Family photos. Family photos are pages of memory. Mistake # 9. Mismatched pairs

At first glance, it may seem that family photography is one of the easy sections in photography. In practice, you will understand that this is not entirely true. What effort is it worth only to catch the gaze of all family members in the lens, especially if small children participate in the photo session? It is necessary to place everyone correctly, to create a cozy and comfortable atmosphere. Any photographer will find it very useful to know the skills of psychological relief in order to be able to liberate each of the family members as quickly as possible. The stiffness of the model is very noticeable in the frame.

Training.

Careful preparation is required before starting a photo shoot. Decide on a location. For family photography, the background is not so important, the main thing is to show the emotions and feelings of all participants in the photo session. Demonstrate the unity and strength of family relationships, show history.

Pay special attention to the clothes of the participants in the photo shoot. It is better if it is of the same style, or in the same color scheme. Of course, you can do a costume photo shoot. It always looks impressive. But it will be more convenient in simple, comfortable clothes so that it does not hinder movement. After all, family photography is a rather lengthy process, so it is important to feel relaxed. You can take several options of clothes with you and change them as needed, depending on the change of scenery.

Places for photography.

Family photos can be taken at home. For example, it can be a snow-white bed, on which the whole family is located, or an active play with pillows. Children's toys are also useful for a home photo shoot. You can also place pets in the frame: cats, hamsters, dogs, rabbits, parrots or an aquarium with fish.

Family photos in the open air are lively and funny. Arrange an active photo session. This can be outdoor games, trampolining, competition, running, cycling, or ball games. Family photos like these can showcase your passion for sports and active image life.

Great family photos can be taken any time of the year. In winter, it can be snowball games or joint molding of a snowman. Beautiful pictures are obtained in autumn, if all family members sit on a warm cozy blanket, on which you can put a thermos and cups of tea. The richest and brightest photos will be obtained in the summer. It's good if you have access to the coast. You can take family photos in the water or on the shore. Take advantage of the sunset time. The whole family, holding hands, are walking against the backdrop of the sunset. It looks very mesmerizing.

Decor and accessories.

A variety of accessories can be used for family photography. It can be various inscriptions, for example, with the words: "love", "family", "love is ..", "family" and much more. Each of the family members can hold a card with one letter, and the whole family will make up the whole word.

Use frames of different sizes in the frame. You can color them in different colours and decorate. Try to arrange the whole family in one large photo frame or each family member separately.

Emotionality.

The most important thing in family photography is to show the warm and sincere feelings of all family members. Let it be kisses, hugs, touches, or gentle glances. From the very beginning of the photo session, the photographer simply needs to find a common language with the children. A family photo won't look amazing if a child has an unnatural, forced smile. Children don't know how to pretend. But, if you manage to win them over to yourself, then in return you will receive a lot of real emotions: laughter, joy, surprise. It's pretty good if you get to know everyone involved in family photography in advance. Many young children do not make contact with strangers. Having got to know each other, it will be easier for you to conduct a photo session, and you will get a lot of bright and positive emotions.

Nikon Ambassador Lyalya Garbuz chose the theme of family photography for her professional and creative realization. And she approaches this question very thoroughly. Family photography is also dedicated to her diploma, which Lyalya defended at the journalism faculty of Moscow State University. Based on this work, we present to your attention an educational excursion into the history of the emergence and development of the genre.

For thesis I had to get to the very beginning of photography as such. I dived into history like Alice down a rabbit hole. Today, family photography is not only the home archive of a particular family, it is actively used in photojournalism as a tool to achieve the strongest impact on the viewer and reflects the social problems of society. And once the desire to capture a portrait of a person and his family was one of the first functions of photography.

I was fortunate enough to study a lot of invaluable literature for a photographer: books by Juliet Hacking, Vladimir Levashov, Alexander Lapin, Susan Sontag, Roland Barthes, Walter Benjamin. The greatest help was provided by albums by Annie Leibovitz, Sally Mann, Stanley Tretik, Pavel Krivtsov, a collection of royal and imperial photographs on the Royal Collection Trust website, photographs from the World Press Photo and International Photography Awards.

Family photography, in contrast to painting, is the simplest and easiest way to satisfy a person's natural desire - to perpetuate the memory of oneself and one's loved ones. Continuing the tradition of pictorial portraits and borrowing from the artists the foundations of composition, the pictorial style and options for posing, photography had the main distinguishing feature, which expressed its historical and documentary functions - realism. In fact, she was a document, proof of the life of a person, giving the most accurate idea of ​​what he looked like.

For many years, the style and development of family photography was influenced by painting, from which she borrowed a lot, as well as the problem of long exposure. All the first family portraits were staged. Moreover, portraits of children, especially small ones, were generally rare. Children's faces and figures were often blurred, especially in group portraits such as those of William Edward Kilbourne, the first photographer to be given the honor of being the Photographer of Her Majesty and His Royal Highness Prince Albert.

