SEND-Friendly Family Photography in Leeds & Yorkshire

Beautiful Family Photography Should Be For Everyone

I believe every family deserves the opportunity to capture meaningful memories together – regardless of disability, diagnosis, additional needs or neurodivergence.

Family photographs capture personality, connection and moments that become more valuable with every passing year. For some families though, traditional family photography can feel overwhelming. Unfamiliar situations, sensory overload and the pressure often associated with posed photography can sometimes make family photos feel inaccessible rather than enjoyable. My SEND-friendly sessions have been developed to address these challenges and help make family photography feel more accessible and enjoyable for every family.

Black and white family photography portrait of a young boy looking through railings in Leeds

Natural black and white portrait of a young girl holding a cricket bat in a family garden

Relaxed, Sensory-Friendly Family Photography

My approach to family photography has always been relaxed, natural and child-led. Alongside my regular family sessions, I also offer specially tailored sensory-friendly sessions for children who may benefit from additional preparation, flexibility and sensory-aware support.

These sessions have been developed in consultation with my wife, an experienced special school teacher and Attention Autism Advanced Practitioner, helping ensure they feel calm, supportive and tailored around each child’s individual needs.

Inclusivity is incredibly important to me. Alongside photographing families, much of my wider work focuses on people, connection and storytelling, including photographing children within specialist educational settings and working with families with complex medical needs through organisations including Sense and Niemann-Pick UK.

Relaxed family photography showing a family of four laughing together on a woodland walk

A Calm, Child-Led Approach

These sessions focus on creating a calm, low-pressure environment where genuine family moments can unfold naturally.

There is never any pressure to:

Sit perfectly still
Smile on command
Make eye contact
Mask who they are
Follow rigid posing instructions

Children are free to:

Move naturally
Explore
Stim
Take breaks
Engage at their own pace

Black and white family portrait of two sisters sitting together in long grass

Natural family photography capturing a young boy throwing his teddy bear into the air

Tailored Around Your Child From The Start

Before the session, you’ll complete a sensory-friendly pre-session questionnaire helping me understand your child, their individual needs and what will help them feel most comfortable during the shoot.

This may include:

Sensory sensitivities or triggers
Communication preferences
Favourite interests
Familiar routines
Accessibility requirements
Things that help your child regulate

Depending on your child’s needs, sessions can also include either a short introductory video call or a tailored visual social story to help children become more familiar with:

Who I am
What camera equipment I’ll be using
The location we’ll be shooting at
What the session may involve

This preparation helps sessions feel calmer, more predictable and far less overwhelming from the outset.

Timeless black and white portrait of a young girl with a thoughtful expression

Relaxed family photography portrait of a boy wearing oversized glasses while sitting on a scooter

Flexible & Comfortable Sessions Allowing Your Child To Be Themselves

These sessions have been developed to include additional flexibility and time for:

Breaks
Regulation
Exploration
Settling into unfamiliar situations

Sessions can take place:

In familiar outdoor spaces
At your home
Or somewhere your child already feels comfortable and safe

I believe in adapting the session to the child – not expecting the child to adapt to the session.

Documentary family photography capturing a child dancing and being silly in the rain

Documentary family photography capturing a young girl walking through woodland in the rain

Every Family Deserves The Opportunity To Capture Meaningful Memories

For many families, the thought of organising a photoshoot can feel stressful long before the session even begins. Worries about how a child may react, whether they’ll feel overwhelmed or whether the experience will simply become too much can often stop families from booking photographs altogether. But those moments of connection, personality and family life deserve to be remembered just as much as anyone else’s.

These sessions are not about forcing children to sit still, smile at the camera or behave a certain way. They’re about creating a calm, supportive environment where your child can feel safe enough to simply be themselves.

Rather than heavily posed portraits, I focus on capturing genuine interaction, quiet moments, personality and authentic emotion – creating photographs that reflect your family honestly, naturally and without pressure. These sessions aren’t about perfect behaviour or perfectly posed photographs. They’re about capturing real moments exactly as your family is right now.

