How to Take Memorable Mother's Day PhotosPhotographer Amanda Brummer-Onstott offers tips for creating images you and your family will cherish forever. |
Article by Jenn Gidman Images by Amanda Brummer-Onstott |
As a busy professional photographer and mom to a 4-year-old and 6-year-old, Texas photographer Amanda Brummer-Onstott is doubly attuned to how important a Mother's Day photo is. "I'm a photographer and have many photographer friends, yet I still haven't had a family session of my own in years," she says. "I barely have any pictures of me with my kids. It's important that, as the mom, you try to get in some of the pictures, too-especially around Mother's Day." |
Amanda uses the Tamron SP 24-70mm VC lens when she's taking pictures of her own kids and other families near her home in Fort Worth. "The 24-70 is one of my favorite lenses," she says. "I love that you don't have to be right up on top of your subjects, which makes everyone more relaxed in the images. That unobtrusiveness allows me to get more candid photos, which can be a lovely way to show a mom's relationship with her kids for Mother's Day. The picture quality is also terrific, and the Vibration Compensation helps me get rid of camera shake when I need to." |
Read on for Amanda's tips for capturing your own special Mother's Day memories. |
Look for the best light and a background that works for your family. |
I'll typically try to find the least-cluttered space in the house if I'm taking pictures indoors, but it depends on the client. While it's desirable not to have a lot of distracting elements around, sometimes the look you're going for might be less about perfection and more about being in the moment. For my own family pictures, that usually means more of an everyday look as opposed to an overly neat and tidy one. |
Outside, anywhere with grass and trees works. I'll often take a lot of pictures in front of people's houses because many people don't stay in the same place they were in when their kids were young. By incorporating their homes, I give them a way to go back to that particular place and time through their photos. |
Sometimes you can find a great photo location in places you'd least expect. My kids and I were trying to find a place to take some pictures for our Christmas card and decided on an alley by our house. It was different than where we usually took pictures, the light was really pretty, and except for a dumpster I had to move, there were no other visual distractions, so the focus stayed on us. |
Mix up poses and angles. |
I used to not be as cognizant about trying to shoot from different angles, so I'd tilt the camera instead. I would think it looked so cool, but then when I'd put the picture in a frame, it would look like everyone was tipping over. It's fine to tilt the camera a little, but it can look awkward if you do it too much. |
I take a lot of straight-on posed images, but shooting from above is my favorite angle because it's usually really flattering to moms-just watch out for V-neck T-shirts that are cut too low or other things like that. With kids, ask them to lie in the grass and take their picture from above. They're a little more relaxed when they're rolling around having fun on the ground! |
When it does come to getting group shots that are more posed, I try to get everyone close together and on the same level. I usually don't want the kids sitting and Mom standing, for instance. My preference is to have everyone sit, or maybe ask Mom to stand while holding her child or to have the kids stand on a chair or box so all of their heads are in the same visual space. For a picture I took of my mother-in-law with all of her grandkids, she sat down first and then I asked all of the kids to gather around her. |
I love close-up pictures that fill the frame, but take a variety of shots-include some that show the environment as well. You can always crop an image later if you want to. |
Encourage Mom to get in as many pictures as possible. |
Sometimes when I'm photographing clients, I've found that moms don't want to be in the picture. I've taken newborn pictures where the mothers think they look tired or worn out because they're not wearing makeup. They'll say, "Oh no, I don't want to be in this picture with the baby." I always gently encourage them to let me take at least one picture with them in it. I remind them that they don't have to share the image with anyone or post it anywhere and that I won't post it anywhere, either. It's simply a personal, intimate reminder of a beautiful time that you and your child shared. |
Follow your subjects' lead. |
To see more of Amanda Brummer-Onstott's work, go to the Real Moms Real Views website at www.realmomsrealviews.com. |