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Dennis Berti

Family story · San Miguel de Allende

A Documentary Family Session in San Miguel de Allende

One real day with one family in San Miguel de Allende, right before Día de Muertos: no posing, no postcard route.

A family of five walking together under papel picado on a colonial street in San Miguel de Allende, documentary family session

Kimberly found me on Instagram. She and her family were spending a few days in San Miguel de Allende at the end of October, right before Día de Muertos, and they wanted something different from the usual vacation photos: no lined-up smiles in front of a famous wall, just their days here, the way they actually were.

That’s exactly what I do.

A father laughing with his little son on his shoulders under the kiosk of the Jardín in San Miguel de Allende, documentary family photographyA brother and sister hugging and laughing in the Jardín, the girl in an embroidered pink Mexican dress

What is a day-in-the-life family session?

A day-in-the-life session is documentary photography for families. I don’t direct you, I don’t line you up, and I don’t ask the kids to “look here and smile.” I walk with you, I pay attention, and I photograph what happens: the running ahead, the climbing, the hand that reaches for another hand, the moment someone laughs at something nobody else saw.

You end up with photographs of your family as it really is, not as it looked for thirty seconds in front of a camera.

A mother laughing with her baby daughter, who wears a red flower crown, in the Jardín of San Miguel de AllendeA little boy laughing with a blue rebozo over his head, next to the iron railing of the Jardín
A girl in a pink embroidered dress running down a street in San Miguel de Allende, candid family photographyA little boy smiling in front of an old wooden door, documentary portrait of a child
A little boy laughing as he climbs along a red wall in the late afternoon sunA girl and her little brother walking past a bright yellow wall on a stone sidewalk

Not a 30-minute vacation shoot

Most vacation photography packages in San Miguel follow the same route and the same script: meet at the Parroquia, a few posed shots, thirty minutes, done. The pictures look fine. They also look like everyone else’s.

This was something else. We met beside the Parroquia, and from there we simply walked, a few blocks, a few corners, no fixed route, for about an hour and a half. With three kids, nothing goes according to plan, and that’s the point. They were curious about everything: climbing here, running there, stopping to look at things only children notice. My job was to keep up and stay out of the way.

There are a few group photos in this set, because families want them, and I want them too. But even those aren’t stiff. No penguin poses. I’d ask everyone to get close for a moment, and the real picture usually happened a second later, when somebody broke the pose.

A family of five standing between two giant catrinas for Día de Muertos in San Miguel de AllendeA family of five sitting together on red stone steps in San Miguel de Allende, natural family portrait
Parents laughing with their baby, who wears a flower crown, next to the colorful catrinasA sister and brother leaning against a red wall in the warm evening light, documentary portrait of children

Our day in San Miguel, right before Día de Muertos

Late October is a special time to be in San Miguel de Allende. The town was getting ready for Día de Muertos, papel picado strung across the streets, marigold garlands over the doorways and two giant catrinas standing in the street, and the streets had that particular mix of color and calm of the days before the celebration.

We had planned the session for Wednesday, but it rained. I was free on Thursday, so we moved it, and it was the right call: warm late-afternoon light and almost empty streets.

A family of five walking hand in hand down a cobblestone street under papel picado in San Miguel de Allende, candid family photoA mother carrying her son past marigold garlands for Día de Muertos, the father and daughter behind them, in San Miguel de Allende
A brother and sister looking up in wonder at something above the street, their mother behind themA baby in an embroidered dress taking careful steps on a stone sidewalk in San Miguel de Allende
A family coming down a narrow stone alley under an arch in San Miguel de AllendeA mother lifting her laughing baby against a red wallA baby standing on the cobblestones with her mother’s hands behind her, both smilingA boy climbing on his laughing mother’s back, her hair over her face

Honestly, we had a great time. The kids ran, the parents laughed, and I photographed all of it.

A father kissing his daughter’s head as she smiles at the camera, the closing image of the session

How to book a documentary family session in San Miguel

If you’re visiting San Miguel de Allende with your family and you want photographs that feel like your family, not like a photoshoot, write to me. Tell me when you’ll be in town, how many you are, and what your days there look like. I’ll plan the session around you, not around a route.

I’m based in Querétaro, close to San Miguel, so moving the date for the weather or a tired toddler is rarely a problem.

Planning a wedding instead? See my documentary wedding photography, read how I work, or the guide to getting married in San Miguel de Allende.

Dennis Berti photographed Kimberly’s family the way he photographs every family and every wedding: without posing or directing, paying attention. Based in Querétaro, with 25 years behind the camera, he offers documentary family sessions and destination wedding photography in San Miguel de Allende, as well as in Querétaro, Mexico City and across Mexico.

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