5 Simple Tips for Taking Better Family Photos
Family Photo Tip Number 5
Go after candid photos, rather than “say cheese.”
Candid photos are a lot more fun. And they require a lot less cooperation.
As soon as you try to line your family up for a “say cheese” photo, you may encounter resistance. With candid photos, you’re just letting everyone be themselves and your family will be much happier to go along with that.
This extends to not trying to put your family in a uniform. Trying to dress everyone up the same creates stress for the organizer (usually mom), and will likely generate some resistance from one or more family members.
Family Photo Tip Number 4
Remove unattractive objects from the scene.
Common culprits are bottles of water or napkins or mostly-eaten plates of food. These objects take away from the photo and it only takes a few seconds to remove them.
Family Photo Tip Number 3
Go where the action is.
If you have little people, that means get down to their eye level.
The least interesting photo you can produce is one taken at eye level. We all see the world from eye level. Interesting and unusual angles produce far more interesting photos.
Family Photo Tip Number 2
Go where the good light is.
If you're indoors, that means putting your back to a window. If you're outdoors, that means not putting your family where the sun is beaming in their faces, which creates mean mugs.
Move into a shady area or put their backs to the sun. You won't get mean mugs and you might get some really cool backlighting in their hair.
Number One Tip for Taking Better Family Photos
Print your family photos!!!
The best place for great family photos is on your walls. Your family photos deserve way more than five seconds of fame on social media. And the power of family photos is totally taken away if they're trapped inside your phone.
Printed family photos put positive imagery in your mind and in your children's minds 24/7.
Your family photos can bring joy into your life every single day if they're on the wall for you to see all the time. On those days when life is tough, seeing photos of you and your family on your best days can be just what you need to help you maintain perspective and remember what's really important.
Printed family photos also...
Build esteem in your children. You put your children's drawings on the refrigerator when you can't even tell which way is up and you do this why? Well what does it do for them to see that they're important enough for you to put their picture on the wall?
Deliver passive therapy to mom and dad.
Make great conversation pieces when friends and family visit.
Make great gifts for grandparents.
Enrich your family's life in ways that digital files cannot begin to approach.
Bonus Tip
When the food comes out, put your camera away!
There is no opportunity to create flattering photographs when people are eating. So relax, enjoy yourself, and get back to it once everyone is done eating. See tip number 4 above.
