Family Vacation Photos

Tips for you and your camera to remember

By Honey DeLapa, DeLapa Photography, thelakehouse@mac.com, 585-392-3886

It's time to hit the road--Don't forget the camera!

Photography on-the-go is different from studio portrait photography, and plays by different rules. During the course of my career, I've learned from some of the country's greatest photographers about what works best to make a family shine on location. Arm yourself with these tips, and preserve great memories for generations!

Preparation

I use my camera equipment every day, but you may not have picked up your camera since the last birthday party or holiday. Make sure your camera is in working order before you pack. Turn it on and take a picture; it doesn't cost a thing if you're using a digital camera. Make sure you have extra batteries. There is nothing worse than getting to the top of the mountain after a long hike and running out of battery power! Bring a memory card that is large enough. Media is very inexpensive, so you might even think about purchasing an extra card when you see them on sale. Not only will this allow you to take more photos, it's also a good idea to use more than one card when you are taking a trip. That way, if one card fails, you'll still have images on the other.

"Are we there yet?"

Unless you're a travel and landscape photographer, your goal isn't to take the ultimate scenic of Mount Everest. (Leave that to the National Geographic guys and buy a postcard if you want the perfect photo!) Your mission is to tell the story of your family's trip. So don't save the picture-taking only for your destination. That means photos of all the fun including packing the car, playing games while traveling, stops along the way for breaks--you get the idea. Some of the nicest light for portraits is inside the car (during the day, of course), so snap a couple of fun photos of the kids fighting in the back seat. You want to think of your trip as a documentary and show the emotions, reactions, and laughter along the way.

Tips

Interesting angles: When I travel with my family, I take the same silly pictures everyone else does. We always like to show the outside of our hotel with the family waving at the camera, the inside of the room, the view from the room, etc. I try to make them more interesting by using different angles and composition.

Rule of Thirds: Most casual photographers put their subject in the center of the image. Instead, try using what photographers and artists call "the rule of thirds," wherein you place the subject to one side of the frame. Imagine lines dividing your frame into thirds vertically and horizontally; you want to try to place your object(s) of interest at the intersection points, like the photograph in the right. (Click on the photo to see it larger.) For nature photographs, move your horizon line out of the center and place it either one third from the top or bottom of the image. While you're at it, make sure the horizon is straight.

People in front of landscapes--positioning: Placing people in your landscape or scenic photos will allow you to show size in relation to humans. Your photos will always be better if you check what's behind your subject. The objects behind your subject may be quite far away and not be noticed by the eye, but the camera sees things differently. Be careful to keep the horizon line from going through someone's head; you can accomplish this with the camera angle you use, so either squat down lower or get up higher to move it. Don't let things "grow" out of people's heads.

Ah, the sun: On sunny days, you should place people so the sun is behind YOU, the picture taker, and have the sun come in over your shoulder from the right or left a little. That way, it doesn't go directly in the subjects' eyes, yet it lights the faces nicely. There's nothing worse than telling people to look at the camera and make them look directly in to the sun. No one likes squinty eyes.

More on the sun: If you must place your subjects in a place where the sun is behind THEM in order to get the scene you want, make sure your flash is on to try to fill in the light on the faces. If there is too much sun behind them or from the side, you'll get silhouettes of the faces or big dark holes where the eyes should be, and even the small flash on your camera may not be enough. Because the camera has a difficult time adjusting to "contrasty" situations, it is best that the background in the picture neither be too bright nor too dark, but similar to the light on the subject.

Clouds are your friends: Some vacationers become sad when the sun hides for extended times, especially when they're on the beach. Not a photographer! Overcast skies provide the perfect light to capture expressions on your subjects' faces. Plus, cloud formations create visual interest in a photo even on overcast days.

Trees and shade: When placing people in the shade, make sure you don't have them too far under the trees. Try this experiment: Walk all the way under a tree to the trunk, then turn around and slowly walk back toward the edge of the shade. You will feel when the light starts to hit your face, just before the edge. That's the perfect place for photographs of people, so stand your subjects there. You, the photographer, will be out in the sun facing the trees, and they will stand facing you at that "perfect" spot. Make sure that their faces are not dappled with sunny spots shining through the leaves before you click the shutter.

Unposed photos: Try telling your story with some unposed photos. Today's cameras have great ability to focus fast and get good exposure. Let your family have fun with the activities you've planned and take some action shots. That's the perfect way to get real expressions and reactions to what they see along the way.

Preserve your memories right away: When you come home, don't put the camera away with your photographs inside. Upload them to your computer and burn a backup CD so you don't lose those wonderful memories. There are great ways to show your vacation photos, including slide shows and press printed books. You can also share them with friends and relatives by making a family blog at one of the free sites on the internet. Make sure you have a few of your favorite images printed at a lab to add to your family album.

By taking photographs, you are recording your family's place in history. These tips may help you create better images so you will be proud to pass those memories on to the next generation.

©2009 by Honey DeLapa. All rights reserved.

Honey DeLapa is owner of DeLapa Photography, based in Hilton, NY.