Always Behind the Camera and Never in any Holiday Pictures? I Have Your Solution!
Capture the entire family, including yourself, in your holiday pictures.
I don’t know about you guys, but I am always the one behind the camera and so if I want to be included in our holiday memories, I need to get creative!
This fall, I bought an interval timer for my Canon. This meant that I could set up my camera on a tripod, send my hubby to an exact spot to capture focus, get everything ready, and then let my camera and timer do all the work.
There are some cameras that have this capability already with no need to buy an extra device – so be sure to check your camera manual to see if yours offers this possibility in the settings before you go out and buy an interval timer. You can buy a simple remote (like this one), too, if you want, but the only problem I have encountered with this is that my lovely daughters fight over it. And then we have tantrums. And we have pictures of the girls holding out the remote to get it to work and although it can be a funny moment documenting this time in our lives, it is not always what I am going for. This is a less expensive option, however, if you don’t want to buy the interval timer.
So, to avoid the fighting, I suggest the interval timer which will take pictures every few seconds depending on how you set it up. I bought the Satechi wireless digital timer and remote control for my Canon DSLR but I know there are other options, too.
Essentially, all you need to do is find a good area out of the way on the holidays to set up your camera and tripod pointing in the direction of where everyone will be socializing. Focus the camera – and you may want to make sure that the aperture is set to get more area in focus. If there is enough light, maybe try F11 or higher, depending on how much you want in focus. Make sure that your shutter speed is also appropriate if you have moving children. I suggest at least 1/125 or faster, if possible. Then, you set up your timer to take pictures every 5, 10, 20, etc. seconds and it will take care of the work for you! No need to be behind the camera – just leave it, and voila, family pictures with everyone included! Yay!
This does a great job of documenting your family time together. I have also used it to take outdoor family portraits and it works great, too. However, please keep in mind that if there are young children involved, it is difficult to get them to look at the camera with any sort of natural looking expression for a “posed” shot. I recommend more of a candid family shot for this. The picture above was taken this way as we were playing a game with the girls. Not your traditional family portrait but I love it anyway!
Wishing you happy snapping and a wonderful holiday!
