You can escape from many photographic situations, but a child’s birthday will sooner or later fall. From your little one, your sobris or the creatures of your friends or relatives near or far, it will surely come. The other day was my daughter’s and it was clear to me. I did not want to be behind the camera, I wanted to enjoy it, the party and the friends and family who accompanied us, result, then some decent photos and less, so I thought it better to write this article for the next anniversary to be able to pass it subtly to a guest a few days before and have studied it well?
Now, seriously, this is a very special situation that requires special measures, so today I bring you some very typical mistakes that you must avoid so that you can face them without losing your smile either during the party or afterwards and that the little Person whose birthday remains with a beautiful memory for life, one that memory is not able to destroy.
Now, shall we see them one by one?
Even if you’re afraid of the statement, it’s a very simple matter, it’s not about improvising, it’s about knowing beforehand, even a little before the start of the birthday, what light you have, if it’s a closed place, if it’s outdoors, if you have natural light, if you need to take out your external flash, etc. Arrive before guests and do some tests, as arrival and shooting can lead directly to failure and lose some of the best shots.
This happened to me when my little boy was a year old. All the birthday photos had a strong yellow tone, when I saw them on the computer I almost started crying, I remembered the awning on the terrace where we celebrated it and I let all the oaths I knew mentally escaped, this is what you have when you focus on the birthday and not the camera and let others take the photos (which takes me to the next point).
If you set it to automatic, at least make sure the photos come out decently and if not, take RAW photos and forget, although the effort is greater, the discontent will be less.
Did you have to wear it to me? This is the most recurrent, the human being is the only animal that stumbles twice (and three and four?) On the same stone, this is clear to us, but will we assume it happy?Surely on other occasions you have made some mistakes that you were aware of, try to remember them so as not to start over, be it ISO, white balance or speeds too slow. Any small learning will be a big step forward if you consider it and don’t ignore it.
It’s the children’s birthday. There are children everywhere who move without stopping. There may be low light and if you use the aperture priority mode, for example, the shutter speed will probably be too slow and the photos will be blurred. Use speed priority or manual mode. This ensures you have the concentration you want at the speed you need.
It is normal to use a speed higher than the focal length, for example, if it is 50 mm to shoot at least 1/60, but if there are children, as in this case, make sure you have a speed of at least 1/125.
When preparing a party you are always very careful, there are many preparations, details, time to beautify everything and create a pleasant atmosphere, not to photograph these details means to lose an important part of the party, is to ignore the affection that the hosts have given you. Whether you’re the one who organized it or not, give them the attention they deserve.
It’s better to spend some time before the start of the party, when everything is still in place and it doesn’t look like a hurricane has passed, then you’ll have time to photograph the funny effects, but first, capture the details in Best of them. A wide opening will help, and whether it’s candy or food, here are some tips to help.
Do you know the wonderful moments, gestures, scenes and snapshots that you can miss if you don’t leave your site?If you throw all the time from your height, just what your eyes see from this position, I assure you that the ratio is much flatter and more boring.
If you want to cause a different effect, if you are looking to capture what no one (or almost no one) has seen, get down, find a place where you can shoot, look from different points of view and you will find little treasures that will become great memories.
When you focus a lot on the protagonists it is easy to forget what is behind it, the disadvantage is that your camera does not forget, captures everything and then you realize that behind the child who puts out the candles is Grandpa with the toothpick in his mouth (for example). You can also find later in the photo a lot of bottles from which you can’t look away, distract so much that you can’t focus your attention on the protagonist.
Eliminate anything that bothers you in front, and if the background is too chaotic or annoying because of its color or pattern or whatever, change the angle if possible or open the diaphragm as much as possible to stir it.
It’s also easy to move from a child’s portrait to a group photo without realizing that the aperture is too big for everyone to be sharp. When photographing multiple people at the same time, remember to define an intermediate depth of field or at least make sure they are on the same plane (which is difficult if it’s a very large group).
Eye, this increases the depth of field without sacrificing the shooting speed, which I mentioned before that if it is very slow the photo will be blurred, it is time to increase the ISO value and / or use the external flash (with diffuser or bounce).
Perhaps the moment of the gift is the one that I am least personally passionate about for different reasons, but it is a small creature that surely more than one gift will make a great illusion, losing my face can be a sin. Try to find out if one of the gifts is something you’re looking forward to or something that will really surprise you and before you have it put yourself in a strategic place with everything ready to capture your expression. A burst shot will help you capture, the most expressive gesture.
Like opening gifts, it can be the arrival of a guest who doesn’t expect and with which you’ll be infinitely happy, or any other surprise that’s been prepared for you.
This point almost deserves a separate section because of its complexity and diversity, it is not the same to photograph with the lights off than on, or outside than inside, here it is important that you indague (if you are not the host or host) what will be this time to prepare, if it is outside is easier, but if you are inside and decide to turn off the lights to get the cake , it is best to follow these tips or all photos may fail:
If there are more people (who know what they are doing) capturing birthday photos, you can afford to change perspective and take different photos, like the following, otherwise I recommend you choose a strategic location (without disturbing) to be able to capture the unique moment of turning off the candles.
And talking about candles right now? It’s very tempting to take out your mobile phone and start filming, so it’s likely that many guests will reach your smartphone, you can’t imagine how sad it is to look forward and that everyone in front of you is with their mobile focused on you and you don’t see a face.
This happened the other day (my little one turned off the candles twice, on the birthday and the day of the party). Well, the anniversary day coincided with a meal with relatives we don’t see much of, so they seized the opportunity. to put out the candles and I couldn’t resist taking pictures, but the picture made me very sad and I thought I didn’t want my daughter to have that scene in front of me, so I asked them to save their phones I preferred that there were no photos as long as the memory was recorded in her mind was that of five or six people taking pictures instead of singing happy birthday , beware, they are children and our actions are their example.
It’s so basic that sometimes you forget. A few days ago I was invited to another birthday party, I didn’t mean to take pictures, but it turned out I had my camera in my purse (like so many other times) and I couldn’t resist. Is it difficult to cover a film with a 50 mm premium (approximately 70 mm because my camera is not full format)?Well, I have very good portraits but few global photos. Space was limited and I couldn’t retreat to capture the scene anymore.
I put this example, but it serves to check the lenses (better a versatile lens or multiple lenses), a charged battery and if you have a spare one, the external flash (if it is a closed place) or the empty memory card. It also happened to me about the map, that it came from another place where I shot as I pleased and that I ended up shaking?
In addition to preparing the material, not knowing what you are going to photograph can be a big mistake as you will miss many moments, it is better to make a list (mental or written) of what you want to photograph to count the birthday. they don’t look like a bunch of isolated photos, but you can tell someone else what the party was like without reviewing your pictures. Here’s an example, you can change it however you want:
It’s the children’s birthday, what’s most likely missing is the color. You can’t pass up the opportunity to immortalize this whole explosion of color. Find an interesting composition to convey all the joy of birthday in one image.
Smiles, kisses, hugs, looks, surprise gestures? A party is full of emotions, you can’t forget, the details, the cake, the light, etc. , the emotions are important, but even more so. If you forget them, won’t you get anyone to connect to the images and worse?In a few years, when the little person who celebrated her birthday sees the photos, will she probably think it was a dull birthday?you don’t want that, do you?
These general tips for photographing a party can also help you, whether you’re a child or not, in the end it’s a party. Don’t forget to have fun?
Before I say goodbye I want to ask you a favor, if you found it helpful to share it on your favorite social networks, the birthday creatures will thank you and so will I, because that’s how I’ll know if you like the content we develop for you.
Thank you and I’ll see you soon!