-daily afternoon thunderstorm that arrives around four and clears within an hour, which is more workable than it sounds if the session is built around it. Hurricane season runs June to November and occasionally rearranges a week. Winter sunrises over the Atlantic are the single best light available here.
Pastel facades and neon against an eastern sky. Sunrise gives you the buildings lit and the street empty; by ten it is a traffic jam of rental scooters.
Several hundred murals across a twenty-block warehouse district. The streets outside the ticketed courtyard are as good and are free, and the work changes often enough that a scout is worth the hour.
An 1825 lighthouse, palms and a beach facing directly east — the best sunrise location in Miami-Dade and the reason to leave the hotel at 5:30.
An Italian Renaissance villa and formal gardens on Biscayne Bay. The most-booked quinceañera and engagement location in the city, which is exactly why the slots have to be reserved.
An atoll pool, mangroves and the downtown skyline across the bay. Far quieter than the beaches and the best family location in the county.
These come under the Miami rate: a photographer travels out from the city at no extra charge, and the session is priced exactly as it would be in Miami itself.
Which permit depends on which municipality you are standing in, because this region is many small cities rather than one. Miami Beach has its own film and print office covering Ocean Drive and Lummus Park. The City of Miami is separate. Miami-Dade County administers Matheson Hammock and Crandon Park, and Bill Baggs on Key Biscayne is a Florida State Park with its own scheme again. The right permit is identified for your specific location before the session.
November through April — the dry season, with clear air, lower humidity and comfortable temperatures. May to October is hot and humid with a near-daily afternoon thunderstorm around four, which clears within about an hour and is workable if the session is planned around it. Hurricane season runs June through November.
Vizcaya Museum and Gardens is the most-requested location in the city and requires a booked photography permit with limited daily slots, so it needs reserving well ahead. Matheson Hammock Park in Coral Gables and the Deering Estate are the strongest alternatives and are considerably easier to schedule. All three need a permit, and all three are best in the two hours after sunrise.
Yes. Spanish-speaking photographers cover this market and a large share of family, quinceañera and engagement sessions here run entirely in Spanish. Say so when you enquire and the session is matched accordingly, at no difference in price.