DIY Family Pictures: The Secret to Snapping Pics You'll Love!

From the time my little man was born, he has struggled to not shy away from new faces. His naturally timid nature made taking professional family pictures near impossible. Having not only a new face, but a new face with a camera… it just didn’t work for him. So, mama to the rescue! Time to learn a new trick – DIY family photography. So, here we are, five years later, and our DIY family picture adventures are still going strong! I’ll never compare my results with that of the beautiful pieces of artwork that my professional photographer friends produce, but whether you’re on a budget or have a camera-shy member of the family, sometimes you just have to adapt and explore a new option!

Since you’ve landed on this blog post, I’m guessing that you are considering trying out a DIY family photo session, so I’m here to share some of the tricks, hacks, fails, and saves that I have learned over the last five years! There have been so many amazing moments and photos that I’ll treasure forever. And then, there have been tears, frustration, and huge fails! Yup… it happens. So, get ready… I have a lot of great insight to share with you and, at the end of the day, I hope it encourages you to take the leap and have fun along the way!

Here are the main questions that we will cover in this blog post:

Should I Shoot Indoors or Outdoors?
What Do I Need To Know About Outdoor Lighting?
If I’m Shooting Outdoors, How Do I Choose What Background To Use?
Do You Have Tips Regarding The Placement Of My Subjects?
What Is Your Biggest Tip?
What Should I Know About Editing?
Okay, I’m Ready! Now, What Tools Do I Need?

#1 – Should I Shoot Indoors or Outdoors?

Good question! When my son was little, we did most of our photography indoors, but it’s quite a bit trickier for the DIY beginner photographer (me!). There are definitely advantages to both options, but during this phase of motherhood, the advantage of not having to get out of my pajamas, or not waking the sleeping baby, outweighed the advantages of shooting outdoors.

If you plan to shoot indoors, you’ll need either a) a good window with lots of natural light, or b) a studio light like this one. You’ll also likely want a backdrop of some kind. I was trying to go with a budget-friendly option, so I built a free-standing PVC backdrop, like this one from Abbi Kirsten Collections, and then hung a black curtain from it. After steaming out any wrinkles, it worked perfect for my project. If you are using a window with good natural light, pay special attention to the best time of day for that soft glow coming in.

Both of the photos below were taken indoors using natural light coming in from a west-facing window during early afternoon hours. The background was a simple black curtain on a PVC backdrop, as described above.

#2 – What Do I Need To Know About Outdoor Lighting?

Over the years, I’ve learned a lot about the advantages of timing pics right with regards to outdoor lighting. That said, in my son’s younger days, we always timed family photos around nap time, regardless of the position of the sun. I found that when we planned to head out immediately after he woke up from a nap, his cooperation was much improved. So, we just did the best we could with whatever lighting we had and tried to avoid shadows on our faces. As he got older though, we could really plan around the best time of day to take our shots. So, what is the best time of day to take photos?

The “magic hour” or “golden hour” for photography is generally defined as the hour just after sunrise or just before sunset. Because we live in Colorado, the early morning hours tend to be quite cold, so we usually opt for the hour just before sunset. During golden hour, the lighting from the sun is usually softer and makes for much better images, especially on your family’s faces. You can usually avoid harsh lines, shadows, and squinting during this time of day, as well.

In the photos below, the image on the left was shot mid-afternoon, just after naptime, and the image on the right was shot during “golden hour.” I was happy with both family photos, but you can definitely see the advantages to the much softer “magic hour” method.

Now, if you’re shooting during the “golden hour,” you have a few different options regarding sun and subject placement. In other words, where will you put your subjects in relation to the sun? It will take you some time and practice to play with these options and find when and where you like to use each one.

Because the soft set(ting) sun does not create squinting, you can have your subjects face the sun while you shoot (front lighting), face away from the sun with the soft glow behind them (back lighting), have the soft sunlight coming in from the side (edge lighting), or put your subjects directly in front of the sun and create a flare! Front lighting, back lighting, edge lighting, or flare are my most commonly used options.

