The Secret to magical festive snaps

With so much happening on Christmas day its easy to not give much thought to the pictures you're taking, and quite often, after the big day you find you're disappointed with the results, they don't quite hit the spot, don't quite capture the magical moment that you remember… sound familiar? ... well to help avoid disappointment, here are a few tips to help ensure you capture those all important moments.

Preparation is key

No one wants to spend hours setting up, preparing and posing for family pictures on christmas day so have the prep sorted before hand. Think about outfits, lighting, colours, backgrounds, so that on the day you can snap away. Make sure you understand your camera, work out how to change the ISO, how using a lower aperture will help, and what the rules are for slow shutter speeds and hand held shots… if you're unsure about any of this take a look at this post.

Let there be light

Photos taken with natural light not only look so much more natural than with a flash but also it allows you to be more candid in your approach, therefore capturing genuine expressions rather than lots of 'cheesy' smiles ;) Make sure the curtains are open and you know how to turn off your automatic flash.

Take the family outside

Rather than (or as well as) the cheesy family photograph around the dinner table why not take some nice candid and posed family photos in the garden, or even better during a mid morning walk. The light will be beautiful, everyone will be nice and relaxed and you can capture some genuine festive family time.

Capture those all important details

We spend so much time preparing for Christmas and in a blink of an eye its all over for another year, so make sure you capture those important memories that will all too quickly be forgotten, you know the ones, handmade christmas decorations, letters to santa and everything else that is special to your family. 

Don't Say Cheese

OK so a few posed pictures on Christmas day are fine but try not to annoy the whole family by getting them to pose and say cheese constantly, some of the most beautiful pictures are the ones that no one knows you're taking. Tell the family to ignore the camera and then capture the magic.

I hope these tips have been helpful and you 

manage to get some fabulous festive shots. 

Have a very merry Christmas,

Lianne xox