Family pictures are a must-have for me every year. While it would be nice to have someone else take them for us, I know a pretty good photographer who will take them for free. Yeah. It’s me. 😉 I’m OK with doing the dirty work because I have the skills and I don’t have to schedule with anyone else. The downside is that I have to take the pictures…myself.

If there’s one thing I cannot stand, it’s my tripod. There. I said it. I despise using the tripod because it hinders my ability to take a shot when I want to. It’s cumbersome, clunky, and takes too much time to set up. You will NEVER see me use one with my senior clients. However, I can’t take family pictures and expect to be in the picture without one. It’s one of those necessary evils. Enter Mr. Husband. 

Mr. Husband does not feel the same about about the tripod, ergo he is the one that sets it up for me. After the camera is on the tripod, he stands where I tell him to so I can get focus. Getting focus is another tricky thing to deal with when taking your own pictures. If we move one step closer or farther away from the camera, we’re out of focus. So we have to lock focus and not move. This can be a difficult thing with four little kids. 😉

If you’re reading this in hopes to get tips on how to take your own family pictures, here’s my one piece of advice: DO NOT have the kids get in the shot until everything else is ready to go. Get your exposure, your timer ready, nail your focus, and have everything else good to go before they get in. You’ll thank me later, I promise.

Speaking of kids, they were quite good this year. We were done in less than a half hour, and they cooperated nicely. As a side note, these are all taken at the Chippewa Nature Center. I love this place most of all for pictures.

Family Pictures

We look great, but this picture is really made up of FIVE different pictures. I had to do a head swap in Photoshop for everyone except my husband and the youngest. Not too bad, amiright?

If you look closely at my husband’s left hand, you’ll see the camera remote. 😀

I love those little fussbudgets!

This one only required two head swaps.

These are my favorite family pictures yet! And I’m so glad we made the effort to take them before it snowed.

After we were done, the kids’ patience paid off…

I’m pretty sure we still have some hay in the van. Happy Wednesday, friends!

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