The Best Souvenir We Brought Home From Venice

The Best Souvenir We Brought Home From Venice – Flytographer

I’m usually the official photographer on our family trips, which means I come home with thousands of photographs and, somehow, surprisingly few of myself actually being there.

We’ve used Flytographer on big getaways before, so we already knew we loved having someone else capture those moments. There is something different about being able to hand over the camera and simply be part of the experience.

This time, though, we were travelling through Italy with another family. Seven of us, two families, three teenagers and 32 days of travelling together. When Venice became our final stop, it seemed like the perfect place to do another a Flytographer photoshoot – together.

What we didn’t plan for was the fog.

Why Venice?

By the time we reached Venice, we had already collected an incredible number of memories and photographs from our month in Italy. We had explored Puglia, the Amalfi Coast, Florence, Tuscany and so many little towns and villages along the way.

But Venice felt different. The setting was so unique that we knew the photographs would be special, and after weeks of travelling together, we wanted to capture more than just beautiful pictures of Venice.

We wanted pictures of us in Venice.

That is one of the reasons we keep coming back to Flytographer for big trips. When you are travelling as a family, or with friends, it is surprisingly difficult to get photographs where everyone is actually in them. Someone is always behind the camera, asking everyone else to move over, or trying to squeeze into the edge of the frame.

And in our family, that person is usually me.

two men standing beside a lamp post on the canal

Bringing another family along

This was our first Flytographer shoot with another family, so we wanted enough time to capture all the different combinations. We booked a 90-minute walking session, which gave us time for photographs of everyone together, each family, smaller groups and some individual shots.

We chose Marta because we loved the sample photographs she had captured. They felt natural and relaxed, while still making the most of the beautiful surroundings. That was exactly what we were hoping for in Venice – photographs that felt like part of the trip rather than a formal photo session dropped into the middle of it.

We also chose the Dorsoduro route, which gave us plenty of variety as we walked. We stopped on bridges, beside the canals and on the steps of a church, with the scenery changing as we went.

It was less about standing in one spot and smiling at the camera and more about exploring Venice while someone else captured it.

Sunrise seemed like a great idea

We decided on an early morning session because, in theory, it seemed like the perfect plan.

Fewer people. Beautiful morning light. And, because we were travelling in the summer, hopefully cooler temperatures.

The fewer people part worked beautifully. The cooler temperatures? Not so much.

We woke up to what can only be described as a whiteout. Thick fog had settled over Venice, and instead of stepping into a crisp, cool morning, we walked outside and immediately felt the heat and humidity.

Within minutes, all seven of us were sticky. This was not quite the dreamy sunrise photoshoot we had imagined.

It also turns out that getting three teenagers out of bed early enough for a sunrise photoshoot in Venice is not necessarily as easy as it sounds.

And then the magic happened

Despite the fog, the heat and the teenagers wondering why on earth we had made them get up so early, the photographs were amazing.

The fog actually gave the photographs something we could never have planned. It softened the buildings, changed the light and made the canals feel almost mysterious. Venice looked completely different from the bright, postcard-perfect images we had seen before arriving.

And because the fog was so thick, it became part of the story.

Yes, we were hot. Yes, we were tired. Yes, there was a lot of fog.

But when we look at the photographs now, none of that feels like a problem. It is part of what makes them ours.

That morning became one of those travel stories that gets better every time we tell it.

family of four sitting on the edge of a waterway with boats and fog

The part I couldn’t have planned

There is a funny thing about travel. You can plan the route, the accommodation, the activities and even the time of day you want to take your photographs, but you cannot plan everything that happens once you get there.

Sometimes the unexpected thing becomes the part you remember most.

The fog certainly did that for us.

The photographs don’t just remind us what Venice looked like. They remind us that we were there early in the morning, slightly sweaty, surrounded by fog, trying to get three teenagers to engage, and laughing about the whole thing.

That is what I love about travel photographs. Years from now, I probably won’t remember exactly what the weather forecast said that morning. I’ll remember this.

And I’m actually in the photographs

This might be my favourite part.

As the person who is usually taking the photographs, I’m often missing from the visual record of our trips. I have plenty of pictures of everyone else enjoying themselves, but far fewer that show me actually experiencing those moments with them.

Using Flytographer meant I could put the camera down and simply be part of the group.

And now I have photographs that show that I was actually there.

We came home with a tonne of beautiful images – photographs to frame, photographs to add to our travel photo book and photographs that will take us straight back to that morning in Venice years from now.

family in front of massive black church doors

women sitting on brick wall with bridge in the background

Would we do it again?

Absolutely.

We already knew we loved Flytographer for big getaways, and this experience reinforced why. We wouldn’t necessarily book a photoshoot for every holiday, but for a big trip, a milestone or one of those adventures that you know you’ll be talking about for years, it was worth making room for it.

And doing it with another family made it even more special.

After 32 days of travelling together, having photographs that captured all seven of us in Venice was the perfect way to finish our Italy adventure.

The trip eventually ends. The photographs are what remain.

And this time, I actually get to be in them.

Planning your own Flytographer experience

If you’re considering a Flytographer session for an upcoming trip, I’d recommend thinking about what you want from the experience before you book. For a larger group like ours, the extra time made a difference because we wanted a mix of everyone together, individual families and smaller combinations.

And don’t be afraid of the unexpected. We certainly didn’t order the fog, but it ended up being one of the things that made our photographs – and the story behind them – so memorable.

We’ve included our Flytographer link here, and during October there is a $50 double discount available through our link. https://flytog.co/PLANIT/