Locations
Where your session can happen
Eight areas I know well, with honest notes on light, walking, and what each place is actually good for.
Neighborhoods
Session locations
University City
Home base. Red brick, mature street trees, and quiet blocks between the bigger campuses make this the easiest place to start a session on a tight schedule.
- Best sessions
- Portraits, headshots, graduation, couples
- Visual style
- Warm brick, leafy sidewalks, soft afternoon shade
- Accessibility & walking
- Flat sidewalks and short walks between backdrops; well served by transit
- Golden hour
- Start about 90 minutes before sunset for the warmest light between buildings.
UPenn campus area
Collegiate stone architecture, long green walkways, and archways that read instantly as graduation photos. Public outdoor areas only.
- Best sessions
- Graduation, senior portraits, family combinations
- Visual style
- Gothic stone, ivy, wide tree-lined paths
- Accessibility & walking
- Long walking distances; comfortable shoes recommended
- Golden hour
- Late afternoon, when light rakes across the stone facades.
Drexel campus area
A more modern, graphic backdrop — glass, steel, painted color, and clean lines that suit contemporary portraits and headshots.
- Best sessions
- Graduation, headshots, entrepreneur branding
- Visual style
- Modern glass and steel, bold shapes, urban color
- Accessibility & walking
- Mostly flat and paved; busier pedestrian streets
- Golden hour
- Early evening reflections off glass facades.
Schuylkill River Trail
Open sky, water, and the skyline behind you. The most flattering light in the city on a clear evening.
- Best sessions
- Couples, maternity, movement-based portraits
- Visual style
- Water, skyline, open golden light
- Accessibility & walking
- Paved and level; shared with cyclists and runners
- Golden hour
- The final hour before sunset, facing west across the water.
Rittenhouse Square
Classic Center City polish: manicured park, storefronts, and elegant residential blocks a step away.
- Best sessions
- Professional portraits, couples, family
- Visual style
- Refined park greenery and handsome city streets
- Accessibility & walking
- Flat paths; busy on weekends, expect people in frame
- Golden hour
- Early morning for a quiet park, or the hour before sunset.
Philadelphia Museum of Art area
Grand steps, columns, and a skyline view — dramatic and recognizable without traveling far.
- Best sessions
- Graduation, couples, milestone portraits
- Visual style
- Monumental architecture, wide open sky
- Accessibility & walking
- Many stairs; alternate flat vantage points available
- Golden hour
- Sunset from the terrace side, with the skyline lit behind you.
Center City
Editorial and urban: crosswalks, glass towers, alleys, and evening window light for a sharper, more professional feel.
- Best sessions
- Headshots, personal branding, city portraits
- Visual style
- Tall buildings, reflected light, graphic street lines
- Accessibility & walking
- Flat but crowded; sidewalks and traffic require care
- Golden hour
- Just after sunset for reflected light and glowing storefronts.
West Philadelphia
Victorian porches, painted rowhomes, murals, and neighborhood color — personal and characterful backdrops beyond the campuses.
- Best sessions
- Family, creative portraits, couples
- Visual style
- Porches, painted color, murals, residential greenery
- Accessibility & walking
- Varies by block; some uneven sidewalks and steps
- Golden hour
- Late afternoon along east–west streets.
Permits, venue rules, parking, temporary closures, and commercial photography restrictions may apply at any location. Sessions use publicly accessible outdoor areas only; access to private university or venue interiors is not guaranteed and no affiliation with any university, institution, park, or venue is implied.