Supermom Tips for Capturing Your Kids Cutest Moments

Author: Shannon Miller Lifestyle

Guest post by: Deborah Yanez

There is so much I want to do for my kids.

Big things like savings accounts, college preparation and teaching them about being good to the environment. And then there are the little things: feeding them veggies regularly, putting notes in their lunch boxes and scrapbooking their youth. The scrapbooking is actually kind of a big project, though, and as I started in on it I realized I needed better photographs to work with.

I love candid pictures; the cute photos, the funny shots that really tell you who a person is and tell a story about that moment in time. They’re not always easy to capture though. It’s easier if you have an iPhone or smart phone, but I like the better quality shots I get with my digital camera (which, by the way, is just a point-and-shoot). Unfortunately, as easy as a P&S (Point and Shoot) camera is, it still takes some skill to get those great and memorable photos.

Here’s what you need to know to start improving the photo journalist skills in your Supermom arsenal:

Learn Your Camera Settings

I can’t tell you how many times I have seen someone take a picture without knowing what settings they’re using, what they should be using, whether the flash is on and how long it will take to focus and snap the picture. And that’s just posed in front of a statue or landmark on vacation. In everyday life, you don’t have that kind of time to prepare for a photo opportunity ‚especially when kids are involved. Take a look at your owner’s manual. Find out what settings work well in different kinds of lighting and for fast motion. Until you really get to know all of the settings (in all your spare time, I know) stick with something that works wells with subjects in motion.

Shoot Photos for Editing

Use the highest resolution setting on the camera. The files will take up more space, but you’ll be thankful in the end.

As important as photographic composition is, it isn’t something you have to master behind the camera. Try some interesting angles and approaches. Take a ton of exposures and don’t worry about what’s working and what’s not until you unload your memory card. Delete ruthlessly. You’ll have plenty of photos to document their childhood without a bunch of blurry ones that don’t make any sense.

When in doubt, zoom out because with a high-resolution file you can crop out extra image material in editing. Editing might sound daunting, but it can actually be quite simple with the right program. You don’t need an expensive program, either, Picasa from Google is great for photo editing. The “I’m feeling lucky” button alone, has improved some of my photos immensely.

It took me a long time to break the habit, but I also stopped cropping photos to traditional aspect ratios. Thanks to the magic of technology, a picture no longer has to be 4×6, 5×7 or 8×10 (and so on). Instead, they can be whatever shape best compliments the subject of the photo.

Everybody Have Fun!

Don’t forget to enjoy yourself and to let your kids have fun, too. There’s nothing worse than missing out on fun to pretend to have fun for some cute photos. Plus, the best photos come from spontaneous moments rather than planned and posed portraits.

About the Author: Deborah Yanez

Deborah is an actress, stay-at-home mom, freelance writer who loves arts and crafts.