How to take better photos at Christmas
Christmas is a time when friends and families get together – whether that’s just you and your immediate family or a large gathering of extended family and friends. It’s the perfect opportunity to get some great pictures – especially as people are often more relaxed and open to having their photos taken during the holiday season.
1. Check your background
Take a good look at your surroundings. Are there empty plates or discarded glasses lying around in the background? Is your annoying uncle pulling faces behind your subject? Do you have a Christmas tree or the wall lights sticking out of someone’s head? If you can’t move your subject because you’re trying to get a candid shot, try moving yourself to get a better angle.
2. Position your subject in front of the Christmas tree
Bokeh is the out-of-focus, blurry background effect you get in photos. It can look cool and professional. Although it sounds technical, you can get this soft, round light effect by turning your Christmas tree lights on and positioning your subject a metre or so in front of them. The key to getting bokeh is in the amount of space between your subject and Christmas tree: experiment to see what works for your picture.
3. Use portrait mode on your phone
Portrait mode is ideal for taking photos of your gifts, food, and even someone who is happy to stay completely still for long enough. It blurs the background and helps your eye focus on the subject. If you can get it to work well it can give you very arty and professional looking pictures. Using it with kids, though, will often give you blurry images – they’re not quite so good at staying still!
4. Clean your lens!
Such a simple thing that’s often forgotten! Cleaning your lens will make such a difference. Get into the habit of cleaning your lens regularly and your future self will thank you.
5. Use burst mode on your phone
Setting your phone to ‘burst’ gives you more chances of getting the photo you want. In this mode you just press the button once and it will take multiple photos. It’s easy to then pick the good ones you want to keep. Make sure you delete the photos you don’t want as they’ll take up space on your phone. And who wants 500 photos of Barbie in various poses that your kids took when you weren’t paying attention?
6. Get onto your subject’s eye level
You might need to get down to your subject’s eye level – or you might need to stand on a step. Either way, capturing a person at their eye level often leads to a better photo.
7. Check your lighting!
Lighting is so important. If it’s dark, newer phone models will tend to automatically switch to night mode. In this mode you need to keep completely still or you’ll end up with a blurry image. And even if it’s dull and grey outside, avoid using flash. Less natural light will soften your photos so make the most of it and turn your flash off when you can.
If you can implement these easy ways of getting better photos over the holiday period, you’ll have more precious memories to look back on. But don’t forget – the most important thing you can do is relax, have fun, and enjoy the best possible Christmas Day with your friends and family.
You can also check out this blog for guidance on what to wear for your Christmas photos. And don’t forget to get in touch if you’d like some professional photos of the holiday season too!
