Where is Filoli Gardens located?

Filoli Gardens is a historic estate at 86 Cañada Road, Woodside, California 94062. It is roughly 30 miles south of San Francisco and 30 minutes north of Palo Alto, on the eastern slope of the Santa Cruz Mountains.

Do you need a permit to do maternity photos at Filoli Gardens?

Yes. Filoli requires a paid photography permit for any professional portrait session, including maternity, family, and engagement photography. Milk + Lily handles the permit application and fee as part of the on-location session.

What is the best time of year for a maternity session at Filoli?

Mid-April through late June is Filoli's peak bloom season, when the rose garden, wisteria arbor, and allium beds are all in flower. A smaller second window opens in October when the trees turn. We book Filoli dates roughly six to eight weeks in advance in the spring.

What time of day works best for outdoor maternity photos at Filoli?

We recommend the first two hours after Filoli opens for the softest light and the fewest visitors in the frame. Golden hour before closing also works, but the light is harder to move through because much of the garden is shaded by then.

What should I wear for a Filoli maternity session?

We suggest a flowing, mid-tone or neutral outfit that fits the pregnancy silhouette well — a wrap dress, a flowing white blouse over well-fitting denim, or a floor-length gown all photograph beautifully at Filoli. Avoid busy prints and bright saturated colors that compete with the garden. Milk + Lily provides a full wardrobe consultation before every session.

How long is a Filoli Gardens maternity session?

Filoli sessions are typically 90 minutes to two hours, allowing enough time to move from the pavilion to the rose garden, through the allée, and down to the reflecting pool. Two outfits are comfortable within that window.

How far along should I be for maternity photos?

The sweet spot is 30 to 34 weeks, when the pregnancy is clearly visible but the mother-to-be still moves comfortably. For high-risk or twin pregnancies we book earlier — often 26 to 30 weeks — after a quick conversation about what feels right.

Do you photograph maternity sessions elsewhere in the Bay Area?

Yes. In addition to Filoli, we regularly photograph on-location maternity sessions in Walnut Creek, San Francisco, and along the coast. We also offer studio maternity sessions in Walnut Creek.

How much does a Filoli maternity session cost with Milk + Lily?

Filoli sessions follow our on-location maternity pricing: collections start at $699 with no session fee. A refundable $99 deposit holds your date. The photography permit and travel to Filoli are included in the on-location fee. Full details are on our maternity page.

Who are the Singer family in this post?

The Singers are a Bay Area couple photographed by Milk + Lily in the spring of 2026 for their maternity session at Filoli Gardens. Their story and images are shared with their permission.

May 19, 2026

The Singer Family: A Spring Maternity Session at Filoli Gardens

A maternity session at Filoli Gardens is one of the great gifts of photographing growing families in the San Francisco Bay Area. The Singer family arrived on a bright spring morning in Woodside, California, at the historic Filoli estate — 654 acres of formal gardens, brick pavilions, tree-lined allées, and rose beds that unfold in a slow, deliberate rhythm. What follows is the story of their morning, told in photographs: a Filoli Gardens maternity session that moved from the arched conservatory doorway to the rose garden, through the wisteria arbor and pink alliums, and closed on a picnic blanket in the shade of a clipped hedge. If you are searching for a garden maternity photographer in the Bay Area, or you have been quietly holding on to Filoli as a session location, this post is for you.

The Singer family walking hand-in-hand through the arched brick entrance at Filoli Gardens on a spring morning in Woodside, California — Arrival — the couple walks through the historic brick portal at Filoli.

Filoli Gardens as a maternity session location

Filoli Gardens is one of the most photographed private estates in the Bay Area, and for good reason. The formal English-style gardens sit on the eastern slope of the Santa Cruz Mountains in Woodside, roughly forty minutes south of San Francisco and thirty minutes north of Palo Alto. Members receive advance access to the grounds, and Filoli's photography permit program lets professional photographers reserve time for portrait sessions — a policy we take advantage of for our on-location Bay Area maternity clients. The result is a session that feels timeless and softly cinematic without ever asking the family to work against a crowded backdrop.

Expectant couple embraces beside the brick pavilion at Filoli, mother in flowing white blouse with visible pregnancy bump — The first frame of the morning, at the pavilion doors.

We started at the brick pavilion on the north side of the estate. Morning light was still low; the pavilion's arched doorways cast long shapes across the path. The Singers' first frames of the session were together, unhurried, hand at the belly, the pavilion's warm brick behind them.

Maternity portrait through soft leaves at Filoli garden pavilion, expectant mother cradling belly — Framed by garden foliage.

