Outside the Christmas card box

Looking for something a little different for your family this year? For us, Fall is already looking pretty crazy so our last summer hurrah at the beach will capture our family picture for the Christmas card too! The idea of finding clothes during the clearance sales right now and not trying to squish family pictures in during the cold and stressful holiday season is a win-win in my book. Plus who doesn't love getting a beach picture in the mail smack dab in the middle of chilly December? 

Here's some other ideas:

Nighttime/Classic-

 It's easy to get caught up in the trends on pinterest but nothing beats a classic black and white and I believe this is shot at nighttime which adds to the drama. Remember in your family photos you'll have it for a lifetime and don't want to look back and say, what in the world was  I wearing?!!

Act natural-

Lifestyle pictures are my favorite. Essentially they are capturing you being you in your home or in an activity that your family would normally do everyday. Pick an activity you can do as a family- fly a kite, play catch, bake, wrestle. You'll find that you get the best candids and your kids will be much more natural and happy in front of the camera, plus your Christmas card picture will be a little more real to life!

Change angles-

Try capturing pictures at different angle other then the standard everybody face the camera standing and smile. Laying down, sitting on a bench, middle of a field, train tracks, or even in between buildings provides some interest!

images here