Relaxed family photography capturing genuine connection between parents and daughter

Natural family photography portrait of a smiling boy sitting in a tree

“Simon was excellent for our family photo shoot from start to finish – very accommodating, understanding and professional! He managed to get the most beautiful photos even with a lot of chaos going on around him – we were just blown away when we saw the quality of the photos. They were so natural and exactly what we wanted – I would highly recommend Simon to anyone.”
Kirsty

Price list

SEND-Friendly Family Session £200

SEND-friendly family sessions are designed to feel calm, flexible and completely tailored to your child’s individual needs. Each session includes a detailed pre-session questionnaire, optional introductory video call or tailored social story, a relaxed child-led photography session with plenty of time for breaks and flexibility, and a hand-edited gallery of natural documentary-style images.

I believe every family deserves the opportunity to enjoy family photography, which is why there is no additional charge for the extra preparation, flexibility and support these sessions may require.

Get in touch to discuss your child’s needs and how we can tailor the session around your family.

FAQs

What if my child won’t engage with the camera?

That’s completely ok. These sessions are designed to be flexible, child-led and low-pressure.

What if my child becomes overwhelmed?

Breaks are always welcomed and sessions include flexibility for regulation and pauses where needed.

Do children need to pose or sit still?

Not at all. Children are free to move, stim, explore and engage naturally throughout the session.

Do you only work with autistic children?

I work with all children. I’ve always approached my family photography sessions in a relaxed, natural and child-led way, and many families already find my regular sessions work especially well for children who may not enjoy traditional posed photography experiences.

These sensory-friendly sessions have been developed specifically for children who may benefit from additional preparation, flexibility and sensory-aware support, helping ensure every family has the opportunity to enjoy meaningful family photographs in a way that feels comfortable for them.

What experience do you have working with autistic children and children with SEND?

I have extensive experience across family sessions, specialist educational settings and working with families with complex medical needs via organisations including Sense and Niemann-Pick UK.

What happens if it rains?

I’m used to shooting in a variety of weather conditions and I use weather sealed professional equipment so I’m certainly not put off by a little rain. As long as you and your family dress appropriately a bit of bad weather shouldn’t cause us too many problems. I’ll monitor the forecast as we get nearer to the shoot and if it looks like the weather is particularly bad I may suggest we look to reschedule if possible. I want everyone to be comfortable during the shoot but I do appreciate your child may not like plans being changed.

Why do SEND-friendly sessions cost the same as your standard family sessions?

I believe every family deserves the opportunity to enjoy family photography, regardless of disability, diagnosis, additional needs or neurodivergence.

While SEND-friendly sessions may involve additional preparation, flexibility and support, I don’t believe families should pay more simply because their child may need a slightly different approach. My goal is to create the best possible experience for every family, adapting the session where needed to help everyone feel comfortable and included.

Are there any added costs?

No, everything is completely transparent. Your session fee covers the shoot itself along with a full gallery of professionally edited images, provided in a format that’s perfect for sharing online. Full-resolution versions are also available separately and I’d recommend these so you can keep a permanent, high-quality copy of your images for the future. You’ll also have the option to order professional prints and framed products directly from your gallery. These are produced to a much higher standard than typical high street printing, using fine art papers and carefully finished frames to create something designed to last and be displayed in your home. Alternatively, you’re welcome to arrange your own printing using the full-resolution files if you prefer. There’s no obligation to purchase anything beyond the session fee – it’s entirely up to you.

What printed products do you offer?

I believe that photography should be displayed and enjoyed. I can arrange for the finest Giclée Fine Art Prints, stunning professionally mounted and framed prints, Canvases and Edge Prints. See my Products & Prices page for more information of the options available.

I'm nervous about having my picture taken

Don’t worry! I’ll make sure you and your family are relaxed and comfortable so you can forget about the shoot and just enjoy yourselves.

When your session is booked I’ll send you a copy of my pre-shoot guide which includes lots of tips to help make sure you get the most out of your session. All you need to do it turn up and I’ll do the rest!