A Year Later, the Same Group in the Same Frame: These Are the Sessions We Shoot at The Fives Beach Hotel, and Holding a Date Is Free
The photograph with nobody missing from it is what most families here ask for first: fourteen people, two units, one afternoon when everybody happens to be awake at once. After that the week fills itself in. A quinceañera whose godmother flew down for forty-eight hours and nothing else. Children photographed on day four, once the shyness has worn off. An anniversary two people mark alone while the rest of the house sleeps. A maternity session at seven months, kept short because standing is work by then. A proposal that has been riding in someone's hand luggage since Tuesday. Six friends sharing one unit. A birthday that falls on a Wednesday and takes the evening for itself. A private boat afternoon, when somebody charters one. And a portrait of a grandmother nobody has photographed properly in thirty years.
The units here are residences in the literal sense — a good share of them owned, and the same names come back to the same door every year, plus or minus one person. That changes what the pictures are for. Put beside last year's, this year's read as a comparison: the setting has not moved, the group has. So a fair part of the job of The Fives Beach Hotel photographer is archival: hold the framing steady enough that two years can sit side by side. Thousands of sessions across Playa del Carmen taught us this only survives if the hour lands at the same point of the stay, so we pin the day by message weeks before anyone flies, and pinning it costs nothing. The price of a single image, and the price of the whole set, sits on our Playa del Carmen photographer page. Say the week you are back in, and we will set the hour where it fell last time.
Three Sessions for a House Full of Family
Almost everyone who writes to us from The Fives is travelling deep: grandparents, cousins, in-laws, kids who only see each other on trips like this one. A residence holds all of them, and so does the beach next door. These are the three sessions we photograph most for guests staying here.
Multi-generation trips
Grandparents on this trip do not travel light and they do not travel often — which is exactly why the one frame with all three generations in it becomes the picture the whole family ends up asking for. We build the full lineup first, then break it into grandparents-with-grandkids and parents-with-kids without moving anyone twice, so nobody is left holding a phone. Our group session guide shows how we pace a shoot that size.
Family portraits
Under the big group there are smaller ones that deserve their own frame: each set of parents with their own kids, the cousins together, the newest baby with the grandparents. We shoot those in the same hour, so a fourteen-person morning comes home as a dozen different pictures instead of one — and nobody has to choose. Our family photoshoot guide for Playa del Carmen covers outfits and how an hour on the sand really goes.
Everyday vacation memories
Not every session is a formal portrait. Some families just want the trip itself remembered honestly — the kids in the shallows, the walk back up the beach, the way this particular week looked before everyone scatters home. Those are the frames people are surprised they love most. Our vacation photoshoot guide covers what an unposed morning looks like.
Where We Meet You — No Taxi Required
From The Fives the whole logistics plan is a short walk, which is half the reason families here have it easy. The public access to Playa Xcalacoco sits right beside the resort — about a block from the residences — so there is no taxi to book and nothing that can fail between your alarm and the first frame. We meet you at the beach access, and we send the exact pin over WhatsApp the day before.
That beach earns its place for one reason above the others: with a group this size, often with small kids in it, you want room and you want calm water. Xcalacoco is wide and carries a Blue Flag, its shallows stay gentle, and there are lifeguards on the sand with showers and bathrooms a few steps back — so a fourteen-person morning can run at a toddler’s pace without falling apart. Punta Esmeralda, a little further along the same public coast, is the quieter alternative when you want almost nobody else in the frame.
Want one frame that belongs on a wall rather than in an album? Ask about our signature beach-gown editorial sessions in Playa del Carmen — metres of fabric in the morning breeze, made for a trip like this one.
Simple Pricing for the Whole Group
Pricing is refreshingly simple: there is no session fee. You pay $15 USD per photo with a 10-photo minimum ($150 USD), or choose a group package from $200 USD when the whole family wants in — so you only ever pay for the images you love. You can see everything we offer, and hundreds of recent sessions, on our Playa del Carmen photographer page.
Every hotel has its own rules about photography on the property. We know how each one works — message us and we’ll tell you exactly what your options are where you’re staying.
Almost nobody who books us has been photographed properly before, and they usually apologise for it in the first message. There is nothing to apologise for — we direct the whole thing, and you can see how that turns out on our Playa del Carmen photographer page. Send us your dates and your headcount, and we will tell you which morning to keep free.
Ready to Get All Three Generations in One Frame?
Tell us your dates and how many of you are travelling, and we will hold a morning for your family. The early slots go first, and they go fastest in the weeks the whole family flies in.
Why Big Families Here Book the Beach Next Door
Everything we shoot for families staying at The Fives happens on the public sand a block away — not despite the residence, but because of the room it gives a three-generation portrait.
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Everybody fits in the frame
Xcalacoco is open and wide, so a fourteen-person, three-generation lineup gets shot properly instead of squeezed against a wall of loungers — and the cousins still have room to run.
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No taxi, no naptime gamble
The public access is a block from the residences, so you walk out, we shoot, and everyone is back at the villa before the little ones melt down.
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We direct the whole thing
Almost nobody who books us has done this before. We tell everyone where to stand and what to do with their hands, so it looks like your family, not a posed line-up.
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You keep only what you love
There is no session fee. You choose from the full gallery afterwards, which takes the pressure off the hour — useful when a toddler is setting the schedule.
Family Sessions at The Fives — FAQ
There are fourteen of us across three generations. Can you photograph a group that size?
Yes — big multi-generation groups are what we photograph most for guests of this resort. Tell us the headcount in your first message and we will pick the stretch of Xcalacoco that fits it. We build the full lineup first, then break it into parents, cousins and grandparents-with-grandkids without moving anyone twice, so everyone gets their own frame and nobody ends up behind the camera.
How much does a family session at The Fives cost?
There is no session fee. You pay $15 USD per photo with a 10-photo minimum ($150 USD), or choose a group package from $200 USD when the whole family wants in. You see the full gallery first and choose from it afterwards, so you only ever pay for the images you love.
We are not photogenic and the kids never sit still. Will the photos actually work?
Yes, and it is the thing almost everyone apologises for in the first message. Practically nobody who books us has been photographed properly before. We direct the entire hour — where to stand, where to look, and when to just let the kids run — and the frames families end up printing are almost never the ones where everybody stood still. What comes out looks like your family, not a pose.
Where do we meet you if we are staying at The Fives?
At the public access to Playa Xcalacoco, right beside the resort — about a block from the residences, so there is no taxi and nothing to book. We send the exact pin over WhatsApp the day before and meet you on the sand at the time we agree.
Can we do it in the afternoon instead of the morning?
You can, though it is worth knowing the trade. This coast faces east, so there is no sunset over the water here. Mornings give you soft light and an emptier beach; late afternoon is still lovely, just not quiet. Either way, plan on about an hour on the sand.
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