Whenever I take another family's photo, they are always cooperative and engaged. The opposite is true of my own. Perhaps I ruined them at an early age when I felt the compulsion to document EVERY moment. Regardless of the reason, I refuse to let them win. As I tried to explain to Little Helmut: He may not care what his 17 year old self looked like in 10 years, but I sure will. So, a couple weeks ago, we headed out on a Sunday afternoon to take the annual Christmas card photo. I made a few mistakes that day and learned a few lessons in the process.
Dogs are an unpredictable subject. I love the way Sam looks in this photo, her expression is so natural. Chuy's crazy turned head totally ruins it.
Graffiti can make a great backdrop...done the right way. Here it is just downright distracting. If only I have moved the kids forward a few feet, then the graffiti would be blurred into a nice textured background while my subject would be in crisp focus.
Perspective is everything (note: this is a good life lesson as well). Moving all around a subject to get different angles and composition makes for interesting images. But it is definitely a trial and error method. It may look like it in this photo, but Little Helmut's forearm is not larger than his head or as thick as his thigh.
Never take Helmut along as a "helper". He won't help, in fact, he will hinder. Like standing behind me with reindeer antlers on making funny faces so the kids can't keep a straight face.
I love the last one! It is so funny.
Posted by: Katie | December 06, 2011 at 10:04 AM