There are places in New York that become part of the structure of a family’s life almost without notice.

For this Upper East Side family, Central Park was one of them. It was where they walked their son as a baby, the landscape woven into ordinary days rather than reserved for special occasions. By early summer, they were preparing to leave Manhattan for their next chapter. The family session became a way of marking the end of their time here.

We began with the routes they already knew.

Near Bethesda Fountain, through a meadow, past Conservatory Water where the small sailboats cross the pond. Rather than approaching Central Park as a collection of landmarks, the session followed the places that belonged to their own version of it.

The afternoon was warm and clear, the kind of June day that makes the city briefly feel generous. They brought a blanket and stopped in the grass with their one-year-old son. There was playing, carrying, walking, sitting for a while and starting again.

Beforehand, the area had been scouted with those familiar places in mind, looking for smaller pockets within the park where the family could move without being swallowed by the crowds around them. Central Park is one of the most photographed places in New York, but it does not have to announce itself in every frame.

Sometimes a patch of grass, the edge of a path or the particular green of the trees in June says enough.

Eventually we crossed back toward the Upper East Side, making a few photographs on the street as the family moved between the park and home. Crosswalks, sidewalks, a child being carried through the city, nothing monumental, and perhaps more distinctly New York because of it.

Soon their son would grow up somewhere else. Central Park would no longer be the place just outside the door, and these walks would become part of another period entirely.

For one June afternoon, they simply walked them again.

A few questions about family sessions in Central Park

How do you choose where to photograph in Central Park?
Whenever possible, the starting point is somewhere the family already has a connection to. From there, we look for good light, quieter corners and a route that allows the session to move naturally.

Can a Central Park session still feel personal?
Yes. The park changes considerably from one area to another, and the photographs do not need to revolve around its most recognizable landmarks. The most interesting locations are often the ones that already belong to a family’s life.

Family Sessions →