If you read my previous blog post, you know the reason WHY I am so passionate about photography and capturing beautiful images of real life. If you didn't read it, go ahead and do it now. Don't worry I'll wait. 

Now that you're all caught up lets talk about HOW to get those images that you'll want to keep forever.

 This is one of my favorite images of my two older boys. They were sitting on the back porch one Sunday afternoon telling jokes. I love the connection between them here and on the days when all they can do is argue I am especially happy that this image hangs on a canvas in their room.

I've had a lot of friends and clients ask me for tips on taking photos of their kids who wont sit still long enough for a picture much less smile and look at the camera! Listen, I feel your pain, my kids have been my favorite (and most readily available) subjects since the beginning and let me tell you something, they are OVER IT. I can sometimes get them to smile (a big cheese smile) and look at the camera for special occasions but it usually involves some sort of bribe or threat and almost always ends in tears, my tears. Real talk. It's great to have a picture every now and then when everyone is looking at the camera and is well dressed and clean (ish) and hair is combed and shoes are on (sometimes) but if you look through old photos I bet you'll admit that it's rarely those posed photos that are your favorite and if they are it's for a different reason. What makes a great photo is the connection between the people in it, a look, an activity, something that tells the story of the real moment.

Thats great news for you because if I had to guess, some pretty real moments happen all day, every day in your home. I know they sure do in mine. Pretty, ugly, messy, loud, hysterical, heart wrenchingly REAL moments are all around us. Here are 5 tips that I have for capturing them.

1. MAKE ACTUAL MEMORIES

I am not above staging a moment for a great photograph but at the end of the day if you completely stage a photograph you're going to get staged emotions. That doesn't mean you can't set the moment up for success but it does mean you'll have to give up control a little (or a lot). When I do a lifestyle shoot in someone's home I apply these same principles. Be who you are and do what you do. Choose an activity that your family loves to do. Maybe it's not something you do all the time, maybe its even the first time you've ever done it or maybe you do it all the time. Will everyone love it? Then do it. Play a board game. Bake a cake. Play charades. Go outside. Plant a garden. Go for a walk. Take a trip somewhere. Make cookies in your pajamas. Make a fort in the living room with blankets and pillows. Whatever it is make it real. I'd put money on the fact that when its over you will have gotten a lot more than a great photo, you'll have a great memory. And, it might just be something your family decides to do more often. 

2. BE A NINJA.

What? Well, once everyone is involved in the activity you'll have to be a little sly to capture the moment. Nothing kills a great moment like the presence of a camera. Have you ever been to a party where a photographer has been hired? It's as if there is an automatic sensor on our cameras that makes otherwise joyful, casual conversation stop in its tracks. People stop mid sentence, get in some awkward side hug pose, smile and pray that the spinach quiche is not in their teeth. Let me free you. Unless the photographer asks you to pose for a picture, just keep doing exactly what you're doing! In event and lifestyle photography we aim to be invisible most of the time. The same is true for capturing pictures of your family at home. Go ahead and take out the camera (or iphone) right at the beginning of the activity. Have it ready to go but off to the side. Eventually everyone will forget that its there. Then when you see an opportunity snap a few photos without making a big deal out of it. Don't make any sort of announcement. Don't ask everyone to smile for the camera. Don't say "say cheese". (Ever) Just continue laughing and participating while you shoot. They may give pause for a moment but after a minute or two they'll forget about it.

3. INCLUDE YOURSELF! 

I'm as guilty of this as any mom and especially as a photographer. I have so many great photos of my kids and husband but if a stranger were to see our photo albums they would think that my husband is a single parent. Maybe a single parent who has a photographer follow him around everywhere, but single none the less. One of my resolutions this year is to be in more photos. If that means I have to hand the camera to my husband or mom every now and then and get over that I'm not always camera ready (read: never), then so be it. I might even hire a fellow photog this year because when it comes to authentic moments between people who love each other a self-timer or remote doesn't always cut it.

4. PRINT THEM!

Ok, so you've made the memory, captured the moment and somehow managed to get a few that with yourself included to. Now what? Don't keep your beautiful memories trapped on your computer or iphone! If you're the social media type, by all means share them. It's a great way to keep family and friends updated on your family but these memories are not primarily for them, they are for the people who made them. Get them printed and do it quickly. The longer you wait the less likely you are to do it. Prints are quick, easily accessible and so affordable these days you really have no good reason not to. Print them on a canvas, in a book, 8x10, 5x7, wallets, on a mug, on a mouse pad, get matching family t-shirts or make a life-size wall cling. Whatever you do, print them. If you must print them at a local convenience store hour photo, then do it but if you can wait a week or so take the extra step to get beautiful prints. Here's a site to free all of those adorable kid selfies from your iphone http://www.freeprintsnow.com/. My favorite is mpix.com but there are many printing sites that ensure that your photos are well done and will last a lifetime. My favorite way to print is in a yearly calendar. They make great gifts and when the year is done you get to keep or frame the prints.

The Essentials:

A camera: A common and true statement among photography lovers is "The best camera is the one you have with you." You don't have to have a big fancy camera to capture memorable images of your family. Not to mention that phone cameras are much better than they used to be. Feel free to use your phone camera, a point & shoot, a disposable camera or whatever else you have available, you're not a professional and these aren't going in the metropolitan museum of art so don't sweat it.

Light: Aside from real moments and a camera of some sort, you'll want to find the best light available. Natural light will provide the most pleasing photos. So, if you can get outside, do so. If you're inside, open the windows and the shades if possible.

A little bit of patience and a good attitude: Your family will take their 'mood cue' from you. If you're frustrated and short tempered because no one is cooperating, it'll only make things worse. If you can't get a good photo, let it go for a while. Be in the moment, let yourself have fun and enjoy the ones you're with and you win either way. Besides, if that great photo of your kids only reminds you of the time you lost your cool it may not be such a happy memory anyway. Real life makes for great photos, so live. "If you want to change the world, go home and love your family." - Mother Theresa

One more tip!

5. HIRE A PHOTOGRAPHER!

I can't follow you around all the time and I can't be present at all of your family functions. So, its necessary that you take your own family photos most of the time, They may not be technically perfect, shoot they may not even be in focus, but they'll be beautiful to you because you captured a part of your heart. That being said, there are times when you should hire a professional photographer. Why? For the same reason we eat at restaurants sometimes and don't make all of our own clothes. You already have to be great at the things you're great at. You can't do it all. And, sometimes its nice to let a professional cook your dinner or buy a new outfit at your favorite clothing store, or capture beautiful family memories that are frame worthy. If it's a mixture of candid and portrait photos that you want, I recommend an in-home lifestyle shoot. If it's posed, smiling, looking at the camera images you like then you'll want a family portrait session. Either way its worth the splurge from time to time.

I hope these tips help you to get beautiful photos of beautiful moments. Time with the ones we love is precious and those moments are fleeting. Take the time to capture them every now and then and help your children remember the important moments of their childhood when they have children and grandchildren of their own. 

“Taking pictures is savoring life intensely, every hundredth of a second.” Marc Riboud

Contact me at [email protected] and follow me on facebook.com/AbsurdandDignified

www.adigphotos.com