London · Guide for photographers, filmmakers and brands
“Pick the location for the brief, then find out who owns it.”
London gives you five very different kinds of photoshoot location within an hour or two of each other: quiet residential streets, the parks and glasshouses of Richmond and Kew, the busy lanes of Soho, the hotels and squares of Mayfair, and, further out, the chalk and sand of the Kent coast. Each one has a different owner and a different set of rules. This guide is a planner for both: what each place is good for, what it asks of the crew, and who to ask before you turn up with a camera, using SwainUK shoots in each type of location as worked examples.
A quiet London street, a small crew and natural light (Staccato, filmed by SwainUK)
01 · The planner
Photoshoot locations in London at a glance
Before you look for a specific street or room, decide which kind of place the brief needs. The light, the crew size you can bring and the permission you need all follow from that choice.
| Location type | Good for | Who to ask |
|---|---|---|
| Residential streets and squares | Fashion, footwear, lifestyle, street casting | The borough's film service. Small handheld crews are straightforward; tripods in Westminster and the City need a Notice of No Objection |
| Royal Parks (Richmond Park, Hyde Park, Regent's Park and others) | Seasonal colour, open space, backlight | The Royal Parks filming team, for any commercial shoot, including professional portfolios |
| Kew Gardens | Glasshouses, planting, colour all year | Kew's commercial filming team. Crews are supervised by Kew staff |
| Soho and Mayfair streets | Shopfronts, nightlife, period façades, hotel exteriors | Westminster's film service; the owner for any shopfront, doorway or forecourt |
| Hotels, flats and venues | Interiors, beauty, lingerie, product with lifestyle | The owner or manager, in writing, with times and areas agreed |
| Kent coast | Big sky, chalk, sand, space for movement and drones | The Kent Film Office or the landowner (council, National Trust, private estate) |
| Studios | Control: light, sound, weather, privacy | The studio, with a booking contract |
For how the light changes across these places through the year, see natural light fashion photography in London. This guide is about where to go and what to sort out first.
02 · Streets
Streets: Soho, Mayfair and the quiet squares
Most London street shoots are legal without a permit if they stay small. Film London's guidance is that a crew of five or fewer, including the people on camera, using a handheld camera and not causing an obstruction, faces no restriction on the public highway. You should still tell the borough's film officer, because if the council doesn't know you are there, you can be asked to stop. Two boroughs are stricter on kit: in Westminster and the City of London, any crew using a tripod needs a Notice of No Objection. Roads marked with red lines belong to Transport for London, and even small crews apply to TfL at least three days ahead.
That matters for the two areas people ask about most. Soho and Mayfair are both in Westminster, so plan for handheld or a gimbal, a minimal crew and the borough's film office in the loop. Soho's narrow lanes are busy from late morning and full at night: shoot early, or embrace the crowd and keep the frame tight. Mayfair's quieter squares, mews and hotel frontages are calmer on weekend mornings. The Staccato footwear film was shot on streets like these: stucco terraces, black railings, a model crossing an empty road, all in natural light.
Walk it at shoot time
Visit at the hour you'll shoot. Note where the shade falls, where cars park and how loud the street is.
Doorways are private
A pavement is public; the steps, door and forecourt behind it usually aren't. Ask before you pose anyone on them.
Keep the pavement clear
Obstruction is what turns a free street shoot into one that needs permission. Kit bags against the wall, never across the path.
Members of the public
Passers-by who become recognisable in commercial work need a release, or need to be out of focus or out of frame. See model release forms.
03 · Richmond and Kew
Parks and glasshouses: Richmond Park and Kew Gardens
The Rose Danford-Phillips AW2020 collection, filmed by SwainUK at Kew Gardens.
The west London parks are the obvious answer for colour: blossom in spring, green in summer, gold in autumn. They are also the locations people most often get wrong, because they look public. Richmond Park is one of the Royal Parks, alongside Hyde Park, Kensington Gardens, St James's Park, The Green Park, The Regent's Park and Primrose Hill, Greenwich Park and Bushy Park. The Royal Parks' filming policy says any filming, photography or audio recording in the parks needs its permission, and in most cases a fee. Personal photography on a phone is fine. Using images of the parks commercially needs permission, and that explicitly includes professional portfolios, so a test shoot for your own book still counts.
Notice: the Royal Parks say requests with less than five days' notice can't be guaranteed. Blossom season books up, so apply earlier.
What they ask for: dates, locations, content, talent, public liability insurance, crew and kit, and whether you plan drones or anything unusual.
What they won't allow: vox pops are not permitted in any Royal Park, and filming in or near playgrounds is prohibited as a general rule.
Weddings and lifestyle: these need a permit of their own.
Kew Gardens is not a Royal Park. It is run by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, which handles commercial filming and photography itself, sets location fees by crew size and time on site, and has a member of Kew staff supervise crews throughout. That supervision is worth planning for: share a shot list in advance so your route through the glasshouses is agreed. The payoff is a location that works in any weather. The Rose Danford-Phillips AW2020 film was shot among the palms, white ironwork and spiral stairs of a Kew glasshouse, which gives saturated green and soft, even daylight through the glass. For a Richmond example in spring blossom, see the Linden Staub test in the natural light guide.
Sources: The Royal Parks, policy on filming and photography (March 2026) · The Royal Parks, filming and photography · Kew, commercial filming and photography.