Walking the grounds: candid movement over stiff poses

For a maternity session at Filoli, we lean heavily on movement — walking, leaning in, laughing, reaching for a bloom. Motion softens posture, especially in the third trimester, and it produces images that feel like a memory rather than a portrait. Wardrobe choices help: a flowing white blouse over well-fitting denim gives the pregnancy silhouette room to speak while keeping the palette clean.

Expectant couple walking together at Filoli Gardens, mother holding her belly and laughing with partner — Steps together — the walk of parents-to-be.

Expectant mother in white blouse leans in to smell a pink allium in bloom at Filoli Gardens — A moment with the pink alliums.

One of the small joys of a spring session at Filoli is how much of the garden is actually in bloom. Pink alliums stood as tall as the mother-to-be. Coral roses bracketed every path. There is no set of props a studio can offer that matches walking your expectant partner through a garden in full flower.

The arched conservatory: architectural stillness

Deeper into the estate, we found the arched conservatory doorway — a formal opening set into a white column facade, with a checkered marble floor receding behind. This is the frame of the session I keep coming back to. The architecture holds the subject; the subject holds the belly. Nothing else is asked of the image.

Solo maternity portrait of expectant mother standing in the arched conservatory doorway at Filoli, checkered marble floor stretching before her — Under the arched conservatory doorway.

Black and white maternity portrait of expectant couple embracing in the arched conservatory doorway at Filoli Gardens — In the light of the conservatory.

Black-and-white is a deliberate choice in maternity work. Removing color asks the viewer to look at line, weight, and light — the same way most of us look at our own pregnancy silhouette in a mirror. I make a small set of B&W frames at every session, usually at points of quiet.

Expectant father holding partner's pregnant belly from behind, both dressed in navy and white, warm afternoon light — A quiet hand on the belly.

Expectant mother in white blouse and denim cradling her pregnancy belly against the white columns of Filoli's conservatory — Solo — light on the bump.

Intimate black and white close-up of expectant mother holding her pregnancy belly, unbuttoned white blouse and denim — In black and white, up close.

The rose garden and the arch

The Filoli rose garden runs long, terraced, and dense. In late spring the colors run from coral to blush to a deep raspberry, and the beds are tall enough that the mother-to-be almost disappears among them. We took the roses slowly — leaning in to smell, laughing under the small stone garden arch that connects the beds, standing quietly in the middle of a bloom.

Expectant couple laughing softly at each other under a small arched garden gateway at Filoli, mother's belly visible — Sharing a laugh at the garden arch.

Expectant mother standing among blooming pink and coral roses at Filoli's rose garden, hand resting on her belly — In the rose garden.

Expectant mother crouching to touch a coral rose bloom in Filoli's spring rose garden, white blouse and denim — Meeting a coral bloom.

Expectant couple laughing together while surrounded by tall pink and coral roses at Filoli Gardens — Together in the roses.

Black and white photograph of expectant couple laughing together in a lush rose garden at Filoli — The same laugh, in black and white.

Expectant couple standing against a tall green hedge wall at Filoli Gardens, warm late-morning light — Framed by Filoli's living walls.

The tree-lined allée and a walk in shade

Between the formal beds and the reflecting pool, Filoli's tree-lined allée gives us a walkway of dappled light. This is the section I use for images of the family walking together — feet, hands, movement. In the third trimester, walking is the pose. It always is.

Wide portrait of expectant couple walking together down the tree-lined allée at Filoli Gardens, dappled sunlight overhead — Down the allée.

Black and white photograph of expectant couple walking hand-in-hand down a shaded garden path at Filoli — A walk in shade.

A pause: brick stairs and the reflecting pool

Every long garden session needs a genuine pause. We sat on the brick garden stairs. The Singers propped against each other, dad's arm around his partner's shoulder, hand resting near the belly. A minute later, we walked to the long reflecting pool — Filoli's two white daybeds sit at the water's edge — and lay them down for a picture that looks like a Sunday morning that never ends.

Expectant couple sitting on brick garden stairs at Filoli, expectant father seated behind partner with hands resting near her belly — A pause on the brick stairs.

Expectant couple lounging on twin white daybeds beside the long reflecting pool at Filoli Gardens — By the reflecting pool.

Pink alliums, a wide-brim hat, and golden hour

By late morning we had moved to the allium beds — those tall, spherical pink blossoms that read almost sculptural in a photograph. We added a wide-brim tan sun hat to soften the light on the mother-to-be's face and give us a warmer, storybook set of frames to close out the session.

Expectant couple sitting together in a garden bed of pink and purple allium flowers at Filoli Gardens — Among the alliums.

