Have you ever considered a sunrise photography session?

I have spoken in the past about the benefits of booking a sunrise session over a sunset session. Often, families with small children are waking when the sun rises anyways. Their children are chipper and happy (much to their dismay) at that 6:00AM hour…much more so than the “witching hour” sunset timeframe of 7:00PM during the Spring and Summer. The other major benefit is that sunrise in the city is the ideal time. Why, you might ask? Because no one is around.

Boston hasn’t been nicknamed “the walking city” for nothing. Bostonians love a good walk at sunset on a nice evening. Which means that all the beautiful spots are teeming with tourists, dog walkers, runners, and folks walking home from work. At 6:00AM, the hustle and bustle of city life has not yet begun. You’ll see the occasional dog walker out for an early morning potty break, but the streets are mostly deserted.

Take this city photography session for example. I met Alice and her family at Charlestown’s famous Bunker Hill Monument at 6:30AM (which isn’t even technically sunrise this time of year!!). In the evening, this place is *packed* with tourists and locals. Saturday at dawn…we had the place to ourselves. We could’ve driven out of the city and done a sunset session in the country in a private location, but many Bostonians like to have their sessions in areas of the city that have special meaning to them. This Charlestown family spends a lot of time walking around the Monument as they live locally. Having pictures taken specifically here is something that they will treasure forever.

Full disclosure, Alice is a photographer too. Photographers tend to understand more deeply how important the right light is for their sessions. While I don’t often have clients willing to be up and ready do Spring sunrise sessions, the Fall is a lot more manageable! In October, sunrise is at 7:00AM which means the ideal start time of 7:00-8:00AM is actually quite doable.

Sunrise in the city is truly the way to go. There’s something invigorating about walking through deserted city streets as the first rays of sun stream in. Any pocket of good light is a win when you’re not also dodging a million people in the backdrop!

This sunrise session was what I’d call a “walking session”. Quite appropriate in the walking city! We began at the Bunker Hill Monument and then meandered our way down the hill and over to the Navy Yard. Nothing inspires creativity more than photographing a fellow creative on a new-to-me route! By the end of our session, we had to get a little creative as the sun got brighter and brighter. Luckily we had beautiful old buildings and walls to help us filter the rising sun. “`

Have you considered a sunrise session? Let’s chat about what that might entail!