Fall is one of the most glorious times of the year to take pictures. The weather is perfect, the sun is lower in the sky (better lighting = the perfect time to capture family portraits!) and the colors of the leaves are simply magical.
It’s a great time to gather your family up to take a picture for your holiday cards, to hang in your house, or even just as keepsakes. Kids are often just as enchanted by the leaves as adults are, which makes it really easy to get photos of them with real, genuine smiles.
I love taking pictures of my kids in the fall, so I thought I’d round up a list of the best fall picture ideas for toddlers.
We have a large family, so of course, there are some ideas for fall family photos in here as well!
Fall Leaf Picture Ideas for Toddlers
This is the most obvious fall picture idea for toddlers because what better way to capture the fall season than with beautiful fall leaves!
Playing With the Leaves
If your little one is about 1.5 to 2, they will be fascinated with playing with the leaves. You will be sure to capture an adorable photo of your toddler holding leaves, throwing them, and crinkling them.
Holding the Leaves
Speaking of holding leaves, is there ANYTHING more precious than a tiny tot holding a leaf in amazement?
Sitting or Standing In the Leaves
Fall foliage is so beautiful that even the simple act of sitting or standing in the leaves will make a gorgeous photo.
Lying Down in the Leaves
A true classic is a picture of your children lying down in the leaves! My goal this year is to get this picture of our entire family lying down in the leaves. Think I can do it??
Throwing Leaves AT Them
My all-time FAVORITE is to have my little ones sit with some pretty fall foliage in the background and throw handfuls of colorful leaves at them. You will get genuine laughter and smiles!
Fall Outings: Cornfield or Hay Field
We snapped these pictures in front of a corn maze last fall. These pictures may not be social media worthy with beautiful poses and faces looking at the camera, but that is bound to happen with little kids. They are real life snapshots and sweet memories that I will treasure forever.
Fall Outings
While I think having a family photo session is absolutely wonderful, not everybody has the budget for professional photographers every year! Taking pictures on a fun fall outing is a great option to get some happy pictures of your kids having the best time.
Wagon Hayride or Pushing a Wagon
If you have small children that love to be independent (one of my little girls is exactly this way!!), taking them on a hayride is a great way to get a picture WITH them as they will be much more comfortable sitting in your lap.
Another easy way to get a photo of an independent toddler is to pile a wagon up with your favorite fall items (pumpkins, mums, etc) and snap a photo of your little ones pushing it to the car for you.
Pumpkin Patch
I’m not sure what is the biggest epitome of fall: pumpkin patches or apple orchards?? We love doing all of the fall things and it’s a great time to get pictures of the entire family. Tip: don’t forget your tripod!!
I have seen some really fun shots of using pumpkins as photo props to show monthly or yearly milestones and I think it’s so cute!
Apple Orchard
Apple orchards are some of my favorite pictures because they make for great candid pictures for toddlers. My kids were never the ones who would show off pretty smiles when I said “say cheese!” It was more like squinting weird faces or eyes closed or they would move around a bunch.
A fun place like an apple orchard captures the fun, fall vibes without making them truly pose for pictures. You can really just let them pic the apples or EAT the apples. I mean, HOW CUTE are these pictures??
Also, that tripod that I keep mentioning? It’s what I used to take the first picture. Also, fun fact… I was totally pregnant in that picture with our fourth baby, but we hadn’t yet announced it so I was hiding behind my kiddos!
Scenic Fall Background
There are so many pretty autumn backgrounds that you really can’t go wrong. If your toddler is on the move, you can hold them for the picture like we did with our 4th baby (and will likely do the same thing this year now that he is our 4th mobile toddler!)
Fall Folliage Photos on the Water
There is absolutely NOTHING quite like a beautiful fall background on the water, especially if you can get that golden hour lighting. The color scheme will be unbeatable this time of year, there’s no way you won’t get the perfect shot!
Scenic Bridge in the Woods
I think it’s such a fun pose to stop on a little bridge in the woods and capture some fall family photos. I know that personally when we have toddlers, it’s hard to invest money in a family photographer. Toddlers are just so unpredictable and there’s so much that can go wrong.
However, if you find a place in the woods for your toddlers to play and run (such as this bridge!), it is the best way to capture happy photos of your family. Just know that one day you will have older kids and it will be easier to get those posed photos of your family.
Pictures of a Toddler on a Fall Hike
We absolutely love hiking during the autumn season and I love that it’s the perfect opportunity for fall photo shoots! My toddlers always have so much fun visiting the local parks and hiking through the woods.
Matching Fall Beanies
I absolutely love matching, whether it’s the whole family, just the kids, or a mommy and me outfits.
You can get the baby/toddler beanie here.
Find the adult beanie here.
There you have it! I will be sure to update this post as we enter into the autumn season and I get some cute fall pictures of my toddler. I hope that this post inspired you with some creative ideas to capture fall family photos or to just pictures of your toddler during one of the most beautiful times of the year. If anything, I hope I inspired you to get outside and take the pictures! Even if they aren’t social media-worthy, they are capturing memories and that’s all that matters.