Expectant father kissing partner's forehead beside pink alliums at Filoli Gardens, mother wearing tan sun hat and white blouse — A kiss beside the alliums.

Expectant mother in tan sun hat and open white blouse showing pregnancy belly in Filoli's spring garden — Golden hour, sun hat, the belly showing.

Expectant mother in wide brim tan sun hat smiling while cradling her pregnancy belly at Filoli Gardens — Sun on her face.

A quiet finish under the hedge wall

For the final set of the session, we set a picnic blanket on the lawn under one of Filoli's tall, clipped hedge walls. The wall itself becomes the frame — a solid, green vertical that makes everything in front of it feel small and loved. This is where the session ends. Held. Sitting. Waiting for what's next.

Expectant couple sharing a tender forehead touch surrounded by tall roses at Filoli Gardens — Forehead to forehead.

Expectant couple seated on a blanket on the lawn against a tall clipped hedge at Filoli Gardens, golden afternoon light — Sitting together, waiting for what's next.

Expectant father embracing partner from behind as they sit on a picnic blanket at Filoli Gardens, hedge wall behind them — An embrace, an afternoon.

Closing frame of the Singer family maternity session at Filoli Gardens, couple seated together with expectant mother's belly cradled — Our closing frame — before three.

Planning your own Filoli Gardens maternity session

Filoli sessions are available seasonally through Milk + Lily as a Bay Area on-location maternity photographer. We handle the photography permit, the timing (early morning is best), and the wardrobe pre-consultation. The Filoli estate is located at 86 Cañada Road, Woodside, CA 94062, and it is open to the public year-round. Spring — from mid-April through late June — is when the garden is at its peak; we also book a smaller set of sessions in the autumn when the leaves turn.

If you are pregnant now and would like to be photographed here, reach out through our contact page. We hold Filoli dates on a first-come basis and they book out roughly six to eight weeks in advance in the spring.

Learn more about our Bay Area maternity photography — including our current collections, what to wear, and how the session works.

Frequently asked questions

Where is Filoli Gardens located?: Filoli Gardens is a historic estate at 86 Cañada Road, Woodside, California 94062. It is roughly 30 miles south of San Francisco and 30 minutes north of Palo Alto, on the eastern slope of the Santa Cruz Mountains.
Do you need a permit to do maternity photos at Filoli Gardens?: Yes. Filoli requires a paid photography permit for any professional portrait session, including maternity, family, and engagement photography. Milk + Lily handles the permit application and fee as part of the on-location session.
What is the best time of year for a maternity session at Filoli?: Mid-April through late June is Filoli's peak bloom season, when the rose garden, wisteria arbor, and allium beds are all in flower. A smaller second window opens in October when the trees turn. We book Filoli dates roughly six to eight weeks in advance in the spring.
What time of day works best for outdoor maternity photos at Filoli?: We recommend the first two hours after Filoli opens for the softest light and the fewest visitors in the frame. Golden hour before closing also works, but the light is harder to move through because much of the garden is shaded by then.
What should I wear for a Filoli maternity session?: We suggest a flowing, mid-tone or neutral outfit that fits the pregnancy silhouette well — a wrap dress, a flowing white blouse over well-fitting denim, or a floor-length gown all photograph beautifully at Filoli. Avoid busy prints and bright saturated colors that compete with the garden. Milk + Lily provides a full wardrobe consultation before every session.
How long is a Filoli Gardens maternity session?: Filoli sessions are typically 90 minutes to two hours, allowing enough time to move from the pavilion to the rose garden, through the allée, and down to the reflecting pool. Two outfits are comfortable within that window.
How far along should I be for maternity photos?: The sweet spot is 30 to 34 weeks, when the pregnancy is clearly visible but the mother-to-be still moves comfortably. For high-risk or twin pregnancies we book earlier — often 26 to 30 weeks — after a quick conversation about what feels right.
Do you photograph maternity sessions elsewhere in the Bay Area?: Yes. In addition to Filoli, we regularly photograph on-location maternity sessions in Walnut Creek, San Francisco, and along the coast. We also offer studio maternity sessions in Walnut Creek.
How much does a Filoli maternity session cost with Milk + Lily?: Filoli sessions follow our on-location maternity pricing: collections start at $699 with no session fee. A refundable $99 deposit holds your date. The photography permit and travel to Filoli are included in the on-location fee. Full details are on our maternity page.
Who are the Singer family in this post?: The Singers are a Bay Area couple photographed by Milk + Lily in the spring of 2026 for their maternity session at Filoli Gardens. Their story and images are shared with their permission.