Red Bank is a fun town that has a lot of great spots for family photos. It’s a bright, dynamic area that offers cool and interesting backgrounds for your photoshoot.
There are two things I like about shooting family portraits in Red Bank.
First, is the wide variety of types of shots we can get there. From traditional shots along the river to more fun and city-like shots as the sun goes down and the street lights light up…you’ll love the images of your family that we can capture here.
The second thing I love about shooting in Red Bank…so many good restaurants to head to after the shoot!
Navesink River
Red Bank along the Navesink has almost a New England kind of feel to it.
You can start off right in the streets of Red Bank. With brick sidewalks in some areas and beautiful buildings, it is the perfect combination of city and seaside.
Then you can head down to the marina. I would suggest shooting there during sunrise or sunset to capture some dramatic images and beautiful skies against the backdrop of the boats.
A fun approach here is to try for a more candid type of shoot. Walking along the sidewalk together or letting the kids peer into various stores.
Before the sun sets and the light goes away, find a spot where you can take some photos riverside.
Riverside Gardens Park
The Riverside Gardens Park is a gorgeous spot for your photoshoot. It has great views of the Navesink River. The wide open space is great as the kids can run around.
The park has viewfinders to look through and find boats and marine life. It is fun to have the kids look through them and see their reactions to what they see.
Downtown
Downtown is another great location for your photoshoot. The buildings and restaurants make a cool background for your photos. At night, the street lights come on and make your photos even more interesting with their glow.
When the roads are closed the streets are fun to shoot in because of all the backgrounds that you can use.
One of my favorite places in Reb Bank is Yestercades Arcade. Its an arcade that features games from the 70s and 80s all the way up to today.
Whether you want to go all out and dress in your best 80s gear or just capture a few nostalgia shots to mis in with a more traditional shoot, its a fun place for kids and adults alike.
Murals
In downtown and other parts of Red Bank you can find murals. Usually they are in a more secluded spot, like between two buildings.
They make dynamic backgrounds and are fun for kids to pose in front of. The vibrant background is great for dancers and athletes as well.
I’ve spent many summers at the beach in Manasquan and now as NJ family portrait photographer, it’s one of my “go-to” beaches to shoot family portraits.
The Beach
The beach itself in Manasquan is a great spot for a family photo. What I like about this location compared to some other beaches is that there are a number of jetties that are somewhat accessible to use as a background or even stand on (if you’re sure-footed and safe about it).
Also, the beach itself is easy to access during sunset times (the ideal time for family photos) because many of the daily beachgoers have left so parking is easier to find.
Manasquan Inlet
The Manasquan Inlet is one of the few NJ beach areas where you can get an awesome sunset photo.
Living on the east coast means that it’s tough to get great beach shots with the sunset and water in the actual frame. But at the Manasquan Inlet, you can get shots standing on the jetty with sun setting in the background over the water and Gull Island.
This one was taken on the other side of the inlet from Manasquan, but still shows this great sunset location.
Fisherman’s Cove Conservation Area
Fisherman’s Cove is a place you might not have thought of for family portraits, but if one of your family members has four legs then this might be the perfect spot for your next shot shoot. It’s a dog-friendly area with great sunset views that is easy to get to.
Just a couple of blocks away from the beach, you can park on the street or in the lot adjacent to the inlet to get to this spot.
One of my favorite parts about this area is that it’s dog friendly. So if getting your dog in the family photo AND shooting on a beach is important to you, then this is the place to be.
Gee Gee’s Pizza
Manasquan doesn’t have the big arcades or rides that you’ll find in some NJ beach towns. If you want the action and excitement then you can go one town over for a family photo shoot at Point Pleasant. But for many people, a quieter, more laid-back atmosphere is a very welcome thing!
What they do have is small casual places like Gee Gee’s with good pizza and a cool relaxed atmosphere.
I like shooting casual candids in places like this. It can be especially useful when you have little kids that don’t have the attention span for lots of posed shots.
