How To Shoot Better Pictures

How to shoot better pictures

Tips & Hints from a Pro

I started my photography business six years ago, after my firstborn had so many pictures taken, he would start to smile and pose for the cameras in the camera display at Wal-Mart as a baby! From there, I’ve done
trial and error, learning new techniques and ways to capture pictures of my own kiddos. In the interim, I’ve had the opportunity to photograph portraits for many families and friends.

In the time that I started, I’ve learned a few things for taking better pictures. Here’s some of the things that I’ve learned…

Don’t be afraid to shoot. A lot.

When I’m trying to get pictures of my kids (who are harder than my clients!) – I will sometimes take 100 pictures and then get a handful of winners.

Get close.

Some of the best pictures of our kids, are the close ups. Take a giant step closer and then take the picture.

The best lighting is a shaded spot or cloudy day.

Try to avoid overly sunny spots – the brightness can washout the picture (or have squinty eyes).

Simplicity

Some of my favorite pictures of my kids are super simple. Don’t worry about overly fashionable clothing, etc. for a picture.

Learn your camera

Whether you have a simple point and shoot, or a DSLR – get out your manual and learn what your camera can do. Sometimes what you are wanting to achieve is spelled out in the manual.

Google

You can find a lot of techniques, ideas, settings, etc. for your camera and pictures by looking online. Try something new.

Bribery

A promise of a sucker when we’re all done can go a long way towards getting that perfect shot for Grandma. ;)

Think Outside the box

My middle child, Andrew is just barely past terrible two’s and in fully entrenched in the three’s – trying to get him to stop long enough to get a picture is often impossible (despite offers of a sucker,…pennies…a pony…) – for the sample picture of my little guy, I absolutely love this picture. The ONLY way that I got him to look AND smile was to let him play with the acorns on the ground. We’d throw them at a post, then I’d be ready to snap as he would laugh and I would laugh so loud that he’d look and CLICK. Magic. Or at least it sure feels like it for a mom of a toddler!

Get on their level

Squat or get close to your kids to shoot their pictures. If you’re five and a half feet tall and they are two feet tall – there’s a lot of distance there. (Think airplane over the town). You can completely change the perspective by getting down with your kids!

Edit

There are TONS of programs on the market that can take a mediocre picture and make it even better. The Rolls Royce of editing software is Photoshop, but if you don’t want to drop that kind of money, there
are some great programs. Picasa is a free download available from Google that you can take red eye out, do some simple modifications to your color, shadows, highlights, a simple click for B&W or sepia, etc.

Printing

With the digital age, has come a lack of photos being printed! I’m just as guilty of it. But when you want a really nice image printed for grandparents, gifts, etc. you might want something a little better than the local 1 hour photo. Mpix.com is the consumer side of a professional photo lab (Miller’s). You can order from them and have professional quality printing service. I love their diecut wallets. 

Digital photography provides for a simple way to get your feet wet with shooting pictures. There are so many resources nowadays that it makes it easy to find what you are wanting to achieve for your images.

Kristen is a stay-at-home mom to three models kids; Matt is 6 and in 1st grade, Drew is 3, and Bekah is 1. She's been married for 9 1/2 years to her husband Tom, who changes the world one child at a time as a therapist to at risk youth. She is a 2001 and 2004 graduate of John Brown University
in Siloam Springs, Arkansas. Shortly after having Matthew in 2003, she had taken so many pictures of him that starting a photography business seemed like the next thing to do. From there, Kristen
Hargett Photography was formed in September 2003. She's been photographing families and portrait photography for the past six years for families in Northwest Arkansas and several long distance shoots in the far north Chicago suburbs. To see more photography work, you can visit her photography website. To see what our family is up to, visit our family blog.

DIY Thanksgiving Banner

I found this craft somewhere out in blogworld, but I can't find it right now! Sorry for not giving you credit, whoever you are!

I first made one of these for my son's first birthday. I decided not to make it say Happy Birthday so we could use it for different occasions. That's why his says, "Hooray for Dietrich!" That way, when he's 17 and makes all A's, we can pull it out and take a picture of him next to it with his report card!
To start, you can pick out your fabric. For Dietrich's, I used 5 coordinating fabrics and had the back always be the same. For my Thanksgiving banner, I just had 2 fabrics and the backs are all the same as the spaces. Then I cut out the triangles with a triangle shape cutter I have for quilting. It worked out well--6 1/2" triangles. You can also just use a ruler and measure it out. If your fabric has a right side up (like mine did), you'll have to make sure that each time you cut it out, it is the right way. Then sew the back to the front with the two right sides of the fabric facing along both sides. Leave the top open. Do all pieces this way and then turn them right side out. Use a needle or something sharp to make your triangle points come out.
Instead of cutting out and appliquing each letter, I buy iron-on letters. This time, they didn't have brown, so I used black. I iron the flags flat and iron on the letters at the same time.
Then I peel off the film to make sure that the letters have stuck. Arrange them in order and be excited that you're almost done!! (Uh, can you tell I need a new ironing board cover?? Gross!)
Sew them all together using a coordinating binding. I buy double fold extra wide bias tape and it works great! I don't measure to make sure where to start, and thankfully it's worked out perfectly both times! At the end you've got a cute banner that you didn't spend much on and you'll be able to keep forever! My total investment was probably less than $10. If you already have the fabric and thread, it will be less!
I plan to sell this at my craft fair this weekend that I organized at my church!

