Yana Skakun
Yana Skakun
Staffordshire
Relaxed, natural family portraits across Staffordshire — Cannock Chase's ancient woodland, the formal gardens of Trentham, and the moorland edges of the Peak District.
Staffordshire is a county of unexpected variety — the ancient royal hunting forest of Cannock Chase at its centre, the spa architecture of Lichfield and Stafford, the dramatic Peak District gritstone edges along its northern boundary, and the Churnet Valley's wooded gorge cutting through the Staffordshire Moorlands. For family photography, this variety means the right setting for your family is rarely more than 30 minutes away.
I photograph families naturally — sessions work around your children's energy, not against it. I use the child's natural curiosity and movement as raw material rather than fighting it into static poses. The best family images come from play, from walking, from genuine moments of connection — and the best locations provide the space and environment for that to happen.
I cover all of Staffordshire including Stafford, Lichfield, Burton upon Trent, Stoke-on-Trent, Tamworth, Cannock and the Staffordshire Moorlands.
Cannock Chase is an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty at the heart of Staffordshire — 26 square miles of ancient woodland, open heathland, fallow deer herds, and valley mires managed by the Forestry Commission. The Chase's mixed woodland of oak, birch and Scots pine provides excellent family portrait environments in every season. The fallow deer herd — one of England's largest — often provide backdrop wildlife encounters.
Trentham Estate near Stoke-on-Trent combines a 725-acre country park with formal Italian gardens designed by Tom Stuart-Smith — considered among Britain's finest contemporary garden designs. The long formal garden axis, the lake, the wild garden, and the veteran tree avenue each provide very different portrait settings within a single venue.
The Staffordshire Moorlands — the gritstone moors above Leek forming the southernmost part of the Peak District — provide dramatic upland portrait settings accessible from Stoke and the north of the county. The Roaches, a 5km gritstone escarpment above Ramshaw Rocks, is the most photographically striking of the moorland locations.
Shugborough (National Trust) near Stafford is the ancestral home of the Earls of Lichfield — a late-Baroque house in a parkland setting with neoclassical monuments, a walled garden, a working farm museum, and the River Trent as a boundary. The estate grounds provide formal and informal portrait settings within 10 minutes of Stafford town.
Lichfield Cathedral — the only medieval English cathedral with three spires — stands in a close of Georgian townhouses with the Minster Pool and Stowe Pool providing landscaped water settings. The cathedral close and Beacon Park together form one of the most complete historic town portrait environments in the Midlands.
The Churnet Valley, running south from Leek through the Staffordshire Moorlands, combines riverside meadows, ancient oak woodland, and the ruins of Croxden Abbey in a landscape of considerable intimate beauty. Dimmingsdale — a narrow wooded valley above Alton — is at its finest in bluebell season and autumn.
Family sessions are at their best when they feel like a walk rather than a photo shoot. I plan the session around movement — arriving at a location, walking through it, pausing where the light and setting are good. Children respond to this naturally: walking, exploring, collecting things, chasing. The camera is present throughout but rarely the focus.
I work with the golden-hour light at the end of the afternoon — typically 90 minutes before sunset. In Staffordshire, this gives warm, low, directional light across the open heathland of Cannock Chase or through the tree canopy of the Chase woodland from around 5pm in summer and 3pm in winter. I schedule sessions to arrive at the best-lit part of the location at the best time in the day.
Sessions run 60–90 minutes and produce 50–80 edited, gallery-ready images delivered within two weeks.
£195
45 minutes
£345
90 minutes
£545
2 hours
Travel throughout Staffordshire included. Best times are late afternoon and evening.
Cannock Chase is my most recommended location for most families — it has enough variety to keep children interested (deer, woodland, open heath), it photographs beautifully in all seasons, and the scale of the landscape means sessions feel like an adventure. For younger children, Shugborough or the Trentham Gardens work well — more contained settings with clear paths.
Autumn (October–November) at Cannock Chase is particularly spectacular — the bracken turns copper-gold on the open heath, the birch canopy yellows, and the fallow deer rut adds atmosphere. Spring bluebells (late April–early May) in the Chase woodland are similarly impressive. Summer evening light at golden hour from June–August gives long, warm sessions.
It's entirely normal, and actually a better starting point than children who perform for the camera. I work with movement and play — the children who look most natural in photographs are usually the ones who were least focused on the camera. The session structure is always 'let's go for a walk' rather than 'stand here and smile'.
Autumn sessions (September–November) book early — usually 6–8 weeks in advance. Spring and summer have slightly more availability. Weekday evening sessions are almost always available with 2–3 weeks' notice.
Tell me about your family and preferred location — I'll suggest the best time and setting for you.
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