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Family Travel Photo Tips {North Dallas Photographer | Prosper, TX}

Summer is wrapping up here in North Dallas and children are headed back to school with memories of long summer days +  family vacations.  Unfortunately, those memories will soon fade with the routine of school, sports, and homework.  However, my hope is to encourage you to keep your family’s memories alive through travel photos and printing those images which your kids will enjoy for years to come.

Today I am sharing some of my favorite tips for taking vacation photos.  Whether you are shooting with an iPhone, mirrorless camera, point and shoot or DSLR, I want to give you ideas for images to document your next vacation.  These are the images that will tell the stories your children want to remember and will pass on to their children.  In this age of selfies + selfie sticks, I’m afraid that we are missing some great opportunities to tell our unique stories through traditional photos.

How you get there:

Sometime its not just the destination that matters but the journey along the way.  Vacations are full of fun opportunities to capture different forms of transportation.  Planes, trains, and ferries are just a few.  Our family takes a trip to the Pacific NW every summer and my boys LOVE the ferry rides.  We have to take a 45 minute ferry to get to a small island where we vacation.  This is such a novel experience for my land locked Texas crew, and I love capturing their experiences as we enjoy this annual event together.

Shelly Niehaus Photography| Dallas Family Photography| Boy on ferry Shelly Niehaus Photography| Dallas Family Photography| Boys on ferry Shelly Niehaus Photography| Dallas Family Photography| Cars on ferry

Setting the scene: 

When I first picked up my camera I was always taking portraits of my boys.  Beautiful, close up shots with picture perfect smiles.  These days I am leaning towards the opposite end of the spectrum and love to incorporate environment.  Take a step back and get down on their level are the first things I tell myself.  A good image that sets the scene is a must.  It’s even better if you can get your subject in the frame to show their size and scale compared to the background.

Shelly Niehaus Photography| Dallas Family Photography| Boys throwing rocks in Puget Sound Shelly Niehaus Photography| Dallas Family Photography| Clam Digging Shelly Niehaus Photography| Dallas Family Photography| Children on BridgeShelly Niehaus Photography| Dallas Family Photography| Boy in Pikes Place Market

Memorable moments:

We’ve all been subject to looking at someone’s vacation photos and they have 5-10 images of the exact.same.thing.  Ugh, the struggle is real friends!  I admit I was guilty of doing this too in my early years.  Now I love to challenge myself to add lots variety to my images.  Change your point of view and shoot your memorable moments from several different angles.  This will tell a much stronger story.  Try shooting your subjects from above and then get down low to see how your story changes.  You will be surprised how a small shift of your body or taking a step back can produce a completely different image.  Below is a great example of how I shot the same day of activities in different ways.

Shelly Niehaus Photography| Dallas Family Photography| Boy on paddle boardShelly Niehaus Photography| Dallas Family Photography| Boy on Paddle Board in Front on Mt. Rainer Shelly Niehaus Photography| Dallas Family Photography| Boy on Paddle Board Shelly Niehaus Photography| Dallas Family Photography| Boys on Water Tube

Get in the frame:  

As a mom and photographer, I am guilty of coming home from a vacation with tons of photos.  All of them have my family having fun, and I’m not in a single shot.  I want my kids to remember that I was there too and the special memories that we shared.  Over the past two years I have learned to better about handing my camera over and getting in the frame.  Find a way to set your camera up so that a stranger can easily click the shot with a single touch.

I have a Canon 5D Mark IV which can be a beast of a camera and very intimidating.  However, I have learned that if get my settings correct + switch my LCD to live view  + enable the “Touch Shutter: Enable” feature I can hand it over to anyone.  With the simple touch a my screen they can snap the picture.  This was life changing when I had this realization.  Also, use a wider lens to decrease the chances of limb chops.

Finally, don’t forget to be creative too!  Look for reflections, use a tripod and as a last resort pull out that selfie stick.  Desperate times call for desperate measure Mamas!

Shelly Niehaus Photography| Dallas Family Photography| Woman with camera in reflection of car mirror

Shelly Niehaus Photography| Dallas Family Photography| Family in Front of Barn

Don’t forget to PRINT THOSE PHOTOS when you get home!  I will be doing a post later in the month about the importance of printing your photos and gratification of seeing your images on your wall or in an album.  Now . . . go take those amazing vacation shots and tag me on Instagram!  I love seeing your creative work.

 

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