Kaushik BathiaPhotography
Family of four stacked playfully on the studio floor

Family Photographer in North West London

From the studio on Joel Street in Northwood Hills, Kaushik Bathia photographs families in their own homes and in the parks of Harrow, Hillingdon, Brent and Barnet. If you live in Northwood, Northwood Hills or Moor Park, the studio is close enough to walk in.

★★★★★ Rated 4.8 from 580+ reviews

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The short answer

Where can we have a family photoshoot in North West London?

Choose your home, a local park or the studio at 21 Joel Street, Northwood Hills. Pinner Memorial Park, Headstone Manor Park in North Harrow, Canons Park and Ruislip Woods all suit an hour-long session, and Hillingdon Council asks for permission through its Film Office before professional photos in its parks. From Pinner, Ruislip or Harrow the studio is a short drive, or we come to you. Session prices are given on request, and travel is set out in your written quote.

Google reviews

What families say

4.8 from 580+ Google reviews

We had a family photo session with grandparents, parents sons and our dog too. Mr Bathia is good humoured, he got the best out of all of us and took some great photos.

Google review, 2025

I would highly recommend Northwood Hills Studio. We have been been capturing our favourite family portraits since 2004. Always great fun, yet very professional. The printed results are great and we will keep coming back.

Terry R., Google review, 2015

We have been getting our pictures clicked with Mr. Bhatia for many years now, he is very reliable, excellent at his job and he is great with kids as well! I'd really recommend his services.

Keshika P., Google review, 2026

Read all the reviews on Google

Four boroughs

Hillingdon, Harrow, Brent and Barnet: how the parks differ for a family shoot

North West London, as this page uses the term, runs from the studio's own corner of Northwood and Northwood Hills through Harrow and Hillingdon and on to the Brent and Barnet suburbs around Wembley, Kingsbury and Edgware. Each borough sets its own park rules, and that changes how a family session is planned. Hillingdon Council asks anyone having professional photos taken in its parks and green spaces, family shoots included, to get permission first through its Film Office.

Harrow's parks are where the Green Flags cluster. Pinner Memorial Park has a duck pond, a small aviary, woodland and a coffee shop, with entrances on Chapel Lane, Marsh Road, West End Avenue and West End Lane. Headstone Manor Park in North Harrow covers more than 50 acres and was restored in 2021 with a new wetland and a perimeter footpath, while Canons Park keeps the King George V Memorial Garden, a walled garden that was once part of the duke's kitchen gardens.

Further east the parks change character. Barham Park in Wembley keeps much of its formal Victorian layout, with a walled garden and mature trees on gently rolling ground, and Fryent Country Park in Kingsbury covers 103 hectares of traditional Middlesex countryside rising to 86 metres at Barn Hill. Edgwarebury Park, on the Barnet side, has ornamental gardens and a pinetum. Tell us which park your children already know, and we will plan the hour around it.

Mother-to-be in a cream dress cradling her bump, studio maternity portrait

Ruislip

Ruislip Woods and the Lido: a session with somewhere to run

Ruislip Woods covers 294 hectares across Park Wood, Mad Bess Wood and Copse Wood in Ruislip and Bayhurst Wood in Harefield, and in May 1997 it became London's first national nature reserve. Hillingdon Council describes it as the largest block of ancient, semi-natural woodland in Greater London. Under the oak and hornbeam the light is soft and even, which is kind to faces. Ruislip is 1.8 miles from the studio, so a woodland session fits easily into a morning.

Ruislip Lido on Reservoir Road sits inside the reserve, with woodland trails and the Woodlands Centre, which runs family nature walks and craft sessions. The Ruislip Lido Railway, which calls itself Britain's longest 12 inch gauge railway, runs from Woody Bay station by the beach to Willow Lawn by the car parks, and a ride can round off a session for a child who has earned a reward. Swimming in the lake is not allowed.

Manor Farm, at the top of Ruislip High Street, adds 22 acres of heritage setting: a Tudor farmhouse, the Great Barn and a duck pond. Hillingdon names both the Lido and Manor Farm among the green spaces where professional photos need its permission, so allow time to apply before your date. If time is short, ask us about a home session instead.

