Every senior is different so not every location is right for every senior. I know some photographers who only shoot at a few regular places and I'm sure they love the predictability with choosing the same spots over and over. Personally, I would get really bored with that approach! I love finding unique places for your session and I have other photographers ask me all the time for advice on where to go so I thought I'd write a post to highlight a few of my favorites.

1. Featured in this post: Ellijay, GA. There are so many pretty places in Ellijay! It's not far from Atlanta and you get these beautiful mountain views and there's a beautiful lake also. It's one of those cities that has so much to offer! Especially in spring and fall! There are so many orchards that offer times in the spring for photographers to use their property when the peach and apple trees are in bloom and some of the orchards even have wildflowers in early fall.

2. Kennesaw Mountain. This is a great location especially for when you want to combine a nature location with an urban location because it's not far from downtown Marietta or Kennesaw. It keeps you from having to spend a lot of time in the car! Christian and Kylee are both great examples of combining urban with Kennesaw Mountain.

3. Cobb County parks. Cobb County has so many gorgeous parks! If you're looking for a rustic look along with nature there are several that have barns or old buildings and pretty fields! One of my personal favorites is Green Meadows Preserve where I took Cadey's senior pictures. Just a warning: Cobb County parks require a photography permit so be sure to ask your photographer if they have a permit! It would be awful to be in the middle of your session and then be asked to leave because your photographer isn't prepared!

4. Lake Allatoona! This lake is so big and there are so many beautiful places to get a view of sunset included in your images. Lake Allatoona stretches all the way from Canton to Acworth and Cartersville! So this is an awesome spot if you're trying to find a secluded corner away from a huge crowd. Brennan,  Ethan and Baker are all great examples of 3 different places on Lake Allatoona and how different they can look. So much variety!

5. Private venues: West Milford Farm, Prospect Farms, Lindale Mill, Lewallen Farm... the list is probably endless but these are some of my preferred venues. Beyond the obvious benefit that each of these have absolutely amazing properties, there's the additional advantage that you're having to schedule your own time at these places which means you have the place all to yourself and don't have to fight huge crowds! This is particularly helpful during busy seasons like spring and fall! Popular public parks have a tendency to be overrun with photography sessions (especially on weekends) and that makes it difficult to relax and move around easily without having a bunch of extra people in the background.

Here are some examples from private venues:

- Caitlin's senior session at West Milford Farm

- Lauren's wildflower session at Prospect Farm

- Both Kyla and Patrick did their sessions at Lindale Mill