Illinois
Family session · Chicago
In short
Family session in Chicago starts at $375: 75 min on location with a photographer who works in Chicago, and 40 edited photos delivered to a private gallery within 5 business days.
Why choose Family session in Chicago?
Chicago families book photographs on a sharper seasonal split than anywhere else in this catalogue: there is a green outdoor season from May to October and there is winter, and pretending otherwise produces forty photographs of cold children. What makes this city workable in the other five months is that it has a genuine indoor answer, which most cities do not — two acres of warm glasshouse in Garfield Park, free to enter for Chicago residents and green in February.
Worth knowing about Chicago
The Garfield Park Conservatory is the most useful family location in this city between November and March, and it is also the one most often assumed to be free for photography because admission is. It is not: a Chicago Park District photography permit is required for a professional session inside it, plus a separate timed entry reservation that opens thirty days ahead, and the Conservatory is closed on Mondays and Tuesdays. Both are named for you at booking, with where to apply and how far ahead.
What does the session in Chicago look like?
- Promontory Point, Hyde Park
- Limestone, mature oaks and room to run, with the skyline at a distance. The best family lakefront in the city.
- Garfield Park Conservatory
- The winter answer. Warm, green and softly lit when everything outdoors is grey and twelve degrees.
- North Avenue Beach
- Open sand and the skyline, in the last ninety minutes of light in summer.
What does family session in Chicago include?
- 40 retouched photographs
- Posed group frames and candid coverage
- Individual portraits of each child
- Private online gallery within 5 business days
- Print release for personal use
Permits at these locations: North Avenue Beach: Professional photography on Chicago Park District property requires a permit. Garfield Park Conservatory: A Chicago Park District photo permit and a separate timed entry reservation are both required. Entry is free for Chicago residents and $10 for adults from outside the city. Promontory Point, Hyde Park: Chicago Park District permit required for professional photography.
FAQ — Family session in Chicago
Is a winter family session in Chicago realistic?
Indoors, yes and it works well — the Garfield Park Conservatory is warm, green and softly lit, which is a genuine alternative rather than a compromise. Outdoors, from late November to March, wind chills off the lake make anything longer than about twenty minutes hard on small children, and it shows in every frame. Short outdoor bursts built around a warm place to return to are the realistic version.
Do we need a permit for family photos on the Chicago lakefront?
Yes for professional work. The lakefront — the beaches, Promontory Point and the conservatories — is Chicago Park District property, and its permit covers non-commercial portrait sessions, from $45 per location per hour. Millennium Park is run by the City separately. Streets and sidewalks fall under the Chicago Film Office instead and need nothing for handheld work.