At home

A family session in a Metro-land semi, an Arts and Crafts house or a flat

Much of North West London went up quickly between the wars. Pinner grew rapidly between 1923 and 1939 as garden estates spread around its historic core, George Ball built the Manor Homes in Ruislip Manor between 1933 and 1939, and North Wembley is mostly the mock-Tudor Sudbury Court Estate of 1927 to 1935. Whatever the age of your home, the session usually starts beside the largest window and moves out to the garden if you have one.

At home the children already know where everything is, which makes an hour go further. Babies can nap upstairs mid-session, toddlers can show off a favourite toy, and grandparents do not have to travel. We move furniture only as far as you are happy with. A front step, a staircase or a sofa by the window can each give a different frame within the same hour.

Kaushik travels from Northwood for home sessions anywhere in the area, from Hatch End at 1.7 miles to Willesden at 8.5. Travel from Northwood to your door is set out in your written quote before you book, and the session price is given on request by phone or WhatsApp.

Little girl in a pink floral top smiling on a studio stool

Seasons

Bluebells in North Hillingdon, lakes in summer, festivals indoors

Spring brings the bluebells. Gutteridge Wood and Meadows, a 25-hectare ancient woodland in North Hillingdon just north of Ten Acre Wood, is carpeted with them, and it forms part of Yeading Woods Local Nature Reserve. Bluebells give only a short window, so ask early if a spring session is the plan. The Diamond Jubilee garden in Swakeleys Park, Ickenham, offers a quieter alternative, with benches set around a stone obelisk.

Summer evenings suit lakes and open grass. Swakeleys Park has a lake crossed by the River Pinn and looks over the Jacobean Swakeleys House, and Stockley Country Park near Uxbridge has 11 lakes and around 200,000 trees and shrubs. Roxbourne Park near Rayners Lane runs a miniature railway that gives children rides on summer Sundays, which can turn a session into an outing.

In autumn the colour moves into the old ornamental trees of Eastcote House Gardens and the parkland around Canons Park. Winter sessions can come indoors, at home or at the studio, and they suit festival portraits: Diwali, Eid and Christmas all bring the whole family into one room. Our Diwali family photography guide has ideas for those.

Ages and stages

From a toddler at Pinner Village Gardens to grandparents above Harrow Weald

Toddlers need short bursts and something to walk towards. Pinner Village Gardens, laid out in the 1930s with specimen trees and a rose garden, has an ornamental pond with frogs and newts and a play area for ages 0 to 14. We photograph on the way, rather than asking a two-year-old to stand still, and the play area makes a good finishing point.

Older children and teenagers often relax once they have a job, such as choosing the next spot or carrying the picnic blanket. Hatch End Riverside Park has an accessible circular path, wildflower meadows and benches looking over the River Pinn, which suits a walking session where nobody feels posed.

For three generations, pick level ground and a bench. St Mary's churchyard at the top of Harrow Hill looks towards central London, Canary Wharf, the BT Tower and Wembley Stadium, but the hill rises to 408 feet, so drive up if anyone finds slopes hard. The Viewpoint at Old Redding, on the Harrow Weald ridge, has car parking beside it and looks across north London on a clear day. See the family photography page for how a session runs, and our what to wear guide before you choose outfits.

Little girl in a white party dress seated in the studio

Planning

Planning around North West London

01

Hillingdon permission

Hillingdon Council asks for permission through its Film Office before professional family photos in its parks, including Ruislip Lido, Manor Farm and Eastcote House Gardens. Leave time for it.

02

Harrow's Green Flag parks

Pinner Memorial Park, Headstone Manor Park, Canons Park and Roxeth Recreation Ground all hold Green Flag status, with cafés or car parks that make an hour with small children easier.

03

Railway rewards

Roxbourne Park's miniature railway runs on summer Sundays and the Ruislip Lido Railway crosses Ruislip Woods, so a ride can follow the photographs as a thank-you to patient children.

04

Hilltop views

Harrow Hill and Old Redding look out over London, and Horsenden Hill looks towards Wembley Stadium. Old Redding has parking beside the view; the others ask for a walk up.

05

Walk-in for Northwood

Families in Northwood, Northwood Hills and Moor Park can walk to 21 Joel Street, two minutes from Northwood Hills station, for a studio sitting whatever the weather.

