They were the family I had photographed in Kyoto once before. This time they were back in Japan for another trip — and this time, they had booked me for not one but two full sessions across their trip. Getting a message from a family who wants you back for round two is one of the most meaningful things that happens in this work.

Seeing them again felt like meeting old friends. Nothing about their warmth had changed. The kids were a little taller, everyone had a little more to say, but that same easy, kind, funny energy was all still there. The two boys in particular have this way of making me laugh throughout an entire shoot — I finished this session with sore cheeks from smiling.

This post is mostly the photos from our Osaka night session. We had done the first session in Nara Park a few days earlier, where the family was so gentle and friendly with the deer that the deer themselves seemed to treat them like old friends. Then Osaka — completely different atmosphere. We shot around a beautifully lit area covered in paper lanterns, then wandered into a game centre where the boys got completely into a UFO catcher, and we caught some really fun, natural, playful photos of the whole family in that light. There were even a few “cool guy” poses in the mix that turned out great.

What I loved most about this session was how collaborative it felt. I would suggest an idea, they would jump right in. Then one of them would suggest something back, and we would try it. It really felt like we were building the photos together rather than me directing and them following. That is honestly my favourite way to work.

The hour flew by, we caught up on so many things during the shoot, and I ended the night still smiling about the whole session. Getting to photograph the same family at two very different stops in their trip — the deer of Nara during the day, and the neon-lit streets of Osaka at night — was such a lovely full-picture way to capture their time in Japan.

Thank you for coming back to Japan and thank you for choosing me a second time. It really did mean a lot. I hope you come back again someday — I would love to be there for round three whenever it happens.

If you are planning a family trip to Osaka, Kyoto, or Nara — whether it is your first time or your fifth — my Osaka packages are here.