They also have a small arcade where the kiddies can have some fun playing skee ball or trying to win a stuffed animal from the infamous claw game. These always make for some great secondary candid shots during your portrait session that are great for filling out an album or wall gallery to capture the great time you had at the beach.
Allaire State Park is a great photography location located in Howell and Wall Township, New Jersey in Monmouth .
It has a great combination of wooded areas, nature trails, old buildings, and even a train museum. All of these elements can make for interesting portraits of any kind. As a NJ family photographer, Allaire state park is rich with opportunities to create unique and beautiful images as well as family memories that can last a lifetime.
A big part of creating a fun and unique family portrait is picking the location. I always recommend a location that not only has a great look to it but is also unique and fun to visit. Let’s face it, if no one wants to be there, the pictures will show that and all you end up with is a bunch of bored faces in a pretty location.
That’s why I like shooting at Allaire State Park and Allaire Village. It’s interesting and there is a lot to do and explore for kids of all age groups.
The Holiday season at Allaire is really special. They go all out decorating the village and it makes the perfect setting for timeless holiday photos.
I’ll take a family through some areas of the park, visit the village, go check out the trains and before they know it, we’ve got a ton of awesome, fun photos, and it seemed like just a regular family outing.
This is the best way to capture genuine emotion and interactions between family members and ensure you get the most out of your family portrait.
So if you’re thinking of booking a family portrait with me at Allaire, here’s some more interesting and useful information…
Allaire State Park Facts
The park is operated by the New Jersey Division of Parks and Forestry.
Named after James P. Allaire, the founder of Howell Works.
Allaire Village is a restored 19th Century ironworks facility called Allaire Village.
Allaire State Park Train Museum
Allaire State Park is also home to the New Jersey Museum of Transportation which runs the Pine Creek Railroad.
Aside from being a cool place to check out the old trains and learn a little bit about New Jersey history, the trains also make a great spot your family photos.
Unlike some museums, you can actually ride on the trains here. As of the time this was written there was a $4 charge per person. Although I haven’t tried this yet, a ride on the train would make a great setting for some family photos. Activities like this will keep the little ones engaged and having fun. It won’t even feel like a family portrait, but you’ll end up with photos that show genuine joy, excitement, and interactions.
The Pine Creek Railroad is operated by volunteers for the New Jersey Museum of Transportation. The museum, an independent not-for-profit organization, moved there in 1962. The railroad that you can ride is a ½ mile loop of track through the Allaire Park.
Allaire State Park Trails
Allaire State Park has a multitude of trails for hiking, but they can be a great spot for family photos as well.
Woodland settings like this are a great place for a family portrait. Especially in the Fall season, the trees can form the perfect background and space usually isn’t a problem, even for bigger families.
The Manasquan River also winds through the park, making it a popular spot for canoeists and fishermen. The river makes for an ideal habitat for over 200 species of wildflowers, trees and plants as well as birds and other wildlife.
All of these factors can make for interesting and unique photos that can be a little different than your normal woodsy family portraits. The accessibility of many of these elements within a very short distance is also very convenient. That convenience is perfect for families with little kids (and also photographers with a lot of equipment!).
Allaire State Park Buildings
From a photographer’s perspective, one of the best parts about this location is the antique buildings.
The restored buildings there today include a general store, blacksmith shop, carpenter’s shop, manager’s house, foreman’s house and a church. These older buildings can be a great setting for photography because they have a lot of character.
We can’t take pictures inside many of the buildings but the outside of the buildings create a great atmosphere and setting.
Allaire State Park Hours
Since it is a state park, you have to be aware of the operating hours if you want to have your family photos there.
The park opens daily at 8 a.m. and closes at 8 p.m. Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day weekend. After Labor Day and during the month of March the park closes at 6 p.m. In November the park closes at 4:30 p.m.
