With summer nearly upon us (yay!) today I want to share with you some summer photoshoot ideas that will help you capture the spirit of the season with your camera.

There are several ways you can infuse a bit of summery magic into your photos, from something as simple as including summer related “props” in the frame, or choosing a location that automatically make us think of summer.

Scroll on down to read through this list of summer photoshoot ideas that will make your photos scream SUMMER!

#1 - With Pool Inflatables

If you are lucky enough to have a pool, or be going somewhere with one, then a bright, summery inflatable will both look fantastic in your summer photos, and be super fun for the kids to play with!

Anything goes here, but I would recommend that you think of the colours you want to have in your photos so that you have a cohesive look, but bright colours usually work well, and red in particular will really pop against the blue water of the pool.

I love these Watermelon, Lemon, Orange and Lime Inflatables for kids, but if you want to go all Taylor Swift, you could grab these Unicorn & Flamingo Pool Inflatables instead, which are a little bit different.

#2 - Beach Silhouette

Instead of going during the day, head to the beach for the golden hour, and wait until the sun is just meeting the horizon.

Then place your subjects in front of the sky, so that you as the photographer are shooting into the light. You’ll need to be shooting in full manual mode for this one, as you’ll need to expose for the sky, not your subjects!

One crucial tip here - you need to have your subject doing something, like jumping in the air with their arms outstretched, or standing with their legs apart and holding hands. If they stand with their arms and legs together, you’ll get one uniform black blob instead of the awesome silhouette you are going for!

Set your aperture to somewhere between F2.8 and F5.6 depending on the light, and choose a shutter speed fast enough to freeze the motion of your subject. (Your ISO will just be whatever is needed to balance the exposure) and off you go!

(Need a camera settings cheat sheet to help with your aperture, shutter speed and ISO settings? Grab one for free here!)

RELATED POST: How to Get A Silhouette Photo

#3 - Cute Goggles / Sunglasses

A pair of fun goggles can be another great prop for your summer photos!

These pink Bling 20 Girls Googles are uber cute for girls, but again, think of your child and what swimsuit they are likely to be wearing, so you can co-ordinate :-)

And these Batman Googles for boys look fun, but even a scuba set can look great, so they don’t have to be quirky if that’s not what your kids are into.

For older kids and adults, nothing beats a pair of cool sunglasses!

RELATED POST: 8 Tips for Shooting At The Beach

#4 - Watermelon

This is a summer photo prop that you can eat, which makes in a win-win situation in my book.

Watermelon just screams summer holidays to me (maybe it was because I first tried watermelon on my holidays to Spain as a kid!) and the colours are so vibrant that it’s fun to include it in your photos.

You can plan a whole summer photoshoot around a watermelon theme, or just photograph the kids eating a great big slice of watermelon.

(Don’t have kids? Just photograph the watermelon on it’s own - there are loads of ways to go with this one)

Try to use contrasting colours to get even more punch with your photos!

#5 Slip n Side / Sprinkler

One of the BEST investments for summer was our water slip n slide for the back garden - it was not only incredibly fun for both kids and adults, I got so many great photos from it too!

Of course, you don’t even need to buy that - a water hose to spray the kids as they run around the garden or let them play with the sprinkler can all give you that summer feeling.

A few tips for you: use backlight to really get the water spray to show up, be sure to use a fast shutter speed to freeze the motion (around 1/600 or more!) and use a longer length lens so you can stay dry!

RELATED POST: 5 TIPS FOR FOR SHARP PHOTOS

#6 - Field of Summer Flowers

Fields filled with summer wildflowers are a fantastic place to take your summer themed photos! Sunflower and bluebell fields give particularly beautiful colours and will add extra pop to your photos.

Although you can take photos there at any time, the best time will be around the golden hour, as that’s when you’ll get that warm buttery tones that work beautifully with backlight.

You can also play with getting haze and sun flares in your image, which both add to that hazy dreamy summery feeling!

RELATED POST: STEP BY STEP GUIDE TO USING BACKLIGHT

No field nearby? Then grab a bunch of flowers from the local market and use them as a prop.

#7 - Full Sunshine

This one is totally free, but guaranteed to make your summer photo shine!

There’s loads of way to use the sun in your summer images - you can use the bright, harsh sun of midday for photos that have deep, highly saturated colours which add to the fun summer vibe, or the low light of golden hour for feelings of warm, hazy, lazy summer afternoons.

Heck, you can even create a sunburst with it!

If you don’t like using full sun, then you can also search out areas of open shade, which can be a lot easier to work with, especially if you are just starting out.

RELATED POST: HOW TO USE OPEN SHADE IN PHOTOGRAPHY

#8 - Toasting Marshmallows

Another great summertime activity is toasting marshmallows, and you can get some great shots of of friends and family, around the campfire, toasting their marshmallows.

Get a wide angle shot of the whole scene, then of each individual person, get in close and take a photo of the fire itself, and a close up of your toasty marshmallow so you capture the whole story for a fabulous summer photo shoot!

#9 Umbrella / Gumboots

I know we often think of sun when it comes to summer, but (living in Scotland) I also think of those wonderfully refreshing summer showers.

It can be great to get out there in a summer shower, and two props that can really make a difference to your photos is a bright, colourful umbrella like this rainbow umbrella (or a clear, see through one can be good too) a pair of bright summer gumboots in any colour!

Get the kids to splash about in the rain and puddles, and don’t forget to use a fast shutter speed to capture the water droplets and avoid motion blur.

#10 - Beach Towels / Picnic Blankets

If you’re anything like me, you bought a couple of beach towels 10 years ago, and now you can barely see the pattern, there’s bits of thread hanging off them everywhere, and there is a distinct hint of grey about them after washing them 100 times!

If that’s you, then you might want to grab a couple of news ones as again, these can add colour, texture and interest to your summer photos. You can use them as a backdrop by shooting down on your subject as they lie on them, or you can wrap them around your subject.

These toddler ones come in a variety of different patterns (I want the flamingo ones!!) but again, think of the vibe you are going for with your photos and choose one that suits you!

Another great purchase around the same theme is a cute picnic blanket - you can have your subjects sitting on the blanket for a great family photo.

#11 -Bubbles

My son spent many a happy hour chasing bubbles in the back garden, so much so, that I got fed up blowing them and invested $20 in a bubble machine!

These always make me think of lazy late summer afternoons, sipping my umbrella accessorised drink while the kids chased bubbles on the lawn.

#12 -Sweet Treats

Summer wouldn’t be summer without some kind of frozen treat - popsicles, ice-cream cones or ice lollies all give you that happy summer vibe, and are fun and colourful to include in your photos!

#13 - At the Beach

Although just getting down there on the shore is great, in order to give you photos a bit more interest, look out for areas that have elements that you can use to get more interesting compositions.

A few examples would be wooden walkways, sand dunes, areas with coloured beach huts, jetties and piers, rocks and so on.

These all give you places for your subjects to sit, or use as leading lines or foreground interest.

Failing that, putting your subject in a pop of colour can really help them stand out and add a summery vibe to your photos!

#14 - Drink Umbrellas

Sunny days also equals something else in our household - alcohol. And plenty of it.

Hubby’s drink of choice is a beer, whereas I love anything with an umbrella, which is the inspiration for this summer photo prop idea: a pack of drink umbrellas.

But again, you could just simply cut up some fruit and use that to decorate the glass (or like me, do both!) for a cute drink accessory.