Parks and open spaces for a family shoot in North West London

These parks and open spaces come from council and park listings, each shown with its source, so you can check opening details before you choose.

  • Hog's Back Open Space: Hog's Back Open Space on Northwood Way, Northwood Hills HA6 1RT, was part of Hundred Acre Farm until the mid 20th century, when it was sold to Hillingdon Council, and has picnic areas. 1
  • Ruislip Woods National Nature Reserve: Hillingdon Council describes Ruislip Woods, entered from Reservoir Road, Ruislip HA4 7TY, as the largest block of ancient, semi-natural woodland in Greater London and one of the most extensive oak and hornbeam coppice woods in south-east England. 2
  • Montesole Playing Fields: Montesole Playing Fields in Pinner Green is a large open green with courts for tennis, football and basketball, and is home ground to Pinner Cricket Club, founded in 1835. 3
  • Pinner Memorial Park: Pinner Memorial Park, a Green Flag Award winner close to the centre of Pinner, has a pond with ducks and geese, an aviary, an ornamental Peace Garden, woodland and a coffee shop, with entrances on Chapel Lane, Marsh Road, West End Avenue and West End Lane. 4
  • Eastcote House Gardens: Eastcote House Gardens on High Road, Eastcote (HA5 2FE), has been at the heart of Eastcote for more than 500 years and has a walled garden, a 17th-century timber-framed stables, a dovecote and old and new orchards. 5

Sources, facts checked October 2026

  1. Hog's Back Open Space | Hillingdon Council
  2. Ruislip Woods National Nature Reserve | Hillingdon Council
  3. Pinner Green - Wikipedia
  4. Pinner Memorial Park | London Borough of Harrow
  5. Eastcote House Gardens - Hillingdon Council

Town by town

Family photography around North West London

The towns below run from Northwood Hills, a few doors from the studio, out to Willesden at about 8.5 miles, with links to each town's own family photography page where one exists, such as Pinner, Ruislip and Harrow.

Good to know

Family photography in North West London: questions answered

Hillingdon Council requires anyone having professional photos taken in its parks and green spaces for personal use, family shoots included, to get permission first through its Film Office. That covers places such as Ruislip Lido, Manor Farm and Eastcote House Gardens. Allow time for the application before your date, and tell us which park you have in mind so the session plan fits.

Pinner is about 1.5 miles from the studio and central Harrow about 3.5, so either is a short drive to Joel Street, or Kaushik comes to you. If you come by Tube, Northwood Hills station on the Metropolitan line is two minutes' walk from the door, and there is parking close by.

Yes. Canons Park is a Grade II registered historic park and Green Flag winner with ponds, a café and the walled King George V Memorial Garden, redesigned in the 1930s with a central square pool, a raised terrace and formal flower beds. It sits near Canons Park station, close to Edgware, and travel from Northwood is set out in your written quote.

King Edward VII Park on Park Lane opened in 1914 and has wild meadows and a bee corridor, and Barham Park has three ponds and a walled garden. Brent's parks order requires dogs on leads in walled gardens, so if the family dog is coming, plan on the open lawns. Wembley is about six miles from the studio, and Kaushik comes to you.

A family session is relaxed and usually lasts about an hour, led by the children's mood rather than a fixed shot list. Session prices are given on request by phone or WhatsApp on 07956 505383, and any travel to your home or park is quoted before you book.

Yes. A home session in Stanmore, about 4.5 miles from the studio, saves older relatives a journey, and Stanmore Country Park or Stanmore Common are close by if you want a walk afterwards. Stanmore Common's paths wind through woodland and wildflower meadow and can be muddy, so pack a change of shoes.

Pick two or three colours that sit together without matching exactly, and avoid big logos. In Ruislip Woods, Oxhey Woods or on Harrow Weald Common, greens and browns surround you, so softer blues, creams and rust tones stand out against them. Sturdy shoes matter on woodland paths, and you can change into smarter ones for the photographs.

Plan your session

Book a family photoshoot in North West London

Tell us who is coming, roughly when, and whether you would like your home, a park or the studio. We reply with ideas for the location and a written quote.

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