Holiday gatherings are among the most important days of the year. This time is reserved for family, a time to show your loved ones how glad you are to have them in your life.
But it can be so challenging to capture your loved ones in their element during this particular time. Luckily for you, we’re about to make your holiday season sparkle with these 5 overlooked tips for capturing great family holiday photos.
Following these tips, you can capture great family pics and use them as personal canvas prints to decorate your home walls.
Your family will be so impressed with the quality of your photos this year that they’ll think you’re a professional photographer—when the truth is, you just read our article.
1- Get the right background
Blurriness, wrong lighting, and bad angles can make pictures look more like a disaster than a cherished memory. That’s why it’s essential to consider your surroundings when taking photos.
The key to getting perfect holiday photos is the right background. You may think that the best scenes are always natural features: forests, mountains, and waterfalls. But these can create problems if you don’t consider their reflective properties.
When looking for photographic backgrounds, please pay attention to how light reacts off the surface of nearby objects and how easily other things reflect in them. These are both essential factors for creating great holiday photos that are sharp and clear—and not at all embarrassing!
2- Use costumes
Are you looking for some great family holiday photos? Look no further than your closet!
Costumes are a great way to bring a little extra holiday spirit to your pictures. If you and your family have a particular theme, like Star Wars or the Harry Potter series, you can dress up as characters from those stories.
If you want to go the classic route, try dressing up in a traditional style. Get everyone in suits and ties or dresses and pearls. Or even throw on some flapper dresses with feather boas. No matter what you decide, costumes will help make your family holiday photos fun and memorable!
3- Take a lot of pictures
Just make sure you have enough film/memory on your camera/phone/whatever device you’re using to take photos on to snap away during the season.
Make it a point to take at least 2 to 3 photos every time you see your family. As long as you’ve got enough shots, it’ll be easier to pick out the best ones later on when it comes time to figure out which ones are going in the family Christmas card or photo album.
- Don’t be afraid to get down on the ground for that perfect angle
Let’s face it: when you’re trying to get that iconic shot of your folks, your brother and sister, or even just you and your significant other, sometimes the best angle comes from getting down on the ground or changing your posture entirely.
This tip is especially true for two-parent families with more than one child. Young children have a hard time looking at the camera, so sometimes it’s best to get down there and make sure they’re in the frame.
- Use a selfie stick
How often have you seen a great family holiday photo and wished you were in it?
This year, don’t let these opportunities pass you. Make sure that you are in every photo and that you’re also getting excellent family holiday photographs.
Instead of asking strangers to take photos for you (which is both awkward and rude), why not use a selfie stick? Selfie sticks are easy to use, inexpensive, and come in all shapes and sizes, so no matter who is on the other end of the camera, they’ll be able to get the shot.
Conclusion
While everyone else is busy taking photos of their meals and the Christmas tree, you can be capturing great family photos that will last forever. If you follow these five tips, you’ll be able to capture beautiful memories and build a visual archive that will bring your family together at holiday time and throughout the year.
