Thousands of schools across the country, from California to Michigan, New York to Georgia, are closed this week. Some districts call the break “winter recess,” others refer to it as “ski week” while others combined President’s Day with furlough days and simply told students to stay home.
Here in Wisconsin, it’s business as usual (much to my 7-year-old’s chagrin); however, our friends, who live in Michigan, are enjoying a lovely pre-spring break in the tropics. Since they took off on Sunday, I’ve received no less than six links to their online photo gallery—-the clearinghouse for all their fab vacation images.
The problem with vacation photos is that you often see a repetition of the same shots, taken from the same angles, featuring the same subjects. Who wants to see that over and over again?
The next time you and your family head out on a group getaway, flex your creative muscle when taking advantage of those prime photo ops. For example, while you certainly want to snap shots of your spouse and kids in front of various landmarks, they don’t have to take center stage in every photo.
Another tip is to spice up your angles. Look for ways you can make an ordinary shot extraordinary. This might mean kneeling down and shooting up at a waterfall or climbing on a rock and shooting down at a field of flowers. The point is to experiment with a variety of angles in an effort to bring new perspective to a subject. Also, use as much natural light as possible to make your images pop. Don’t be lazy and rely solely on your camera’s built-in flash. In searching for natural light sources, there is a good chance that you will stumble upon an angle that will add more depth and texture to your photo.
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