Broken Rocks Family Photographer in Port Austin, Michigan | A Lake Huron Family Vacation

Broken Rocks Family Photographer in Port Austin, Michigan

Some family photographs document what everyone looked like.

The best ones remind you what it felt like to be together.

In mid-August, I had the opportunity to photograph this family during a very special trip to Broken Rocks in Port Austin, Michigan. Some members traveled all the way from Iowa to spend time together along Lake Huron, returning to a place that has become part of their family's story.

Three generations. Two little girls. Grandparents. Grown children. Couples.

And one beautiful Michigan summer evening together.

As a Broken Rocks family photographer, this is exactly the kind of session I love creating—not a long evening of perfectly posed photographs, but an experience that captures the relationships people traveled hundreds of miles to enjoy.

Family Vacations Deserve More Than Cell Phone Pictures

When an entire family travels to Michigan together, getting everyone in the same place can be an accomplishment in itself.

And inevitably, someone is missing from the photographs because they're the person holding the phone.

That's why vacation is such a wonderful opportunity to schedule professional family portraits.

This family traveled from Iowa to Michigan's Lake Huron shoreline, and rather than spending the entire session asking everyone to stand still and smile, we photographed their family as they actually are.

We photographed grandparents walking barefoot through the water with their granddaughters.

We photographed a quiet moment between the grandparents along the shoreline.

And, yes, we photographed a kiss.

We also let the little girls run, play and be little.

Because twenty years from now, those may be the photographs everyone treasures most.

Why Broken Rocks Is Such an Extraordinary Place for Family Photos

There are beautiful beaches throughout Michigan.

Broken Rocks is different.

Along this stretch of Lake Huron near Port Austin, soft sand meets dramatic rock formations, mature trees and open water. Within a relatively small area, we can create photographs that look completely different from one another.

Walk toward the water and we have an expansive Lake Huron beach.

Move toward the rocks and suddenly the photographs have texture, depth and a completely different feeling.

Add the trees, evening sun and changing Michigan sky, and the setting becomes spectacular.

For families who have a personal connection to Broken Rocks, though, the location means considerably more than a beautiful background.

It's part of the family story.

And that's something I want your photographs to preserve.

Your Port Austin Family Session Doesn't Have to Feel Like a Photo Shoot

One thing you'll notice when looking through this session is how much movement there is.

That is intentional.

I'm certainly going to create the photograph where everyone is together and looking toward the camera. Those photographs matter.

But then we're going to play.

Walk down the beach.

Hold hands.

Pick up your babies.

Get your feet wet.

Laugh at Grandpa.

Kiss your spouse.

Let the kids run.

Those interactions give me the moments in between the portraits—the expressions and relationships that can't always be created by simply telling someone how to pose.

My goal is for your gallery to tell the story of your family, not simply prove that everyone showed up for pictures.

Three Generations Together on Lake Huron

Multi-generational sessions are some of the most important family sessions I photograph.

Think about how rare this really is.

Children grow up. They move away. They get married. Grandchildren arrive. Careers and school schedules get complicated.

Suddenly, having everyone together at the same time becomes something worth celebrating.

That's why I don't only photograph the large group during an extended-family session.

We'll create smaller combinations, too.

Grandparents with grandchildren.

Parents with children.

Couples.

Adult siblings.

Grandparents together

.

Individual family units.

And, of course, the wonderfully imperfect moments that happen when we put everybody together.

Those smaller combinations become increasingly valuable as the years pass.

Visiting Port Austin or Lake Huron With Your Family?

You don't have to live in Michigan to have family portraits created here.

In fact, some of my favorite sessions happen because a family is vacationing in Michigan.

If your family is gathering in Port Austin, Caseville or elsewhere along Lake Huron, your portrait session can become part of the vacation rather than something you have to squeeze into life once everyone gets home.

You bring the people you love.

I'll help with the rest.

We'll talk about your family, wardrobe, the ages of the children, where you're staying and the type of photographs you want to create.

And if your family has a location that is especially meaningful—a cottage, family property or favorite stretch of shoreline—tell me about it.

Whenever access and photography are permitted, I'd much rather photograph your family somewhere that means something to you than simply choose a pretty background.

Portraits Worth Traveling For

Beech Photo photographs families throughout Michigan and along the beaches and destinations where families gather.

My approach combines beautiful portraiture with real connection.

Because I'm not interested in giving you 50 versions of everyone standing in a row.

I want the photograph of Grandma holding a tiny hand.

The one of Grandpa laughing.

The couple who has spent decades together walking barefoot down the shoreline.

The parents trying to keep up with their little girls.

And the big family portrait that someday shows those girls exactly where they came from.

Those are the photographs worth making.

Those are the portraits worth traveling for.

Book a Broken Rocks or Port Austin Family Photographer

If your family is planning a vacation, reunion or summer gathering in Port Austin, Broken Rocks or along Michigan's Lake Huron shoreline, I'd love to photograph the people who make that place special to you.

You don't need perfectly behaved children.

You don't need to know how to pose.

And you definitely don't need to spend the entire session staring at my camera.

Come ready to spend an evening together.

I'll take care of creating the photographs.

Planning your own Lake Huron family session?

→ Explore Beech Photo's Michigan Family Photography

Beech Photo

Portraits Worth Traveling For