DIY Ruffled Pants with Applique Shirt

Remember when I asked you about sewing? Well, I did in fact get a sewing machine for my birthday (a FREE used machine that meets all my needs for now). I have already had so much fun with little projects here and there. But today I want to show you my very first (post HS home economics) project.

A friend and I have started this sewing venture together. Everything is more fun with a girl friend, right? Sewing definitely is! We got together one night to make these super cute ruffled pants.

You can find the pant tutorial HERE.

I picked up my primary fabric and found a contrasting fabric for the ruffle. The fabric I used is from Hobby Lobby. They have some great fabrics and they are on sale more often than not. I also purchased 1 package of elastic, 1 spool of thread, and the pattern.  Total cost for these pants was around $15. And total time was 4 hours (but keep in mind, this was my FIRST project.) And I have the pattern to use again and again (such as Christmas pants later this week).

The pants are cute by themselves, but who can resist a matching applique shirt? Not me. I wanted something simple and something that wasn't specific to a holiday (this time around). That way she can wear it in the spring also. I picked her first initial. A pattern can be made by picking a font from your word processing program, enlarging it to the desired size. Instructions can be found here.  To make things really easy, I found this alphabet template online and used the copier to enlarge to desired size.

You can find the shirt tutorial HERE.

The shirt requires a bit more of an initial investment than the pants did. I had to purchase a tear-away stabilizer, fusible webbing, a spool of thread,  a scrap piece of the ruffle material from the pants, and a plain t-shirt. Total cost was close to $20. BUT, I barely used any of the stabilizer or fusible webbing, so I have plenty for projects to come. And remember how great sewing with a friend can be? Well, we split those two items knocking about $8 off the total cost of the shirt and I still have plenty of materials left over. (Next time I will only have to buy a shirt and thread for a total of about $7 without a coupon.) Total time on the shirt was about an hour. Again, this is my first time at the machine in 15 years.

I have really enjoyed my time at the machine. It gives me something that I can do for my family and gives me a sense of accomplishment and pride in my work. And who can turn down time with good friends, even if we are working?

DIY Decorative Clothespins

Okay, I know what you are thinking reading the title. Why would anyone need decorative clothespins? And the answer is, well, you wouldn't actually need them. But stay with me. I promise this is going to be good and you will want them.

I got this idea from my brilliantly creative friend Tori. She belongs to a family of women who can look at almost anything and say, "Oh, I could do that." And then they ACTUALLY DO IT! She was helping me to come up with a project for a fundraising "Make It, Bake It or Fake It" auction. The concept is that each person brings something that they've "made, baked or faked" and we all bid on each other's handiwork. These sets were a hit and brought in much more money than they cost to make, so here they are:

I made decoupaged mini-clipboards and clothespin sets. These are perfect for gift-giving during the holidays and once you buy the basic supplies, each set costs around $2-3 (or less!)

1. Gather all your supplies. You could do large clipboards, small ones or simply sets of clothespins. Then choose sets of 2-3 coordinating scrapbooking papers. You will also need Mod Podge (or a similar product) and disposable sponge brushes.

2. Cut these papers to the desired size for your clothespins and/or clipboards. I like to put a piece of paper on both sides of each clothespin and each clipboard.

3. Working very quickly, apply a thin layer of glue to the paper and place on the clipboard. Press any bubbles out to the edge. Allow to dry completely before applying any topcoats.

4. The clothespins are easy to decoupage. I do both sides at the same time by holding the clothespin on the metal clamp and placing it on it's side to dry after gluing down a strip of paper on each surface.

5. Apply 2-3 thin layers of glue for topcoats. Once again, the clothespins are small and don't require much precision. The large surface of the clipboards make mistakes more noticable so work more carefully on these. The directions on the glue suggest 15-20 minutes between coats.

6. Tie them up with a cute bow and make your friends smile!

Here are a few tips I've learned in making these several times:

-Choose your paper for the clothespins carefully. A large pattern will not look that great on a tiny surface.

-You can wrap your brush in plastic wrap or cover with a damp paper towel to use the same brush throughout the entire project.

-Allow to dry completely for several days before attaching any paper or stacking the items, as they will stick.

I know you still may be thinking that you wouldn't need to use these, but who doesn't want cute clips on their chips? Here are a couple other uses for them that I have come up with:

- Use Christmas themed paper and make a card-hanging display with decorative clothespins and twine. (Also a perfect gift!)

