Matt Rock shares 3 simple ideas to help you make better family photos.

Life can be all about chances, luck and seeing opportunities when they arise - but the more you put yourself out there, the more luck and opportunity you will get.

This BLOG and the video below came from meeting a lovely lady whilst on a very wet camping trip with friends in Norfolk. So the moral of this story is to chase your dreams, take every opportunity when it comes your way & go for it!

A few weeks ago I was asked to make a short video for the NHS as part of their Christmas party / online get together. They were looking for some tips and tricks on how to improve their family photos over the 2020 Christmas period and I was happy to help.

DISCLAIMER:

It says ‘Photography Masterclass’ which is a little hard to get my head around as I will never consider myself as a master photographer … or a master of anything!! But i’ll go with it for now as that is what they called it.

So, for the record, I did not name the video myself - Smiley face / wink emoji....

The other point I would like to quickly make is that this is my FIRST EVER attempt at making a You Tube video. It’s very weird seeing and listening to yourself on a video & I cringe when I watch it. - So be kind… :)

All the views are my own and the elements within the video are just some things I look for when I make my own photos; either Professionally or personally.

So push play, enjoy & hopefully learn something new too.

Don’t forget to read the rest of the BLOG below the video.

Video below - just over 10 minuets long.

So let’s get into my top 3…

There are 3 main areas you should look out for when making photos of your family and friends:

LIGHT
MOMENT
COMPOSITION

My style for weddings and events is often candid and natural, although as a portrait photographer I do like to mix it up a bit & make directed portraits where possible without controlling the whole event or wedding.

LIGHT

Firstly, I consider this to be the one of the most important things you will need to look for when it comes to making good photos… Light.

If the light isn’t great the image can look flat or too dark, too bright & washed out. So when I’m working I am always looking for the quality of light - not how bright it is. So, I either need to create the light myself with flash or another external light source like LED or if it’s at a wedding or an event I will often need to look for best the Ambient light.

Now, good light doesn’t always mean bright or lots of it. But you do need to look for the quality of it. This can be the position or direction of light, the colour and the strength of light. Being aware of the quality is very important and something you will get used to seeing the more you look and practice.

At weddings or events I’m often there to candidly document the day - to tell the story of how the wedding went from the eyes of a guest or to showcase the business, clients and employees. I’m not there to tell everyone where to stand or who to talk to.

For 99% of a Wedding and Event work I use ambient light (light that is already there) like the sun for example. Therefore windows and doors are often a good place to be. Especially if you are working in a dark castle or an old building.

My image style if often quite contrasty and has been described as cinematic. I love shadow & I love black and white images.

Here are three examples of having window light and using it to my advantage.

Ambient Light - Leez Priory, Chelmsford - 2017

Ambient Light - Lympne Castle - Kent - 2017

All of these photographs are using sunlight, either from a window or an open door and because the sun isn’t facing them it’s not too harsh. Using good quality, soft window light can really help with the overall feel of an image.

Below is another example of window light - an image of my two on an old steam train ride, Halloween - 2018. The window is behind them this time and just wraps around their faces without being too harsh.

So when you are at home look at the windows you have in your home, look at the direction the window is facing. You might have a beautiful window which has the sun beaming through it in the morning that is far too strong but when the afternoon comes, it turns into this beautiful soft light which would be perfect for a portrait.

MOMENT

This can often be the split second of time that you see happening in front of you. That moment that tells a story.

The light might not be perfect, the composition might not be the best but the moment really brings back memories and emotions.

The ‘moment’ for me is the hardest one to capture - because often we need to keep looking for it and anticipate it if we can. You need to watch what is happening and anticipate what will happen next.

Watch a scene unfold, then wait a bit longer.

The look on the brides face watching her nervous husband speak at their wedding.

The proud little glance from the grooms Nan.

The tight loving squeeze from the bride and the squashed face of her grandad.

A fun photo opportunity on the dance floor.

Waiting for the moment can be fun but you need to be ready for it - and yes, that sign was meant for me…

Wedding, Southend Barns, Chichester - 2018

Some moments can be very historical too. Especially during difficult or challenging times. But they will still be interesting to look back on in the future.

