Tweed Coast and Gold Coast Family Photography
Some of my favourite photo sessions are the big ones.
Not the perfectly coordinated families with two children and matching linen outfits. The real ones. The loud ones. The ones where there are grandparents, cousins, partners, toddlers running everywhere and someone always wandering off to explore a rock or chase a wave. Those sessions tell the full story of a family.
Extended family photo sessions usually happen for a reason. Someone is visiting from interstate. A birthday is being celebrated. A holiday has brought everyone together in the same place for once. Or sometimes someone in the family simply realises it has been years since everyone stood in the same photo together.
Along the Tweed Coast, places like Cabarita Beach, Hastings Point and Fingal Headland become gathering places for families. People come for a long weekend or a family holiday and suddenly the opportunity appears. Because everyone is finally together, it doesn't happen often and when was the last time we got family photos?
A Generational Session I Will Never Forget
One of the extended family sessions I photographed recently has stayed with me.
The family had come from North of Brisbane and had gotten together for a weekend at a local Murwillumbah airbnb. Five adult children had come together with their partners, and at the centre of it all was their mum. Their dad had passed away some time ago. Their mum now lives in a nursing home and has dementia. Once a year the whole family organises a weekend away. They pick her up, take her out, spend time together and take photos while everyone is in the same place.
Watching them interact was really beautiful for me. There was laughter and teasing between siblings, partners helping their mum walk across the grass, cousins chatting and wandering off together. It was relaxed, a little chaotic, and full of warmth.
And what struck me most was how close they all were, it was immediately obvious. They were not taking photos for social media or Christmas cards. They were documenting a moment in time while they still had it.
When a family loses one parent, something shifts. People realise how quickly time moves and how important it becomes to keep those memories visible and photography suddenly carries so much more weight. They become a way of remembering the people who shaped us, the way our families looked at a certain point in time and the feeling of being together.
That afternoon made my heart happier just being there. It was a reminder that these big family sessions are not about perfection, more about presence. And it also made me want to organise a big get-together with my family!
“If you don’t think photos are important, wait until they’re all you have left.”
– Missy Mwac
What Happens During an Extended Family Photo Session
One of the biggest concerns people have when organising a large family photo session is whether it will feel stressful and it really doesn't have to be.
The session usually starts with a few relaxed group photographs so everyone has that classic image together. Once we have that, we break things down into smaller groupings so the session feels natural and enjoyable. Children wander, people laugh and it's inevitable for there to be dad jokes.
Typical combinations include:
• the entire extended family together
• grandparents with grandchildren
• each individual family group
• siblings together
• cousins together
• relaxed candid moments as people interact
The Best Locations for Extended Family Photos on the Tweed Coast
Extended family sessions work best in locations where people can spread out and relax rather than feeling cramped or staged. Sometimes families know exactly what they are after, but sometimes they are looking for suggestions. Some of my favourite spots include:
Cabarita Headland
Beautiful ocean views, grassy areas for group photos and space for kids to explore.
Hastings Point Beach
Quiet, open, rocky beach and perfect for sunset sessions when the light softens across the water.
Fingal Headland
Incredible scenery, lighthouse walk, cliffs etc. with a slightly more rugged feel, great for families who love the outdoors.
Murwillumbah farmland and river areas
Perfect for families wanting something a little different from the beach.
These locations allow us to capture both the big group photographs and the natural interactions that happen in between.
Planning a Large Family Photo Shoot
Organising photos for a big group does not have to be complicated. A few simple things make a huge difference:
• choose relaxed, neutral colours rather than everyone matching
• avoid bold patterns that compete with each other
• aim for coordination rather than identical outfits
• allow a little extra time if young children are involved
Most importantly, try not to stress about perfection.
The best images usually happen when people relax and enjoy being together.
Why Generational Photos Become the Most Valuable Ones
For many families, extended family photos are something that only happen every few years, sometimes even less often than that. Life gets busy, people move to different places and it can be ridiculously hard to get everyone together at the same time. But when those moments do happen, the photographs from those gatherings often become some of the most meaningful ones a family has.
There is something very special about seeing grandparents holding their grandchildren, adult siblings standing together again like they did years ago, and cousins laughing together in the background while everything unfolds naturally around them.
Those kinds of photographs slowly become part of the story of a family. They capture what life looked like at that point in time and who was there together. And years later, when people start looking back through old photos, it is often these images that everyone returns to.
Extended Family Photography on the Tweed Coast
If your family is gathering in Cabarita, Hastings Point, Fingal, Murwillumbah, Coolangatta or in Tweed Heads, an extended family session is a beautiful way to capture that time together. Whether it is a holiday, reunion or milestone celebration, those moments together deserve to be remembered.
You can learn more about family sessions here:
https://www.wonderlandphotography.com.au/family/
Or reach out if you would like help organising a photo session for your extended family.