Make sure you play with each option and check your camera regularly to see how the photos are coming out. I like to enlarge mine on my screen and really check them out before I keep going. I have taken what I thought were beautiful pictures with backlighting and flare only to get home and discover that I hated them. Don’t make my mistake. Play with each option as you go and check your images before you leave.

In the image below, I used front lighting during the golden hour, but slightly off-centered. It created a soft glow on his face.

Alternately, this image (below) used a soft backlighting. There are some shadows on his face, but they aren’t sharp shadows and don’t affect the ability to clearly see his face. The bright sky behind him makes for a great contrast to the dark colors of his cap and gown and really makes the photo pop!

This image (below) used backlighting with a soft flare. I used the setting sun directly behind his head to produce a sun flare around his hair, but didn’t want a harsh flare, so I kept my camera positioned in such a way that it wouldn’t produce huge flare lines in my image.

Most importantly, plan ahead! The golden hour is a short window and if you want to make the most of it, know where you are going, what you are bringing, and how you want to set everyone up and then get there early so that you’re ready to shoot as soon as the lighting is right!

#3 – If I’m Shooting Outdoors, How Do I Choose What Background To Use?

Over the years, I’ve learned that our best pics come from keeping the background simple. And, if that’s not an option, blur it! Most phones these days have this option as well, but be warned, I’ve found that my image quality goes down when I select this option on my phone. Depending on what size you plan to have your photos developed later on, image quality will be important, so play with your phone ahead of time to get an idea on how your settings affect your megapixels.

A simple background makes it easier to focus on your subjects. This background (in the image below) is a little busy, but not too busy that you lose your subject. Keep that in mind when you choose your location. Keep it simple.

When a simple background is not possible, or maybe isn’t even your preference, consider blurring the background.

I actually really like both of the images below, but you can tell that the blurred image draws your eye to the face of the little boy more than the unblurred image. Personally, I think each option has its own beauty, but this is to reinforce that playing with your options can give you very different results and then you can pick what you like best.

Unfortunately, with my family spread out all over the country, we are usually only able to all get together about once a year. So, the host for that year is charged with finding a good free spot for our annual family photos. We’ve definitely improved over the years. Here you can see that our background went from slightly busy early on to a much more simple background with time. The joy of DIY is that ultimately you can decide for yourself what kind of background you like!

Here’s one of our annual family photos from early on. The background was slightly busy, but not too much:

With time, and more family members, a simpler background was preferred so that you didn’t distract from your subjects (us):

#4 – Do You Have Tips Regarding The Placement Of My Subjects?

Before I start this section, let me tell you what not to do, based on my own fails! When I first started photographing my family, I did all kinds of Pinterest research and had exact poses drawn out on paper. I’m talking detailed drawings labeled with names of who stood here, sat there, posed here… no joke. I was that crazy lady. The result? Well, I allowed myself to get so worked up and frustrated when things weren’t going as planned that my husband literally had to gently remind me that our son was only two. Oh, gosh. How awful, right? So, I had to learn to start letting go of any plans of how it would all go and just embrace the spontaneous. That’s not to say that I don’t still have a plan going in (or that I don’t still get frustrated sometimes), but I try to remind myself that some of the best shots come from the unplanned and spontaneous moments! So, take a page from my learned-it-the-hard-way book and try to embrace the crazy, because no matter how much you plan, it’s always crazy!

Placing Subjects: Behind Foliage, Branches, etc

Some of my favorite photos have come from placing my subjects just behind foliage, grass, or branches and blurring out the objects in front. In the photo below, the grass was blurred between the camera and the subjects and it creates a very neat layered effect to the photo.

In this photo (below), the little boy is placed among the foliage and some of it is layered over him, but not blurred:

Placing Subjects: Off-Center

Don’t fall into the trap of believing that your subjects always have to be in the center of the photo. Some of the best photos can come from an off-centered approach:

Placing Subjects: Off-Camera

Some of my favorite shots have some or all of the subjects off-camera!

You can even choose to just use parts of your subjects, such as hands…

Placing Subjects: On (or with) Props!

I tend to love the idea of bringing props to a photo shoot! If my subjects are in the right mood, I’ll usually snap the shots with and without the props so that we can determine later which shots we like best!

…and I’m always on the hunt for new props for cheap!

Placing Subjects: Looking Away!

