Couple photoshoot in Seville

Seville gives a couple three different photographs depending on when you meet us, so choosing the hour is choosing the picture. At first light the Plaza de España is close to empty and its brick semicircle is lit head-on: a wide, formal frame with the two of you small against the building and the canal. Through the middle of the day the lanes of Santa Cruz sit in open shade, close and quiet, with whitewash bouncing soft light onto both faces. In the last hour of sun the Triana bank looks across the Guadalquivir at the Torre del Oro and the cathedral, warm stone over dark water. Most couples visiting the city pick one of those windows and plan the rest of the day around it. On the longer packages two can be joined, and Santa Cruz into the river walk is the natural pair, since one leads to the other on foot. What we will not do is stand you in front of a monument at one in the afternoon in July.

When to book in Seville

The calendar here decides more than the weather does. Late October to early December is the best light of the year and the quietest city: the sun rises around eight and sets around six, so a sunrise session does not mean an alarm at five. February and March are almost as good, with sunset moving from about seven to half past seven. From June to August only the two ends of the day are worth booking, sunrise at about seven and the hour before sunset at about a quarter to ten, and the people of Seville use those same hours, so the river walk is livelier than you might expect. Do not plan a session for Semana Santa week, when processions seal off sections of the centre for hours.