04 · Hotels and interiors
Hotels, flats and venues
A fashion shoot in a room at The Mayfair Hotel, London, filmed by SwainUK.
A hotel room is the fastest way to a "big" look in London: the set dressing, the lamps and the textures are already there, and there is no weather to wait for. The shoot at The Mayfair Hotel used a single room for every setup: three models on the bed with shoes, bags and magazines spread across the covers, close-ups by the bedside lamps, and product details on the white sheets. One room, several looks, no street permission to chase.
The permission here comes from one person: the owner or manager. Get it in writing, with the date, times, which rooms and corridors you can use, where kit can be stored and whether guests will be around. Ask whether the hotel's name can appear in captions. Bring protection for floors and furniture, and keep lights cool and small: housekeeping notices burns and scuffs. A guest suite booked for the day is not the same as permission to shoot commercially, so say what the shoot is when you book.
05 · The Kent coast
The Kent coast: space, chalk and big sky
A test shoot with Vincent (Nevs Model Agency) on the Kent coastline, shot by SwainUK.
When a brief needs space, the Kent coast is the nearest big landscape to London: chalk stacks and cliffs, sand ribbed by the tide, and a sky that fills half the frame. The Vincent test for Nevs Model Agency used exactly that, plus a second set with very different texture: stacked wooden farm crates, shot from low down against the same blue sky. Two looks from one trip is what makes a coastal day worth the travel.
Chalk on the beach and farm crates: two textures from the same test shoot.
Check the tide
Low tide gives you the sand ripples and rock pools; high tide can cut off the base of the cliffs. Plan the route around the tide table, not the clock.
Find out who owns it
Beaches and clifftops belong to councils, private estates or the National Trust. The Kent Film Office handles many requests and issues filming permits online.
National Trust land
Commercial filming or photography there, including paid or gifted influencer content, needs a signed contract with the Trust first.
Drones are separate
A permit to shoot is not permission to fly. See drone rules for paid shoots and, for moving shots on the coast, FPV for brands and fashion.
Sources: National Trust, photography and filming · White Cliffs Country, filming and the Kent Film Office.
06 · Studios
Studios: when to stop fighting the weather
Shapes, a studio story for LUCY'S Magazine. Photography, creative direction and video by SwainUK.
A studio is the right location when the brief depends on control: a clean background for e-commerce, consistent light across many looks, sound for dialogue, or privacy for beauty and lingerie. The Shapes story for LUCY'S Magazine is a good example of what a plain white space does well: full-length frames, a seated pose, a close detail of a boot, all in the same even light, so the clothes and the shapes they make are the whole story.
| Ask the studio | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Size of the cyclorama and ceiling height | Full-length fashion needs distance from the background and room for lights above |
| Daylight or blackout | Daylight studios are beautiful but change through the day; blackout means every frame matches |
| Kit included | Stands, flags and backdrops on site save a van |
| Load-in, parking and lift | In central London, getting kit in can take longer than lighting it |
| Hair and makeup space | A separate room with good light keeps the set free |
For what to shoot once you're in, see the model test shoot guide and the makeup artist portfolio guide.
07 · Before you book
A location checklist you can copy
1. Owner: who controls the exact spot? Council, Royal Parks, Kew, National Trust, a hotel, a private landlord.
2. Crew and kit: how many people, and is there a tripod, light, or drone? That decides whether a small-crew street shoot is enough.
3. Notice: five days at least for the Royal Parks, three for TfL roads, more for anything busy or seasonal.
4. Paperwork: public liability insurance, a short brief, the shot list and the call sheet.
5. People: releases for talent and anyone recognisable who isn't.
6. Backup: an indoor option or a second date if the weather turns.
7. Usage: what the client will do with the images decides what permission you need. See usage rights and licensing.
Sources: Film London, advice for small crews. Rules and processes change, so check with each location before you book.
Watch
London locations on film
Rose Danford-Phillips AW2020 at Kew Gardens
Fashion shoot at The Mayfair Hotel
Staccato on London streets
Shapes for LUCY'S Magazine, in the studioMore guides
Keep reading
FAQ
Common questions
Where are the best photoshoot locations in London?
It depends on the brief. Quiet residential streets and squares for fashion and lifestyle, Richmond Park and Kew Gardens for colour and greenery, Soho and Mayfair for shopfronts and hotel façades, hotels for interiors, the Kent coast for space and big sky, and a studio when you need control.
Do you need a permit for a photoshoot in London?
On public streets, a small crew of five or fewer with handheld kit and no obstruction doesn't need a licence, though you should tell the borough's film office. Tripods in Westminster and the City need a Notice of No Objection. Royal Parks, Kew, National Trust land, TfL property and any private building all need permission.
Can I do a photoshoot in Richmond Park?
For personal photos on a phone, yes. For any commercial shoot, including professional portfolio work, you need permission from The Royal Parks, ideally with more than five days' notice.
Can you take professional photos at Kew Gardens?
Commercial filming and photography at Kew is arranged with Kew's commercial media team, and a member of Kew staff supervises the crew throughout. Kew also offers separate permits for some personal shoots.
Written by Joshua Swain, who shoots fashion, beauty and brand work across London and Kent. More of the Kent coast test is in the Vincent Nevs portfolio page. This is general information, not legal advice.