It is Mother's Day weekend. You know the camera is coming out. I'm not sure about your house but I am usually the one behind the lens so the remainder of my family does not have the same eye for composition as me. So, how 'bout we give all those 7 year olds a few tips to make Mom look at tad better in her annual we love you photo.
1. Angle of an Angel -- ok let's not let the 7 year old stand at Mom's feet and take the picture -- well -- up. Do you know how many times we Moms check for extra chins in a week? Let's not make it a historical reminder in the photo album. Put little Sally on a chair and shoot at Mom's eye level or have Mom sit in the grass at Sally's eye level. If you want Mom to be really flattered and give her a nice little facelift put Sally a tad above eye level looking down at Mom and she will have a thinner looking face. Now, with this logic it would seem to reason to put little Sally on the balcony looking down at Mom. But, let's be careful here because the last thing we want is for Mom's head to look big and feet to look small. Twenty years from now dear old Mom will hear "Hold Me Closer Tiny Dancer" every time she sees her big head and tiny feet.
1. Angle of an Angel -- ok let's not let the 7 year old stand at Mom's feet and take the picture -- well -- up. Do you know how many times we Moms check for extra chins in a week? Let's not make it a historical reminder in the photo album. Put little Sally on a chair and shoot at Mom's eye level or have Mom sit in the grass at Sally's eye level. If you want Mom to be really flattered and give her a nice little facelift put Sally a tad above eye level looking down at Mom and she will have a thinner looking face. Now, with this logic it would seem to reason to put little Sally on the balcony looking down at Mom. But, let's be careful here because the last thing we want is for Mom's head to look big and feet to look small. Twenty years from now dear old Mom will hear "Hold Me Closer Tiny Dancer" every time she sees her big head and tiny feet.
(Look I'm so skinny. Is that the Angle of an Angel? --maybe but it was a skinny year for me.)2. You light up my life -- So you see we are all about making Mom look -- well -- better than real life. Thank you Beverly! SO, how about light. The most natural is always natural light - the sun baby! The best time for light is morning and late afternoon. Now, I don't know about your Mom but THIS Mom is not at her best in the morning light. Usually because she doesn't have her teeth brushed or her make-up on until after everyone is fed and dressed. If you just can't get Mom photographed until NOON let's find her some shade. Natural light is about the quality not the quantity and we all know we don't look our best when we are squinnting in the bright sunlight. There is though a MARVELOUS invention during the noon time and that is open shade. You'll know you are in open shade when you see that it is not as bright (it's shade) but there aren't any wierd shadows, like tree limbs, on Mom's face. I am not going to discuss flash and lighting inside the house because hello people it is spring drag that woman out of the dark kitchen or torturious laundry room and photograph her amoung the fabulous colors of spring! Besides... indoor lighting, flash and a good photograph are a WHOLE 'NOTHER OPRAH.
3. Places everyone Places! So, it is true you could turn this into a big production and bring out the giant butterfly chair from 1970 to pose Mom in that classic pose but how 'bout we catch Mom being Mom. Maybe she's laughing at the boys jumping on the trampoline. Maybe she's heading down the street on her bike. Maybe she is just sitting in the grass with a good book or reading a book to the children. I know that I have amazing memories of my own mother but most of them involve her holding the hose for the Slip N Slide in an aluminum lawn chair. Perhaps we should have photographed her in her flower garden or something a weeee bit more graceful and lady like. The point is in forty years when we Moms are old and gray we want you to remember us not just by what we looked like but who we were to our family and how we loved and were loved.
(Oh yeah, that's a lot better Mom!)
4. Take me to your Leader: So we're outside in the natural light making Mom look her best without any extra chins, she is lovin' and laughin' and being the Mom we love. CLICK. Hmm, did you know Mom was from another planet? What is that emerging from her head? Check the background and use flowers and trees and pretty scenery to make Mom look more fabulous. Let's not photographer her in front of the garbage cans or with your dog doing something personal in the background. Sure, sure we can crop it and even photoshop it but why not just give her a good background to start.
5. Mom is the center of the universe: BUT she does not need to be in the center of the photo. Put her in another part of the photo. If you want to do more research it's called The Rule of Thirds (Wikipedia can tell ya all about it.) The other important piece of this is give her somewhere to go in the photo. Example: If Mom is riding the bike give her room to ride across the paper in your mind. A photograph is flat so don't let her fall off the edge. Give her room to move and a place to look.
6. I promise I won't bite: Get closer. We want to see Mom, know Mom love Mom. Go on get closer, yeah little bit more she won't bite -- well at least not today!
(Yes, this picture breaks nearly all the tips but if this is how they remember me then I am a lucky Mama!)
I am sure there are loads more tips and rules and photography gobbleygook I could share but really the best thing about photography is: Learn all the rules and then find a way to break them! Enjoy your Mom and this Mother's Day!
Bev
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