keith pitts photography blog

Friends and family always ask me how I shoot my kids around the holidays – especially on Christmas morning.  Here are a few tips:

• Get as much light in the room as you can – turn up ambient lighting, open shades – we want to be able to use natural light – try to keep flash OFF!
• Look at the scene – are there windows behind your tree?  If you shoot directly at the windows – your pictures will come out dark.  Move to the side, look for a better spot, find a good angle, change up angles
• Be ready to push the shutter at a moments notice – we are looking to capture natural expressions on your children’s faces
• Get down on the ground with them while they are opening presents
• Shoot quickly and shoot often!  You don’t want to miss anything – you can edit later!
• Don’t forget the detail shots – a beautiful ornament, a bow on a present - we can tell a beautiful story by including these pictures
• Document the day – start the night before – take pictures of Santa’s cookies, the tree before the kids wake up (refer to my tips of photographing holiday lights), your children sleeping, stockings hanging on the mantle…
• If your pictures are too blurry – then add a flash (only as a last resort!)

Here is a suggestion for an interesting shot of your kids opening up their gifts under the tree:  use a tripod, turn up ambient lighting, if flash is built into camera: turn flash off, use longer exposure setting (for those that have no idea what I’m referring to – like my wife!) set the dial on the big P: Program Mode, focus on the tree (your kids should be ripping open their gifts).  The result should be a great shot of your tree and children with motion blur!

Footnote:  these are general rules – all rules can be broken or depending on your experience level – interpreted in your own way or completely ignored!  This is one way – but not the only way!  Play around with what works for you and your camera!