Photo Projects for the Holidays

What are your favorite holiday traditions? 

Are there memories that take you back to your childhood?  Those moments you look forward to or that help to define the traditions you take part in now. Routines like decorating the tree or leaving cookies out for Santa are what memories are built on. Maybe there are non-negotiable activities that are at the core of how you celebrate like making grandma’s stuffing recipe or hosting the entire family for a meal. It’s not even about the actual activity but how it brings people together, creating a sense of history and a feeling of home.

Now that I have you thinking about those moments, do you have photos of you and your family that incorporate those traditions? If you weren’t there to tell the story of your family’s traditions, how would others remember? You may not have photos of all of your childhood traditions but you can always start now.

I challenge you this holiday season to make a point of documenting your time as a family and what you want to remember. The mad dash to wrap presents, the cookie decorating, searching for that perfect tree, time spent with family and friends. 

5 simple photography related holiday projects to get you thinking:

1)      Take the time to write down your top 3 traditions for the holiday season. Explain why they are your favourites, where the original idea came from and why it is meaningful. Think about what specifically you want to remember about them or what you want your children to remember. Putting these down into words will help you to become more aware of the moments when they happen. Now, with your answers in mind, start taking photos to capture those traditions, to preserve those memories.

2)      Document details: a favourite ornament, your child’s expression as they unwrap a gift, that mug of coffee waiting for you on the counter after getting up early, Christmas lights, snow covered yards. Any detail that reminds you of this time of year.

3)      Dig out those holiday photos from years past and display them around the house. Print them, frame them or add a few as decorations to the tree. These personal mementos are a great way to decorate in a meaningful way. Leave them around to remind you of your childhood and to teach those you love about the traditions you grew up with.

4)      Ask those closest to you what they love about the holidays and make an effort to capture those ideas in photos. 

5)      Holidays often center around food, food and more food. Do you have a family recipe that you can’t wait to pull out for the holidays? What about documenting the process of making the dish with others and a photo of the dish before it is devoured? Or maybe take a photo of everyone gathered around the table as the meal is served to capture the end result of all of that work.

Don’t forget to get in  the picture as well – use that timer or remote if you have one and snap a few that include you.

Maternity Session with M+O

To be at the edge of welcoming a new life into your family can be both exciting and terrifying. All of the books and advice in the world won't prepare you for it but at the same time, you join this community of parents that will completely understand the indescribability of the whole experience.

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The J Family

My nerves always act up right before a session. It is just part of the process when I'm doing something that matters to me. Meeting new people isn't always easy because of those nerves but when the door opened and I was greeted with the littlest, smiley-est almost 11 month old, I knew everything was going to be just fine. 

Not even a year old and little S is already busy taking a few steps, exploring the world around her as she tries so desperately to communicate. I have a feeling when this little girl starts walking and talking for real, there will be no stopping her. You can't help but to be taken by her big eyes, the longest lashes and that easy smile. With her happy, inquisitive personality, I can see both that she is the heart of this family and also that she got those qualities from her parents. Despite an early wake up and a shift in the original plan, the family just went with it and opened up their life so honestly for me to capture. I didn't have to look far to find the love and the joy in this home - 

you can just feel it. 

Photobooks

While many photos will stand on their own, often it is the sum of a photo gallery that makes the biggest impact – together, each photo fits together like a puzzle to tell the story. Little details, big details, people and things. This is particularly true when it comes to my approach to photography. Using photobooks is a great way to preserve the whole story. I’ve been testing out some photobooks over the past few years and it has been a long process to find the right book that meets all of my criteria in terms of time invested, costs, options for covers and paper, quality. This article is not about recommending one company over another because I think that is a truly personal choice with so many factors to consider. I feel like it would be equivalent to asking someone to recommend a restaurant without giving them anything else to go on. Answers you get will be very subjective and your choice will depend on the occasion, budget, convenience, personal taste among a multitude of other things. So, instead, I offer some guidance I’ve learned the hard way that you should keep in mind when navigating the sometimes murky waters of photobook suppliers.

1)      TIME

It takes a good amount of time to put together a photobook from the technical aspects of learning the software to the actual design of placing photos with intent, keeping in mind the flow and at the same time creating a visually pleasing, balanced layout. Everyone is busy and so, while you like to think you will get to it, a few years can easily pass and still nothing gets printed and photos continue to accumulate on phones, computers and tablets. Photobook companies will often offer design services – if this helps you to get the book finished, go ahead and use these services. I like the control of doing this work myself but if help is there, why not use it. If you invest in hiring a professional photographer to create beautiful photos, inquire about photobooks as part of the package to ensure that initial investment is translated into something tangible and printed. They can do the work for you. Yes, there is a cost but it will be worth every penny if it means preserving your family history and favourite moments. 

2)      STYLE

Some occasions might call for an upgraded lay flat album and others might not. Think about the subject matter of your photos, who the book is for and how you want to display your photos. A wedding photobook will likely look very different from a book you make of all your Instagram photos. Find the right style and book for your needs. Think outside the one size fits all approach. 

3)      COST

There is a huge price range when it comes to photobooks. Since many popular photobook companies are outside of Canada, what may look like a good deal at first isn’t so sweet by the time you factor in exchange rates, shipping and duties. This is not to say you should always go the cheapest route because that isn’t always a recipe for success either. Just keep in mind before you pour hours into creating a book that the cost at checkout will likely not be the “starts at” price – you will see added costs for extra pages, when selecting higher quality finishes or papers, shipping etc.  

4)      KEEPING IT SIMPLE

Sometimes too many options is just as bad as not enough. I know I can easily get paralyzed by indecision when faced with too many choices and the anxiety of not making the right choice for the cover material, the paper type or what layout to use. Simple is good and most often, timeless.

5)   QUALITY

The quality of printing, materials and binding are so important. The last thing you want is to spend all this time designing a book, invest a good amount of money and then be disappointed by seeing your priceless photos in a less than perfect book. You often get what you pay for, yet sometimes you pay more and still don’t get what you want. This is where customer service comes into play. Don’t be afraid to contact the company if you aren’t happy but know that some are much stronger than others when it comes to rectifying the situation. Do your research on return policies and client support available. Sometimes, ordering some test prints before investing in a book is a good way to test the quality of printing and service.

I started out the article by saying I wouldn’t make this about recommending one company over another. I will however, let you know which printing companies I use. For most projects lately, I use Pikto. This is a relatively new switch for me but their products suit my needs and I like the simplicity of their options. The customer service has been wonderful so far and I love that they are a Canadian company using Canada Post for shipping. The shipping times are better than I’ve experienced elsewhere.  I also use GTA Imaging based in Toronto which is a family owned business offering a great range of quality products exclusively to professional photographers.

It is so worth setting aside a budget and the time for printing photobooks. Don’t let those photos sit on a computer or think of them only as something to post on social media where their lifespan will be short-lived, quickly buried in your feed. Display them in your home and flip through them with those you love to remember how things once were.