One of the most important things you can capture with your camera is your family traditions- and especially holiday traditions. Traditions often go unnoticed because they are so “normal,” but they also risk being forgotten years down the road if they aren’t saved! One of our favorites holiday traditions is that we get our Christmas tree every year the weekend after Thanksgiving from the local Boy Scout troupe. We then spend the afternoon getting the decorations out, with a fire in the fireplace and hot cocoa in hand, before beginning the task of decorating the tree. So, what gets captured? Here’s what I focus my lens on:

• Picking out the tree, most importantly who is there with us
• The tree on the car in the driveway, make sure you show the house in the background
• The hot cocoa in front of the fireplace
• The kids putting the ornaments on the tree (this will change as they get older; my kids used to do the lowest branches, now they put on the highest ones!)
• The finished product

What are your family holiday traditions? The most important things to capture are the people there, anything to identify where you are, and a couple details of the activity. Make sure you flag (or star, or create a separate folder) of the photographs that turn out the absolute best to add them to your album at the end of the year.

Happy Holidays!

Insider Tip: Note that Christmas trees can be especially tricky to photograph because they are generally seen in low light and ANY situation with low light gets a little more complicated. That said, it can totally be done. Be sure to take out your tripod if you have one for that final “finished product” shot. If you don’t have a tripod, find a stable place to put your camera down so it isn’t moving.

Click here to learn more about how to capture your Christmas tree!