How to take better Christmas Card photos

Do you send photo Christmas cards out each year and want to take better ones this year. Well, Christmas is a popular time of the year for sending and receiving greeting cards some with photos of your friends and family. For holiday cards everybody wants a current photo to be used.
Here are some tips on how to take better Christmas card photos.

Plan ahead :

Plan your shots long before you gather the family together. List the details about the kind of pictures you want to shoot. Put some thought into what you will wear, whether you want to use props or not, where the shots will be taken and what poses you will use. Make a list of poses you would like to take.

Coordinate but don't match :

Coordinate outfits but don't match it. Focus on coordinating a color palette or picking a specific clothing style. Take into consideration  the  background colour that you want to use. For example, don't wear blue if you are taking the shots outdoors with a blue sky as your background.

Christmas Family Photoshoot

Take plenty of shots :

Take as many shots as possible to get the ideal Christmas card photo. Zoom in and take close-ups and zoom out for panoramic shots. Try shooting from different angles for different looks and use different lenses if you have them. The more pictures you take, the more choices you will have when picking the perfect picture. That means shoot till you drop!

Choose a location :

Choose and set up your location. If your option is to have your family pictures taken by the fireplace, make  look festive. If taking macro shots of your festive decorations prepare the area. Take a series of candid shots of your children doing activities, such as decorating the tree, building a snowman or baking cookies. Pay attention to the background especially if it is a Christmas theme.

Kid christmas holiday

Pay attention to lighting :

When technical aspects come into play, use natural light if you are taking pictures outdoors. Pay close attention to odd shadows and streaks of light that can filter through trees or buildings. The best time for outdoor photos with minimal shade is one hour after sunrise or one hour before sunset. For indoor home lighting plan to use your flash or bounce the flash for a more diffused lighting affect. Avoid direct sunlight coming  through the window. Make adjustments using your shutter speed so you can capture that ideal and dramatic Christmas photo.

Use a Christmas ornament :

Christmas tree ornaments can be an unexpected way to illustrate the magic of the season. Take several shots of the family grouped together in front of a reflective bulb. Before you take the photo, pay attention to any distractions behind your subjects. 

Christmas Ornament

Play around :

Once you are ready to take photos, don't be restricted with a single frame in mind. Whether you are using your phone's camera or a DSLR camera, its essential to become familiar with your camera's settings. Use as much natural light as possible. Experiment with shutter speeds, aperture settings and ISO levels. When taking photos of a large group of people adjust your focus so everyone comes out clear.

Choosing your Christmas cards :

The choice of Christmas cards will depend on your budget and how many people you intend to send a card to. As a general rule when sending cards, start with your immediate family, then close friends and nearer relatives, then not so close friends, business associates and clients, then acquaintances or anyone else you know.  Its advisable to use a good quality photo for your Christmas card.

Christmas Cards

For more ideas and information, please call  Louise Bagger Photography on 0412 055 668 or by mailing at louise@louisebagger.com.au.