Tip #2 - Taking Better Pictures of Your Kids: Lighting Is King

This month has been incredibly busy, so my blogging time has been cut back... so I'm sharing a great handout - thanks to Gale Vehar at Pretty Presets for Lightroom for this amazing tool. 

Lighting is to a camera and quality of images as oxygen is to breathing.

Finding just ONE good window in your house and learning to use the light coming in there is key.  Find a time where direct sunlight is not coming in.  Then, try and position your child so that the light falls at 10 or 2 (o'clock) in their eyes. 

Have them sit on a little chair, an old crate, or even have them lay on the floor on a white or cream colored fuzzy rug.   Take some pictures of them looking at you, but also have them look out the window, because the light will make their eyes sparkle.

Now - go and shoot!  :)

~Sarah

Tip of the Month: Just Shoot It! {Austin Family Photographer}

Who doesn't want to take better pictures of their kids?  True... many times it seems when something photo-worthy is happening, our camera is in the farthest room in the house.  Or maybe we never hop in the pictures with our kids because our hair is never done.  (I'm guilty!)  But the truth is, in the digital age we are in right now, we have the ability to shoot, shoot, and shoot some more without having to process every image we take.  My kids have taught me so much about life and love, but they have taught me so much about photography too!

Every month in my email Newsletter, I will be including a tip on taking better pictures of your kids.  This has been a popular theme, and I think it will be fun sharing some things like this.  If you are not currently  on my monthly Newsletter list and would like to be, shoot me an email and I'll be sure to add you.  (Newsletter fans are the first to know about mini-session specials, big deals, and more.)  

Tip #1 is simple.  Just shoot it!  And then shoot some more. 
Taking good images is like most other things in life... the more you practice - the better you get.  You wouldn't expect to pick up a basketball and immediately be able to score 30 points a game.  Same goes for your camera.  Hours of practice will equal huge improvements over time.

First of all, dust off that camera manual and commit to spending just one hour with it.  Yes, that little booklet that came along with your camera.  Trust me... that one hour can teach you so many little things and tricks that your camera is equipped to do.  Whether you have a point and shoot camera or a DSLR... Those things can equal huge improvements in your images.  It will be an hour well spent.  Promise.  

Secondly, just shoot it!  Get out there and start shooting images with your camera.  Here is a neat checklist of images to capture of your kids to get you started.  Happy photographing!  (And mamas: Do me a favor and hop in on some of these shots... you'll be glad you did!)

Stay tuned to my September newsletter for Tip #2.

Click on the image to enlarge.

How to Get the Shot...

I love this shot that I got of Miles a few weeks ago, because it is "so him." 

He LOVES dirt, and he loves saying "I'm a dirty dog!" when he's dirty.  So every time I see this photo in the frame on my stairway, I just smile.  (And of course he says, "I'm a dirty dog!") 

My sweet friend, Jessica, who helped me do photos at the event we were at, just happened to snap a photo of me taking the picture.  I thought it was interesting, because it really shows what Miles' dad, mom, and papa were trying to do to get him to look and smile, as well as what a little editing can do to enhance a shot. 

Camera Critters

People often ask me how I get children to smile.  They swear up and down that they try and try to get good pics at home... but their kids don't smile for them like they do when I come around to photograph a session.  But that is why you hire a photographer, right?  The work is done for you, and if you're like me - you like to get in the frame once in awhile to get great photos of you with your child(ren)... instead of always being behind the camera.

Here are a few of my "secrets."
1) I am new to them.  Trust me... I don't get my own (very active almost 2-year old) to sit still and smile all that often myself.  But when new people are around, he is more likely to hold a pose just long enough for his mama to click her shutter button and get a great shot.

2) I have a "Camera Critter" on my lens that looks like a very popular red character on TV.  I cannot tell you HOW great this is... not only do the kids recognize him, but they LOOK at him while I photograph them.  It's funny... in every shoot with children, I get several shots of the kid(s) pointing at the camera, because I always ask them, "Where is Elmo?" and they laugh and point and say "THERE HE IS!"  Too cute.  I love my job...

  3) My last secret is that I have a tiny sweet candy treat in my camera bag that I reward the children with (pending their parents' approval, of course) for smiles. (And I usually sing some funny songs, dance some funny dances, etc.  Smiles are worth the work!)