One of the questions I receive most often is, "Where is the best place for a family photo session in Amsterdam?"

People are often surprised by my answer, as I don't have one favourite route.

Every family arrives with a different story, different personalities, different interests, and a different way of experiencing the city. If I took every family to exactly the same places, I would only be photographing Amsterdam. What I really want to photograph is your experience of Amsterdam.

That's why every session begins long before we meet. The questionnaire isn't simply a way for me to collect information; it's the foundation of the entire experience. I'm not only asking about your children's ages or where you're staying. I want to understand what excites your family, how your children interact, whether you love history, architecture, parks, or simply spending time together. Those answers become the starting point for everything that follows.

The children's ages are one of the biggest factors when planning a route. A three-year-old needs something completely different from a teenager. Younger children have endless energy, but they also have a shorter attention span. Teenagers usually enjoy conversations, history, architecture, or discovering curious details about the city. Every family moves at a different rhythm, and I want the session to follow your rhythm, not mine.

The meeting point is another detail that people rarely think about. Choosing where to meet doesn't mean choosing the route. Those are two completely different decisions. I normally select a meeting point that is easy to reach from your hotel or by public transport, especially because moving around Amsterdam with children isn't always as straightforward as it looks on a map. Sometimes families are arriving after visiting a museum, and other times they want to finish close to the dock where their canal cruise departs. Those details matter because they allow the photography session to fit naturally into your day instead of interrupting it.

Once we start walking, I follow one simple rule that has become more important every year: every fifteen minutes, something should change.

Children don't become tired because they're being photographed. They become tired when nothing around them changes. A short walk towards different areas together with an interesting story about Amsterdam is often enough to bring their curiosity back. Those short walks between locations are not wasted time. They're part of the experience. We talk, we discover the city together, and many of my favourite photographs happen during those transitions, when everyone has forgotten about the camera. That's one of the reasons I recommend bringing as little as possible. Without bags or extra things to carry, we can simply enjoy the walk together, and those moments between locations often become some of my favourite photographs.

Amsterdam is also different from many other European cities. Visitors don't usually come here to see one famous monument. They come for the atmosphere. They come for the canal houses, the bridges, the reflections on the water, the bicycles, and the feeling of wandering through streets that seem unchanged for centuries. My job is to bring those elements together so that, years later, your photographs immediately remind you of Amsterdam without needing to include every famous landmark.

Planning a family session also means thinking about practical details that most people never notice. I always know where the nearest playground is, even if I never mention it to the children until we get there. I know where families can stop for water, where there are public toilets nearby, and where I can recommend an ice cream afterwards if everyone feels like celebrating. These little details make the experience more relaxed because parents can focus on enjoying the morning instead of solving small problems along the way.

One of my favourite parts of the questionnaire is learning what children are curious about. Some want to know why Amsterdam's houses lean forward. Others become fascinated by hidden gardens, old windmills, or the meaning behind street names. Sometimes a simple conversation about the city becomes one of the strongest memories of the day. Those moments rarely appear on a map, but they always become part of the family's story.

People occasionally ask me whether I'm a photographer or a guide. I don't think it's one or the other. Photography is the reason we meet, but creating memories is the reason we spend time together. When you look back at your photographs years from now, I hope you won't only remember what Amsterdam looked like. I hope you'll remember how it felt to discover it together.

That's why I never design routes around Amsterdam. I design them around families. Are you curious about our photo sessions? Here you can find all the information.

See you soon in Amsterdam,

Joanna

Your Vacation Photographer in Amsterdam

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Frequently Asked Questions

Do you always photograph in the same locations?

No. Every family follows a different route based on your children's ages, your interests, where you're staying, and what you want to remember about Amsterdam.

Can the route start or finish near our hotel or another activity?

Yes. Whenever possible, I design routes that fit naturally into your day. If you prefer that we start near your hotel or that we finish close by a specific point, please mention it while answering your questionnaire.

How much walking is involved?

The pace depends entirely on your family. We stop regularly for photographs, and I keep walking distances short, especially when young children are involved.