Better Together

PHOTO CHALLENGE | Capture your family time, traditions, and coziness this month brings. Be sure to take a relaxed approached and not stress for “perfect” moments, just ensure you’re able to gather a sense of the story of that time.

“We tell ourselves stories in order to live.” - Joan Didion

Imagine the way you see families together in movies. You see laughing, crying, talking, and all sorts of candid, natural moments. You rarely see a moment of everyone smiling at the camera. You do see the house, representation of the season, interior details, quiet moments of those in their rooms, reading, a couple talking together, laughing, crying, etc. It’s a beautiful catalog that leaves no question as to where they are, who they might be in relation to one another, and a sense of who they are/their style. If you were to use that concept in your photography, imagine how beautiful a story you could tell with photography?

I’m certainly not suggesting that thinking along these lines makes for a complicated style of shooting, but I am suggesting that you think from the outside in. When you get home or are going to a family member’s home, your shot list could look something like this:

Exterior shot of the house (or detail outside to show the season).
Decor on porch or flowers in entryway.
Candid or abstract shots of people.
Playing a game or watching a movie.
Dinner being made, table being set, family around table.
After dinner drinks or coffee.
Snapshots of family photos, a roaring fire, or pet.
Family walks.
Light streaming in or sunset.
Posed shot of everyone together or at the dinner table.
- If you do want a group photo or posed portraits, plan for those separate from any activities. Let your family and friends know that it’s something you’d like to do, then separate that expectation from the rest of your candid shots.
- If you’re around people who don’t already expect you to come with camera in hand, then simply let them know you’d like to take candid photos of your time together. It’s been my experience that others are way more relaxed if they understand what you’re doing and why.

The idea behind this style of shooting is to keep things light, as uninterrupted as possible, and while capturing the experience also remaining present. My camera is an extension of me during family events, everyone knows and most will do something and ask for their picture taken. I’m happy to oblige. I don’t, however, stop people and ask them to pose. I take a few shots beforehand to dial in my settings in the event that something cute happens, but I don’t want to disrupt the flow of things either. My camera is at the ready for whatever candid moment I want to capture.

The result is a beautiful collection of candid moments with family, a sense of where we were, what we were doing, and all the lovely tidbits in between. I have all that from before my step-father passed away, how grateful we all are. I have all that from rare family get-togethers. From different homes we lived in, when our kids were babies, when it was better back when...