I love our little town. Milton, Florida is such a unique place with so much character around the city and into the nature surrounding it. We've got our quaint downtown area with the powerful and beautiful Blackwater River passing through, wonderful parks all over, and some incredible places to take a hike. I've been photographing families throughout the town for years and if you've been looking for a gorgeous spot to take your family, couple's, or portrait photos then look no further. All images are mine and if you'd like your shots to look like these then shoot me an email, call, or text and let's capture some incredible imagery together!
1. Downtown Milton, FL
A bit obvious, I know, but you really can't ask for a better location. There are so many different looks here that you can't even hit all of them in a single session! In a typical Downtown Milton family photography session I will start on Willing Street with all of the shops. This area is especially awesome about an hour and a half before sunset since you lose the sun pretty quickly behind the tall buildings. When that light hits right under the awnings though it just looks so striking, as you can see in this photograph from my family session with the Lein Family!
From here I love to move onward towards the gazebo on the riverwalk. There are a couple of little sections that are great to stop at and snag a couple more great looks! You can see the shoot map I use with the exact route I like to take to capture my wonderful families!
As you can see there are so many gorgeous areas before you even make it to the water especially if you book a session near Golden Hour!
Once I've taken photographs I'm really happy with on the walk towards the gazebo, my clients and I will make our way onto that gazebo and finish up our photography session on Blackwater River! It truly is such a beautiful location and is definitely my first suggestion to most clients.
2. Juniper Creek
If you're feeling a little more adventurous and want to get out past our little city skirts, then let's take off to Juniper Creek for a while. I absolutely love this area and not just for photography. There are so many trailheads here and every route takes you somewhere incredible. I've spent a lot of time hiking all over this area and there are so many cool spots to go check out, some of which are just right down the trail and only take about 10 minutes or so to walk to. I suggest this area more during autumn time due to the Florida heat in the summer, but if you're an individual, couple, or family that doesn't mind playing in the water for your session then it would be perfect on a hot, Milton summer's day too!
I'd say my favorite option to take photographs in this area are the Red Rock Cliffs! It's just not something you'd quite expect to see in Northwest Florida. There are two different trails you can take - one to get on top of the cliff, and one that takes you to the bottom. They are equally gorgeous views! If you want your photographs to pop with an element completely different from the typical beach shots in the Panhandle of Florida then this is a spot to go!
If you take the top trail, then you can capture some wonderful, on-the-edge imagery that makes you feel like you are on top of the world (at least in our flat area). It's a fairly smooth walk that won't take more than seven to ten minutes of leisurely walking to get to. I would love for more of my clients to choose this location, because I absolutely love it. Also, as you'll see in a couple photos down - the stars are absolutely incredible out here. They're so vibrant in the sky, and no those balls of gas aren't photoshopped into Sean's photograph - they were captured in camera.
Now if heights aren't your thing then just take the bottom trail down. It is a little bumpier of a walk as there are a lot of tree roots you have to be wary of, but it is still a simple, leisurely walk that will only take you seven to ten minutes to get to this view. And what a view it is! I absolutely love taking my family here, and would love to go out here and capture your family too! If you are an outdoorsy family, this would be the spot I would want to go to capture some images, I mean obviously - since we are an outdoorsy family and it is exactly where we go!
And if you really aren't feeling up to a walk at all, then you can take one of the Forest Roads to get you right to the creek like Andrea and Mason chose for their maternity session. It's a little bit of a bumpy ride, it is a Forest Road after all, but it is such a nice, shallow part of Juniper Creek where you can capture images like these:
Due to the minor challenges of this area it may not be for everyone, and that is the only reason this location ranks in the second spot for me due to accessibility. Hands down though - if I had the option to have final say of where I'd like to photograph my clients on-location then this would be the spot every single time. If you're interested in checking it out here's a link to Google Maps for you:
3. Arcadia Mill
This is a really cool historical spot in Milton, FL. There are all sorts of interesting facets you can learn about this area. It's a beautiful walk as well. Wind your way through tall pines on a boardwalk that crosses a section of Pond Creek. The tree coverage is great to protect yourself from the hot, Florida sun too! It is just so peaceful out here and any stranger I've ever ran into has always been incredibly kind, and you'll see one surprising photograph of a stranger that was my favorite encounter ever in just a few.
I really love this area for couples' sessions. There's something so innately intimate on that boardwalk with all of the pines that just creates a wonderful environment to capture two people in love. I highly recommend this location.
Not only are there great shots for my couples to spend time together, but there are also plenty of spots for me to get creative and capture an image from a different angle! Also, if you're lucky you might get to meet that special stranger I was talking about before - you can see him too right below this action shot of me.
Needless to say, I highly recommend this area if you want a well manicured nature spot with some nice placards with some information on the history of our area. Here's a Google Maps link if you want to go check it out!
4. Florida Town Park
Technically in Pace, but our area is so small I think it is okay to include this one. I'm a Pace High Grad, so I'm going to allow it. Florida Town Park is a great spot to take your kids to play (I take my son to the playground fairly often), to sit on the sand for a picnic, or watch the sunset over the water. I think a lot of people in the area tend to forget that this place even exists since the drive to the actual beach isn't that far away, but this is still a really nice spot if you just need a quick dose of saltwater.
Sunset is my favorite time for this location as the show that the world puts on is just magical to watch. It is even better if you catch a ball dropping shortly after a light rain - the pinks and oranges elegantly dance on the horizon. Floridatown Park is a wonderful area to capture the love of a couple, and was actually the second location the Robitzsches chose for their engagement session.
In addition to photographing people at this location I truly love it as a standalone landscape photography spot. Below is still one of my favorite landscape photographs I have ever captured in the Milton, FL area.
Floridatown Park is such a lovely photography location even into the hours past sundown. One of my favorite images I've ever captured of my wife was here. I just loved the juxtaposition of the old wooden boards in comparison to her soft complexion. The way the lights from the mill reflect on the bay's water is gorgeous as well.
All in all I definitely think Floridatown Park is a location to go check out and like always if you want help finding it here is a link for you:
5. The Secret Creek
This location is incredibly special to me because I take my son down to it weekly to go swimming. Located not too far from my house - I love it when a client chooses this location. I've actually got an engagement session coming up soon and the rain has terraformed the area a bit so I'm so excited to showcase the changes this area has gone through in just a matter of weeks. This is one of my absolute favorite locations to shoot photography sessions at!
For a small location there are so many different areas to bounce around to and fro to capture beautiful imagery of my clients! There are reflections galore out here - which is one element I absolutely love to include in my photography!
It is such a simple location to get to as well! Just a short drive down a dirt road and you're there! So if you want to capture some images of your little one all dressed up with a pretty nature backdrop this is a perfect location as you can see below:
It is just a powerful area and complements the vibe of all sorts of different types of shoots. Maternity sessions are incredible out here and this location provides a magical setting for you to celebrate the life that you are bringing into the world.
Like I said, this is a very special spot for me and is called Secret Creek for a reason. I'm happy to share the rest of the locations that I have, but if you'd like to shoot a session here then the only way to do that will be to book with me. Us locals all have that spot that we don't want a bunch of people going to and this just so happens to be mine. But hey! You can come check it out if you just click the link here and get your photography quote today: https://www.sheltonpictures.com/quote
Thanks for reading!
I hope you enjoyed reading this article as much as I enjoyed writing it! Milton, FL truly has some absolutely beautiful photography locations and I feel so lucky to live here. I hope that I get to photograph you and the people you love at one of these spots one day!
Written by
Joshua Shelton
Lead Photographer
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