Family Photography How To

Now that the holidays are upon us, many photographers will be shooting portraits of friends and family. And whether or not you’re experienced at taking people pictures, the following tutorial will help you capture memorable photos of your loved ones.

Jennifer Borget is a photographer and journalist who offers great advice on simple ways to take dynamic photos. She’s also an energetic mother of two young children, and in the quick tutorial below she demonstrates how you can shoot self-portraits with your kids that you’ll cherish forever.

President Eisenhower said, “In preparing for battle I have always found that plans are useless, but planning is indispensable.” I get that. It’s a truism that applies to things much lighter than D-Day, too. So as I watch March melt into April, I summon my highly analog paper Day-Timer calendar and begin plotting my summer. In pencil, of course. Here are the seven “must-do” activities I’ve strategized so far. 

Everyone has at least one folder of images labeled “my best shots,” or something to that effect, on their computers. The images run the gamut from stunning landscapes and sunsets to great family portraits, travel images from your last vacation, amazing street scenes, work from client assignments, and so much more. 

Andy Seliverstoff has long been passionate about photography, but four years ago he decided to combine his craft with a love for man’s best friend and concentrate solely on dog photography. His enchanting “Little Kids and Their Big Dogs” project, reveals a unique bond that can occur between huge dogs and children.

As a Shutterbug reader, you know how to shoot fireworks. But what do you say to your friends and kinfolk when they ask you for advice? Simple—just send them the link to this article. It’s a nice, relatively short list of 10 tips for photographing aerial pyrotechnics. Because after all, there’s more to fireworks than what meets the sky. 

Noted photographer and online educator Elena Shumilova has a great new video offering four expert tips on how to take the best photos of children. You can watch the child photography how-to video, which was produced by SmugMug, at the bottom of this post.