- Use colors from a shower and decorate with shower-related items. (Recipes for a bridal shower, panties for a personal shower, onesies for a baby shower, etc.)

- Use fall colors and make a "Thankful Line". Hang pictures or words of things that you are thankful for with your kids.

- Attach small magnets and hang them from your refrigerator for displaying art or holding papers.

- Use different colors to sort papers in your homeschooling area or to display art and school work.

Got any more ideas?

DIY Bean Bag Chair

Ohdeedoh is one of my new favorite sites. A few weeks ago they featured this tutorial for a bean bag chair. The site said, "If you're even mildly handy with a sewing machine, it's quite easy to make your own." I'm mildly handy with a sewing machine, so I thought I'd give it a try!

I made a few adjustments to the instructions and layout. For example, I didn't make an insert and I just filled it with shipping peanuts. The total cost for my version was about $22 (three yards of fabric, some Velcro, and the shipping peanuts). It took me about three hours to make (and I'm a pretty slow seamstress).  I don't expect it to last forever. I just wanted to make a reading corner for the boys!

Here are the fabrics I choose. Just basic cotton pieces, three yards total.

I practiced first with a scrap piece of fabric before I started cutting the actual fabric for the bean bag. Here it is laid out with the pattern (here's a link directly to the instructions and pattern).

Sewing the pieces on top and bottom to gather it all together was the trickiest, but if I did it, you can do it too!

Here's the final product! I love how it turned out. The boys have jumped in it a few times and so far, it hasn't exploded! I had our church's best seamstress on "speed dial" just in case, but besides just a phone call to her when I was getting started (to ask what "selvedge" meant),  I did it all by myself!

Spiritual Habits

True confession time:

I can only start something new on Monday.

I know, that's awful. I can sometimes manage to force myself to try something on the 1st of the month but for the most part, it has to be on Monday. I'm not sure why that is ... and I've tried to talk myself out of this little neurosis but so far, after 38 years, it just seems that I'm a "Monday only starter."

So, if you're like me, you have a few days to determine what to do with all the great information you have received this week from Sandra, Alicia, KLee, and Kama. Of course, you are probably already overwhelmed with decisions about which of their delightful ideas you are going to immediately put into action early Monday morning and so for me to offer you a couple of more suggestions is only going to make your weekend a little more stressful ... for that, I do apologize!

But, I couldn't resist sharing a couple of those habits - one older and one brand new - that I have in my life which have had such a profound impact on me.

Off we go ...

Reading Proverbs daily.

I started this around 8 years ago, I think. It's a Billy Graham suggestion that has been recommended by countless people but it's such a vital part of my day now that I cannot imagine not doing this. Every day I read the chapter of Proverbs that corresponds with the date ... so today, October 30, I'll read Proverbs 30. Because I've been doing this awhile, I can tell you that one of the verses that I most love in this chapter is this one: he is a shield "Every word of God is flawless; to those who take refuge in him." (verse 5). {It's also worth noting how very thankful I am that every month does not have 31 days because that Proverbs 31 woman is too intimidating for me to read about every month!!}

Praying for my church daily.

A brand new habit ... in fact, as I am writing this post, I have not completed my first month in doing this but already it has been such a powerful tool in my life. God had laid a burden on my heart to pray for my church but to also encourage others to pray for their churches as well. I began looking through Acts to learn about what made the early church so vibrant and dynamic and as God revealed things to me, I took notes and formed 30 Days, 30 Prayers, 30 Minutes ... a tool for praying for our churches. I am sharing it on my Facebook page and once we finish the full 30 days I'll add it to my blog ... the goal is to work up to praying for 30 minutes for our church. Each day we pray the previous prayers and a new one ... by the end of 30 days, we will be praying 30 specific prayers based on 30 passages in Acts and it will take about 30 minutes. My goal is to continue praying a prayer for my church each day ... again, using the date to keep me on track (that is praying day 1 on the first, etc.). I'd love to have you join me in this prayer project ... you can find all the details here ... 30 Days, 30 Prayers, 30 Minutes.

What about you? What spiritual habits are you forming? And how is God using them to strengthen you?

Reading and Spanish

I have heard the news reports about how reading to your kid from birth helps them be smarter, do better in school and just be better people...or something like that! When I was pregnant with Dietrich, I would say that I was going to speak Spanish to him and read to him every day. He is now 13 months old and I have not done either of these things! His Uncle Eddie who is just learning Spanish has spoken more Spanish to him than I have!

For the month of November, I want to start the habit of reading to Dietrich at least once a day and speak to him some in Spanish. I guess I could read his Spanish books to him and that would count for both activities that day!

My question to you is: Should I read different books to him every day? I've heard that toddlers love repetition. So should I read him the same book for a few days and then move on? Advice please!