Allaire Village Directions
If you are planning a photo session at Allaire Village, it can be a little tricky to find the right place to park since Allaire State Park is a relatively large place.
Getting There
Allaire State Park can be reached from exit 98 off the Garden State Parkway or exit 31B off Interstate 195.
Street Address: 4265 Atlantic Ave. Farmingdale, NJ 07727
GPS Coordinates: 40° 09’ 43.60” N 74° 07′ 53.62″ W
Parking
During Memorial Day Weekend to Labor Day (the “in season”) there is a small fee for parking. As of the time this post was written it was only $5 per car on weekends. Parking is free on weekdays.
Lifestyle photography is a kind of portrait photography where I’ll join your family for a fun activity and capture candid moments that your family shares together.
I encourage all my clients to try a lifestyle photography session at least once. The results usually have them coming back for more.
There are some real benefits to having a session like this, especially if you have family portraits done regularly.
The pure joy of winning a prize at the boardwalk.
They are unique. Even when you change up the location every year, the photos tend to have a lot of similarities. You are still documenting your family’s growth over the years which I highly encourage, but they start to look a little same-y. A lifestyle shoot is always unique.
You’ll preserve real moments and emotions. Even for a more classic family portrait shoot, I encourage families to plan some activities. Especially with younger children, that really brings out authentic reactions, real emotions, and true personality. Even adults are usually pleasantly surprised at the authenticity of how they look in the photos compared to posed shots.
They are easy. I enjoy planning out a styled shoot, setting up professional lighting, creating a theme, and giving my clients something truly epic. But that take time and can get costly depending on what you have in mind. A lifestyle session is all about being real, doing something fun that your family would do anyway, and capturing the moments. You’ll have amazing photos without much planning needed.
Lifestyle Shoot Ideas In New Jersey
A day at the beach
A night at the boardwalk
Apple picking
Excitement at an amusement park
Sunday brunch at home
Family game night
Hiking at the park
Who Is A Lifestyle Shoot For?
Honestly, every family should try a lifestyle shoot at least once. But here are some examples of when it’s a really good fit.
Families with younger kids. If you are always telling your kids to sit down, look at the camera or having to bribe them to sit still and cooperate, then a lifestyle session is perfect. Just let them be themselves and have fun and I’ll be there to capture the moment.
Families that are active together. Does your family go hiking, play sports, go to the boardwalk, or even have game night at home? You may not realize it but those are the moment you are going to cherish years from now. Think about having a small album to look back and enjoy those ordinary moments that have become extraordinary memories.
Families that get portraits done every year. Having great images every year to tell your family’s story is something you’ll never regret. Having some of those images be about a unique experience that you and your family had together is something you’ll never forget.
A little kid with easy access to an entire cake is always a fun time for everyone involved!
If you are looking for a cake smash photographer in NJ, I can help.
This little guy was one year old when he got to dig into his cake.
When I get the occasion to be a cake smash photographer for a family, it’s exciting. Let’s face it, the kid is going to put on a show and it’s my job to capture that. The initial uncertainty, testing the boundaries a little by just touching the cake, and then finally the unbridled joy when they realize no one is stopping them from diving in headfirst. These sessions are always photography gold.
But my favorite part of being able to capture a cake smash is helping families preserve these fleeting moments in their child’s life before they grow up.
Whether you want to do the cake smash in the middle of a birthday party like the one above or set up a custom individual portrait session, I’ll walk you through designing the shoot exactly the way you envision it. No pre-made backgrounds that are the same for everyone.
You’ll get a bespoke photography experience tailored to your creative vision.
Whether it’s in the form of a canvas, a cluster of metal prints, or a beautiful album showing your little one as they tear through the cake, I want to help you create family heirloom pieces that you can use to decorate your home and pass them down to future generations.
PRO TIP: Invest in a high quality cake smash wall art piece and it will still be in amazing condition to hang up at your child’s wedding so you can really embarrass them!
