Here, we’ll explore some rainy spring family photos with the Tans. Spring in Seoul is quite an unpredictable season. Firstly, there’s the changing temperature and the cold-snap that often comes with it (fun fact, in Korea they call this “Winter is Jealous of the Flowers”). Then there are the fleeting flowers. And, as we’ll explore today, the spring rains. Rain doesn’t tend to be heavy at this time of year, but frequent showers help the trees grow their leaves back and usher in the warm days of early summer.
This session was in mid April, so all the flowers were gone by this time and the greens had started to come through. We often get some drizzle at this time. As you’ll see, if you’re willing to brave a few drops of rain, it coats the world with a beautiful sheen and keeps most people inside! Luckily, the rain was coming to an end when the family arrived and our only challenge would be keeping the fringes of the hanboks from getting too messy.
As we met at the gate, it was clear (as is so often the case) that Scarlett wasn’t emotionally ready for this big day. Our session would be an ebb and flow of emotions and it would be all hands on deck to keep the little one engaged and happy throughout our time together. There was laughter, there were quieter moments, and then even a few tantrums to keep us on our toes. But, as you’ll see, we went with the flow and made the session happen!
Scarlett really wanted to walk everywhere and explore, so we started our session off with just that. As I mentioned, any rain at all tends to keep the crowds low and we were able to use this beautiful thoroughfare at the entrance for our first few frames. This is a rarity, so I took the opportunity!
The tree on the left of this frame is a cherry blossom and just a few days earlier, it had been covered in little white flowers. As we spoke about in this post, the blossoms don’t last long in Seoul but they do get replaced very quickly with fresh greens. These are especially brought to life by the sheen that the rain paints on everything. As you can see, Scarlett was ready for another run, so we obliged!
After a few more images, it was time for a quiet moment or two and I left the family to share some moments with a four-leaf clover we had found. They passed it back and forth and talked quietly until the little lady was ready for another splurge of energy. It didn’t take long for her to be comfortable again and we were back to laughing and playing. Oh, and not staying still of course. What started as a portrait of her ended with her trying to “catch uncle” for a couple of minutes.
As we drew the session to a close, it was time to get some portraits of the three together and also some shots with just mother/daughter and father/daughter to round out the set. Scarlett was finally comfortable enough with me that she would take some direction and we were able to snag a few different photos from what we had so far.
As I hope you can see, a bit of light rain is no reason to stay inside. Beautiful images can still be had and there are far fewer people around! If you’re interested in having your spring family photos in Seoul (or anywhere in Korea!), do reach out. I’d love to hear from you.