It’s that time of the year again where we all get family pictures taken and if your anything like me you most likely get a bit stressed trying to plan out outfits while also praying that your kids are in a good mood that day hah. I’m sharing some tips I’ve learned the past two years when it comes to taking family pictures with little ones and also some helpful style suggestions to help make your Christmas card expierence a little less stressful 🙂
  
 
 
  
Ready, set…. chaos!! Haha is usually how it feels. Here are my 5 tips for taking family photos:
- Location – If you have kids this is important to plan ahead. If your looking to have an outdoor session I would suggest picking out a place nearby or ask your photographer is they know of a place thats not too far away. The last thing you want is to make your kids get all ready for pictures and then have them sit in their carseats for 30 or 45 minutes.. by then they will just be agitated or tired and most likely if you spent time on their hair.. it’s probably been tampered with hah I always would recommend outdoor locations because natural light is always better in my opinion. However if the weather is terrible you can definitely create some beautiful family pictures indoor. If we are going with the Christmas theme you could look at taking pictures as a family all on the couch, by the fireplace, by your Christmas tree (given it’s up) or you all drinking hot cocoa in Christmas pjs could be really cute! Which all depends on the next tip..
- Pick Your Theme – I’m not saying you have to plan a wedding here, you don’t need to get too crazy with the details (unless you want to) but I would suggest picking a color theme or a setting theme. Once you have a theme it will make picking out your families outfits a lot easier. Color schemes could be – Red/White/Gold/Grey/Black or Navy/White/Orange or Mustard Yellow/Tan you get the drift. You could also go with a Christmas theme and have the whole family wearing beanies or Christmas pjs. Don’t be scared to accessorize and layer up! Try to split up the colors/prints so that they accent each others outfits and don’t overtake the picture.
- Plan Ahead –Give yourself more than enough time to plan for the pictures, don’t wait till the last minute! I’ve done this way too many times and it just creates more stress and takes the fun away from it. I suggest buying/ordering your outfits and laying them all out to see if it flows.  You’ll go into your pictures relaxed and not stressing as much the day of. If you have smaller kids I would highly suggest having backup outfits… you just never know! 😉
- Get Silly – This to me is by far the most important tip! You’ve put all this planning in your families pictures the last thing you want is to get them back form the photographer and the pictures not reflect your family because everyone looks serious or unhappy. I think the best pictures are the candid ones, where my son is laughing from being tickled by his dad or from me talking in a silly voice and telling jokes!  I’m aware that kids are going to be kids sometimes and not be in the best mood, if thats the case try and distract them with something fun to do. Kyden was extremely shy of the photographers at the start so we distracted him and told him we were going on a scavenger hunt for pine cones (Hah). Once he found one and he got the drift of it, he forgot about the photographers and was just being himself. Don’t be scared to get silly, have fun and interact with one another. Most importantly let your kids be kids! Sometimes the best pictures are those where your kids are just doing their thing, because you get to capture exactly who your kids are. I’m not a pose for the picture and everyone smile now kind of person. My favorite pictures are the ones taken in the moment of us just simply being us.
- Be Prepared- Because of the natural sunlight most photographers will suggest taking pictures around dinner time. Try and feed your kids before, if not bring snacks that won’t stain their clothes or make a huge mess. Robert and I always have some sort of candies or snacks on us. Sweet Tarts are good, crackers, grapes, ect.  Also bring backup outfits if you have smaller kids like I mentioned above, because you don’t want the whole family picture ruined because your baby had an accident all over your shirt.. which just made me thinks of WIPES! Bring lots of wipes haha. Lastly bring warm clothes and blankets… fall/winter weather can change so dramatically depending where you live so just have them in the vehicle just in case 🙂
