Photo Tips

[2chatter]

Outfits are planned, I purchased a tripod for my DSLR and a remote. We are going to do early morning DIY beach portraits in Florida next week. Tips, tricks, poses, composition ideas? The goal is to get one of the five of us to frame, and some good shots of the kids together and separately. DD is taller than me, and the other two are 48" and 45" - so it's awkward posing now.

(For those who care: I'm wearing a seersucker off the shoulder blouse with 3/4 sleeves with white shorts, DH is wearing khaki shorts and an aqua blue button down or a faded navy polo, oldest is wearing a vneck white T and denim cutoffs, middle is wearing an aqua ruffle dress (that I scored for a dollar at the resale store by our house and looks brand new) and DS is wearing aqua shorts and a white polo.) It is supposed to rain all day every day so cross your fingers for a clear morning!

[waverly]

Our photographer likes to get pictures of us walking forward and backward and swinging the kids (in your case just DS if he were still light enough). Otherwise, I think I would try to get the hardest one out of the way of all 5 of you and then concentrate on the kids. Our photographer likes it to be more natural rather than posed. Do a few posed family, but for the kids I would do a lot of then just having fun on the beach. Maybe picking each other up if physically strong enough and just having a fun time. I think some shots of them interacting with the water would be fun too.

[186momx]

Couple ideas for all of you
-The 3 kids sitting in the sand and then you and YH standing over them in a triangle shape
-all of you laying in the sand with your chin on your elbows and feet kicked up behind you (height doesn't matter then)
-Oldest DD laying in front of the your other 2 kids with you and YH kneeling behind them.

For the kids
-stair step
-see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil is always fun and they could either stand or sit in the sand
-The girls holding DS up between them

If the weather is kind of crummy I would try out different poses in a room in front of a mirror if you have it available so you can see before trying to shoot them.

Have fun!

[mommyatty]

One of DD's classmates did family pics where everyone is wearing Groucho Marx glasses. They were so cute as part of a grouping!

This beach trip, I drew a big heart in the sand and wrote our last name and the year. I wanted a photo just if that as a cover to our album. The kids were so enamoured that I ended up getting cute shots of them looking at/drawing on/jumping into the heart. Totally spontaneous.

[akafred]

So the biggest problem is going to be light, not clothes or pose. If you are on the Atlantic side then at sunrise the sun is going to be over the ocean, and if you shoot from the beach towards the ocean, your faces are going to be dark. Reverse that on the West Coast or on the West Coast of Florida. So you need to keep that in mind, and take precautions to keep your face is wet while still showing off the beautiful sunrise. You may have better luck if you're on the golf coast of Alabama or Mississippi or the Florida Panhandle, where the ocean is to the south, but you still have to be careful of where your lighting is.

[sandandsea]

For poses, search Pinterest for poses and groupings like your own and mimic those.

Also take a test shot of each pose, check how it looks, and then take more after you make any adjustments.

[2chatter]

We will be in Seaside - so I think (spatial stuff isn't my strong suit) the time will be ideal - I for sure need to play with the tripod for pics of the five of us down in the sand (not at extension). The kids just built a giant fort so I'm going to use that to practice!

[sunbutter]

Echoing akafred....make sure early is really early. Consider going before sunrise. Light is going to be your biggest challenge.

[2chatter]

I was thinking of being there for the pics at 7am. Sunrise is at 6. Too late? I think early will be easier than evening - baths and showers the night before and just get up, dressed, breakfast and out the door across to the beach. Cooler in the morning, too. DNW sweaty pics.

[Covergirl82]

A photographer recently told me that the best light is one hour before sunset. But I completely agree/understand that it is tough to look nice at the end of the day. You'd really have to shower/do hair and makeup/get dressed at the end of the day, and compete with bedtime.

[2chatter]

There's no bedtime on vaca Covergirl82. That does help if we end up trying an evening. But there is a very happy hour in the evenings and exchanging that for making everyone shower before dinner, stay clean through dinner and being photo ready sounds like fresh hell.

[akafred]

Jul 12, 2017 14:52:54 GMT -5 Covergirl82 said:

A photographer recently told me that the best light is one hour before sunset. But I completely agree/understand that it is tough to look nice at the end of the day. You'd really have to shower/do hair and makeup/get dressed at the end of the day, and compete with bedtime.

The first and last hours of the day are best because of the angle of the sun compared to the height of people and objects as well as the atmosphere. 2chatter, I would try to get there shortly after sunrise if possible so you have more time to get pics. Looks like sunrise will be more or less on your right side and a little in front as you face away from the water. So just make sure you angle it right and you should stay well lit by that golden blue morning light.