It’s that time of year again.  Time to wrangle your troops together for that “Perfect Annual Holiday Card Photo”. 

You may have used a professional studio in the past, or even hired an on-site photographer, but this year, you’ve decided to keep that money in your pocket and take the photo yourself.  It’s not as scary as it sounds and with a few of these pointers, if you have a digital camera – YOU can do it!

Find the right time of day for the photo shoot.
Usually after your children have been fed and have napped (if they are younger), they are the happiest – so clean them up, get them dressed and get ready!  Speaking of dressed, you’ll want to find clothes that are light-colored and preferably without patterns.  Solid colors work best.  You can match everyone in the photo, but similar shades of a color also work nicely together.

Set the scene.
Natural light works the absolute best for a “Do It Yourself” photo.  Skin tones stay soft and eyes sparkle when you snap the photos using daylight instead of a flash.  Find a place outside that offers a nice background, avoiding homes and cars and aiming for areas with trees and grass.  If you can’t make it outdoors, use a well-lit room in your house.  Posing your family in front of a blank wall or even hanging a well-ironed sheet will give you a professional effect.

Plan your poses.
Take a little time in advance to figure out how you want to see everyone together.  Decide if you want a tight photo with their faces as the primary focus or if you’d rather a full-body pose.  This is where you can get creative, but keep in mind, having your family posed closer together will give your final photo a more cozy feeling.  If you simply can’t get everyone together, another modern approach is to take individual photos and then put them together in the final card design.  This works nicely especially with younger children.  If your children are simply not having fun with the photos however, and there are tears involved, the best bet is to wipe the tears, take a deep breath and try again the next day.

Making it Picture Perfect.
You should be able to get a great image simply using the auto setting on your digital camera.  Get everyone in place and say something that is going to make them giggle. The whole “say cheese” ploy is going to give you just that – a cheesy photo with exaggerated smiles.  You want a natural smile, so say something that will make your children smile — you know them the best, so this part is up to you.  If it’s a young child, a toy on your head and funny sound will work!  The key here is to just snap away – taking MANY photos is going to give you the ability to pick and choose later on.  Most cameras also have a auto-timing function, so you might just want to jump in there too.

Post photo session.
You are going to want to sort through your photos and narrow your choices down. Remember, some card designs allow you to use multiple images, so if you can’t pick one, decide on a few.  After you decide on your favorite(s), you are going to want to use a photo editing program to crop it and make any necessary adjustments such a contrast and hue/saturation.  There are MANY FREE easy-to-use online applications available – picnik.com is a personal favorite.

Your perfect card is nearly in your hands.
You did it!  Take your photo(s) to your printer, favorite online photo-card website or even your local pharmacy to order your Holiday Card.  Now all that’s left is the list of who’s going to get one of these beauties and buying all those stamps.