Location Spotlight | Life Under the Oaks Lavender Farm | Oracle, AZ

Life Under the Oaks Lavender Farm is a hidden gem that’s roughly an hour outside of Tucson in Oracle, AZ. Since I’ll be shooting a bunch of mini sessions here in June, I wanted to take a moment to tell you about the spot! Contact me for pricing information if you’re interested in participating!

First off, I love the lavender field! Carolyn and Farmer John, the owners of the farm, are so sweet. We’ve gotten to know each other pretty well since I’ve been bringing all sorts of clients there since 2021. I have no plans of stopping!

When I first found this place, I was so excited! I’ve always wanted to shoot sessions at a lavender farm and figured that I’d have to go to Europe for that. But then I learned about Life Under the Oaks! They are just an hour away, and to my surprise, they allowed photographers.

When I went up there for the first time, I fell in love with it. It was absolutely beautiful even though we were a week too early. It doesn’t even feel like we’re in Arizona! The field is huge, and they have many themed events year-round. 

Every event or photo shoot I’ve ever done here has gone fantastically well. How could it not? But there are a bunch of things to know before going, so here are my top pros and cons: 

Pros: 

My number one pro is that this lavender field is breathtaking! Having a session location with flowers as gorgeous as these is very difficult to come by in AZ. Your photos will turn out amazing, no matter what. Even better, the photo session experience a dream!

As you pose with your loved ones, the floral scent of lavender will fill you up with sunshine and happy thoughts. I always feel so much better after visiting! Life Under the Oaks is also slightly cooler than Tucson since it’s located in Oracle, AZ. That’s a relief, because we won’t be sweating nearly as much as we would in Tucson. 

In addition, they only allow a certain number of photographers at a time, so we can take full advantage of the gorgeous views. They even offer after-hours private sessions!

Cons: 

Because the lavender field only blooms in June, this location isn’t available year-round, so I am limited in the amount of sessions that I can offer. There is also no guarantee that the lavender will be in bloom, although I try my best to schedule for prime lavender time. In addition, while I’ve never had an issue with them, there are always plenty of bees buzzing from flower to flower.

Oh! And one last positive thing: I am a very big believer in the “leave no trace” philosophy. It’s so important to respect our planet and the livelihoods of other small businesses, so I don’t bring props that could cause a mess. This can be things like confetti, sparklers, or smoke bombs. We’re always careful not to disturb the flowers more than we have to or trip over any equipment like irrigation hoses.

As we all know, it only takes one person to ruin a location, and that person won’t be any of us. Because we always leave everything as we have found it, Carolyn and Farmer John are always thrilled to invite me back!

So what do you say? Are you ready to book the photo session of a lifetime? My lavender mini sessions book up fast, so don’t hesitate to contact me for more information! I can’t wait to see you there.