How to Take Great Family Photos

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Whether you like old-school film photography, you prefer the ease of digital cameras, or you go to a photo
studio for annual family portraits, you might be distressed by the fact that these quality representations
meant to capture and preserve a moment in time are populated by blinking eyes, vacant expressions,
rabbit ears, and even people looking the wrong direction. Despite your best efforts to keep your family in
line for the split-second it takes to compose a decent photograph, there always seems to be one goofball
fouling up the works. It’s not like you need a Stepford-family moment, but is it too much to ask that one
family photo a year comes out presentable?! Apparently so. And yet, there are steps you can take to ensure
that the next photo comes out flawless. Here are just a few tips to get you on track for some truly fantastic
family pics.

1. Get close. For family photos, one of the best ways to get a really warm feeling is to squish
everyone together. Even with groups that are fairly close normally, this may be no easy feat simply
because people have personal space, so this type of forced, full-body contact might be pretty
uncomfortable. But asking everyone to hug the person next to them could create a family photo
that makes you smile every time you look at it.

2. Color code. The nice thing about getting everyone wearing matching outfits is that it brings the
focus squarely to the family. Not only does it help the body mass to blend into the background,
but if you choose classic white for the shirts it will create a visual illusion that draws the eye
towards the faces in the photograph.

3. Count down. If you want everyone to have smiles on their faces and eyes open at the same time,
the countdown is a necessary step. But there are a couple of ways to go about making it work.
Some people count down from three but snap the photo when they hit two as a way to get more
natural expressions, while others have the group close their eyes and then open them on the count
of one to avoid blinking during the actual snapshot.

4. Take action. In order to create a really great photo that has no chance of appearing posed, why
not try an action shot where the family jumps into the air at the same time or runs towards
the camera? Often, people aren’t thinking about their facial expression when their minds are
otherwise occupied, so if you ask everyone to smile when they perform a specific action there’s a
good chance the smiles will look genuine.

5. Use the rapid fire technique. If you can get everyone laughing and joking you may be able to fire
off a few candid shots with no one being the wiser. Often, these come out more personal and less
staged, which many families find preferable. And while you can definitely look into buying some
of the Top Reviewed DSLR Cameras for 2012, you might be better off using your old manual
camera, which can click off a dozen shots before anyone even realizes the shooting has started.