Facetime & Face-masks during the first Lockdown - 2020

You could try this with your family too. Watch and listen to what is happening and try to anticipate what is likely to happen next. You will often have a better idea with your own family, so give it a go.

I would probably suggest getting the Christmas dinner on first though. Or give the camera to someone who is not in-charge of the food.

One more thing I would add when trying to capture the moment over Christmas is try not to say ‘SMILE’ or ‘CHEEEEEEESE’ All you will get is a false, awkward look and the natural moment will be lost.

My kids love it when I make portraits of them - 2020

Right, onto the last one now:

COMPOSITION

So, you have seen the light you want to use, you’ve been waiting patiently for something interesting to happen, now is the time to compose the image correctly.

Composition is one of those things that can make a good photo great and there are some rules that you can follow - or at least think about.

A lot of them you probably learnt in art class at school - all those years ago.…

Some of these ‘rules’ are:

Rule of thirds
Viewpoint
Framing
Repetition
Pattern
Leading lines
Negative space
Focus point
Depth of field
Rule of odds

There are lots of ‘rules’ to think about, but you need to remember photography is very subjective - what I like, you might not like. So it really is personal taste.

Here are just a few to think about over the holidays.

Rule of thirds.

You can see in this image the subject (my little girl) is in the lower left third of the frame, the horizon is in the top third and there is some negative space to the right of the image and her legs are leading your gaze to that space.

You will see another example above, the subject (the camera operator) is off to the right third and there is some negative space to the left of the image.

Another portrait example below, shot through the car window which has beautiful soft light and is naturally framed by dark the areas from reflections of the trees (framing is explained more below). It also shows the rule of thirds and some negative space to the right.

Viewpoint

When making photos of children, try to get down to their level. Most photos of kids are from your view point - looking down at them. Try to get to their level. It can make a more interesting viewpoint and show the world through their eyes.

Framing your image

Corporate event - Museum of London - 2018

Look for natural frames to focus the viewers eye. It can take them to the area of the image you want them to look at. This can be light patterns as seen above, shadows, other objects in the room and many more.

The image below has a few different aspects which I used to isolate the speaker, the light on top of the audiences faces, the viewing platform above and the great ambient lighting thanks to the museum.

You can use other people in the image too… The image below was shot through the best mans arm, framing the bride and groom.

This is the same wedding - below - and this is the best man I used to frame the bride & groom in the image above - shot just a few minutes apart.

I used the venue to frame the best man. The curtains were a natural frame for the image below.

Environmental objects can almost want you to use them. Using this mirror to frame the bride.

The doorway at Lympne Castle is another example of a natural frame. I just needed to put the couple in-between the castle doors to frame them in this directed portrait - below.

Pattern and focus point

You can incorporate pattern into your family photos too which can make an image interesting and be used to bring back memories. The image below will remind me of my time in Turkey, having a beer at the beach bar overlooking the sea.

Pattern along with good light can be used with all photos, like the one below. The pattern of the blurred area (known as Bokeh) can make an image interesting to look at.

“bokeh (/ˈboʊkə/ BOH-kə or /ˈboʊkeɪ/ BOH-kay; Japanese: [boke]) is the aesthetic quality of the blur produced in out-of-focus parts of an image. Bokeh has also been defined as “the way the lens renders out-of-focus points of light.”

— https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bokeh

The image below shows how focus point as with framing can draw your eye to the part of the image you want to be seen. However the out of focus area still shows a dinner party kind of scene.

Another example of how focus point (and framing) can help you take the viewer of your image to where you want them to look is below. I wanted to make a photo of this fly-by during the historical Goodwood Revival Festival last year however I also wanted to incorporate the people and their old fashioned clothes that were at the event.

This image shows two men (out of focus) looking at the aeroplanes I wanted to capture and I think it makes the image more interesting with them included.

One more thing to think about is details. When you are making your next family album, little details can bring your photos together. These images - below - clearly show the time of year. These might not be photos that you would print out and put into a frame and hang up but in an album they can work really well.

I hope this BLOG has been helpful and given you something to think about when making your own family memories with your camera.

TUITION

NEED HELP WITH YOUR PHOTOS?

If you want to chat more about improving your photos I am happy to arrange a one to one session or book small groups of like-minded people to take their camera skills to the next level.

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