And, one of my favorite things to play with… having my subjects look off-camera! This can create some really neat and special final images!

#5 – What Is Your Biggest Tip?

By far, my biggest lesson and best tip to offer is… Embrace the Unplanned and Un-Staged Moments!

Some of the best moments that I’ve captured have been the ones where I just kept snapping in between the more formal takes. It’s when they need to get the wiggles out. When they are being silly, or even super sweet. It’s those spontaneous moments where their personality shines bright through the photo!

I have even learned to embrace the grumpy… You’ll treasure these moments later!

#6 – What Should I Know About Editing?

So, here’s where I’ll share with you my greatest weakness when it comes to DIY family photos. I’m not great at photo editing. What I can tell you, based on what I do know…

There are several options out there. Photoshop is probably the most well-known. I’ve also dabbled in Adobe Lightroom. Both programs are pretty simple and straightforward, but I just haven’t had the time to perfect the art of photo editing. That said, there are lots of great resources out there, including wonderful YouTube videos on how to use these programs!

Using the standard filters on your phone to adjust an image usually reduces the image quality significantly! I don’t recommend going this route.

It is a very valuable tool in your DIY photography belt if you take the time to learn it! Sometimes you capture just the right shot, but the lighting is off (such as the example below), and having some skills in the photo editing department could fix your various image mishaps.

#7 – Okay, I’m Ready! Now, What Tools Do I Need?

To be honest, having the right tools and knowing how to use them is part of what makes professional photographers so great at their job! They also usually have years of practice, education, classes, experience, and time invested. They are pros in their industry and what we’re doing here doesn’t compare with what they can produce, but…

… if you’re jumping on the DIY family photos train for whatever personal reasons you have, be confident that you CAN capture exactly what you need with just a few inexpensive resources and a little bit of practice!

Let’s start off with the obvious… a camera!

When I first started out, I thought I need a fancy camera with all the high tech settings and fancy buttons that “did all the things.” And that’s about how far my education went regarding DSLR cameras. But, my father-in-law had given me an older model Canon Rebel and I was excited to get started. I even took a class to learn how to use my camera and all the fancy settings. Well, to be honest, this camera served me very well early on, but I ultimately found that I enjoyed using my iPhone more. Here’s why:

You can carry a compact tripod and tripod phone adapter to almost any location quickly and easily.
I fell in love with the “live” feature so that I could find the moment in the shot where all eyes were open and all smiles were captured! It’s a lifesaver with kids!
I don’t have to worry about memory card failure (yes…this happened and I lost all my family photos one year before we even got home!)
It’s sooo much more compact than a DSLR camera.

The downside to using my phone is that I do not have the manual control over the shot that I have with my DSLR. So, if you plan on really educating yourself on aperture, shutter speed, and other manual modes, the DSLR is really worth it! In my case, I just found that I was achieving the shots that I wanted with my phone and, given that I had a toddler, it was just so much easier.

Another possible downside to using your phone can be limited or low megapixels, which will affect how large you can blow up your photo. In my case, my iPhone 8 Plus has plenty of megapixels for the size photo that I want to frame! That said, it’s important to keep this in mind when you debate DSLR vs. phone camera.

Either way, you’ll need some kind of tripod and possibly a tripod phone adapter…

You can pick up a collapsible tripod pretty easily on Amazon. I’ve purchased tripods for less than $10 up to $25. Pretty inexpensive, right? Here’s the key though… if you’re using your phone, make sure you pick up a tripod phone adapter, like this one, for just under $10.

Lastly, you may want to consider a Bluetooth wireless camera remote trigger…

Sometimes it’s easier to have a remote vs. trying to set the phone camera timer. Maybe you have a little one that you need to make sure is looking, or several members of the family that you need to get organized, or you are too far away from the phone to try to run to get in position before it snaps the shot. No matter what the reason, there are definitely circumstances where these Bluetooth wireless camera remote triggers are lifesavers. The only downside… sometimes it’s hard to hide the remote in the shot because it usually has to be facing the camera. You can find these remotes on Amazon for just under $10. Click here for more info.

That’s it, friends!

Love your family, love the adventure, and have fun taking DIY family photos!