Capturing Life
We all love taking pictures of our family don't we?! Whether it's capturing their first steps, their first day of school or high school graduation, it's all there on our phones. I probably have waaaaay too many photos and videos on my phone, but that's ok. Keeping those memories close is important to me. I am sure they're important to you too, which is why you're here.
My name is Irene and I have two beautiful girls named Brooklyn and London (yes, like the famous bridges.) I became a natural light photographer when my oldest was about five years old. However, my love and passion for photography started much earlier when I was graduating elementary school. I've learned a lot since then about taking photos. I used to have those old disposable cameras that needed film and you had to wait for the people at Winn Dixie to develop the images for you; which felt like forever! Now, you can easily take a picture of anything and anywhere instantly on your phone.
Phone photography has come a long way. Which is great too because we all can't afford those fancy, expensive Nikons, right?! But whether you have a fancy mirrorless or DSLR or just your handy phone camera, I can show you my latest tips and tricks for capturing all of life's moments and milestones.
The first thing to keep in mind is that the best camera is the one you have - whether that's a Canon Rebel or an iphone 13. What you have right in your hands is the best, so let's get the most out of it! Here's three tips to start taking better family photos today!
Tip #1 Keep your camera close
How many times have you said, "oh that was so cute. Where's my camera!?" And of course, by the time you go to grab your phone, the baby stops walking or waving bye bye. Plus, any photo of a special moment is better than none at all. So keep the camera close by (and charged) and don't worry about capturing the perfect angle or getting the composition right. Just take the photo. This will also increase your practice with your camera giving you more opportunities to learn more of its features.
Tip #2 Backlight your subject
Sometimes we get so excited to use our cameras, we forget one simple yet essential factor; lighting. All it takes is just a few seconds to set up your family with the sun behind them to get a much better photo. Placing the sun behind your subject will eliminate squinty eyes, weird shadows and give you more even light. What if there is no sun and it's a cloudy day? You'll want to stay up to date with my next blog post all about lighting.
Tip #3 Learn about composition
Yes, I know I just said don't worry about the perfect composition just a few paragraphs ago, but when you have the time to set up your shot, interesting composition will instantly take your photos to the next level. The easiest composition trick is the Rule of Thirds. Most phones and fancy cameras have a grid to help guide you. For phones, make sure the Grid feature is turned on in your Settings. The grid separates the image into three sections. Simply place your subject in an area where the lines intersect (a third) for more interesting photos than just placing people in the middle of the picture (like everyone else does.) For more tips on what is composition, five easy composition tricks and why they work, again, you know what to do; stay tuned!
I hope you find this tips helpful. So go out there, take your camera everywhere and start taking better pictures today!