Queen Victoria with her children. Photographer William Edward Kilburn, 1852

Sometimes children were photographed asleep, because at that moment they were motionless. But with the advent of posthumous photography, when the deceased were given natural sleeping positions, an unspoken rule appeared, which was reborn as a sign - so that viewers do not accidentally mistake a living person for a dead person, sleeping people should not be photographed.

Photographers Albert S. Southworth and Josiah Johnson Howes. Mother and Child, 1844-1850.

Photographers Albert S. Southworth and Josiah Johnson Howes. Posthumous photography, 1850.

Posthumous photography, 1895.

Posthumous photography, 1900.

Another trick in photographing young children was a technique called the "hidden mother." The woman was hidden under the fabrics, so that she acted as a chair or background, a child was seated on her knees, whom the mother had to calm and hold in a motionless position.

Looking at the family photographs of Queen Victoria and the Russian imperial families, there is one distinctive detail. In almost all of the photographs taken for sale, Queen Victoria is looking directly into the camera and looking into the distance - into the future of her country. This is noticeable in one of the first family photographs of the Queen that have come down to us, the work of Henry Collen, the first professional calotypist. Even more interesting are the shots of Roger Fenton, a famous war photographer who became famous for his series of pictures about the Crimean War - which were not intended for public display and in which the Queen is captured in an informal, homely style, in a simple checkered shawl and she is looking directly into the camera.

Queen Victoria and Princess Victoria. Photographer Henry Collen, 1844.

Queen Victoria with her children. Photographer Roger Fenton, 1854.

In 1854, in France, André Adolphe-Eugene Dizderi patented the first camera with four lenses, which allows to simultaneously take up to 8 small photographs (business cards - carte de visite) on one large plate. Shooting and printing is now much faster, easier and cheaper. This method became widespread in 1859, when Dizderi exhibited a photograph of Napoleon III with Empress Eugenia and their son Alexander-Louis-Eugene, which several times increased the demand for the photographer's services.

Napoleon III with his family. Photographer Disderi, 1859.

Another workshop became famous for The Prince Imperial on Pony Beneath a Window by Pierre-Louis Pearson. Today, the fragments that should have been cropped in the picture - the servant holding the reins, the emperor with the dog, the background set - are of no less interest than the little prince himself.

The prince of the Empire is riding a pony. Photographer Pierre-Louis Pearson, 1859.

Queen Victoria with her granddaughter Alexandra Feodorovna, Nicholas II and great-granddaughter. Photographer Robert Milne, Belmoral, 1896.

Queen Victoria was a big fan of the new art - photography. Thanks to her financial support and the introduction of the fashion for collecting carte de visite, photography gained rapid development and frenzied popularity among the nobility, and subsequently among ordinary people... The royal tradition of visiting photo salons soon became a general family tradition. For such photo shoots, they dressed up, did hair and make-up, and cherished the photographs and kept them in albums. Most of these shots have no artistic value. Currently, some of them are used for anthropological, social and historical research. Some members of the royal families liked not only to be photographed, but also to photograph. We have survived photographs by Prince Alfred (son of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert), Emperor Nicholas II, and his wife, Empress Alexandra.

Terry's acting family. Photographer Lewis Carroll, 1865.

The first photographer to bring ease and naturalness to staged photography, was the famous writer Lewis Carroll. As the exposure time shrinks, more varied plots emerge, genre scenes that depict the daily lives of the royal family, as in the photographs of Mary Steen.

Queen Victoria with her grandchildren at the dinner table. Photographer Mary Steen, 1895.

In Russia, the most famous and respected photographers of the imperial majesty were: Sergei Lvovich Levitsky, Karl Ivanovich Bergamasko, Karl Karlovich Bulla, Fedor Genrikhovich Boasson, Karl Andreevich Yagelsky - owner of the CE von Hahn & Co. Their photographs of the life of the Russian imperial families are of historical, cultural and artistic value. These photographs and photographs of overseas royalty have been and continue to be copied by commercial photographers specializing in family and portrait photography.

Photographer Sergei Levitsky, 1873.

Photographer Sergei Levitsky, 1878.

Photographer Karl Bergamasco, 1876-1877.

Photographer Karl Bulla, 1908.

Photographer Fedor Boasson, 1913.

Photographer Fedor Boasson, 1910.

Photographer Karl Jagelsky, 1909.

In 1900, Eastman Kodak released the cheap and easy-to-use Brownie camera, which gave rise to amateur photography. And she found the widest application in family photography. Amateur photographs, in contrast to professional studio portraits, contained more historical and social information, being a kind of sketches of family life.

At the beginning of the 20th century, the concept of documentary photography was introduced, which primarily refers to social photography, dedicated to the problems and changes taking place in society. These problems and changes are shown through the person and his environment. In 1925, the famous Leica camera went on sale - small and lightweight, allowing you to take pictures with short exposures in natural light - it opened up new possibilities and had a huge impact on the development of photojournalism.

In the Soviet Union, photography was used mainly in the propaganda system, the purpose of which was to achieve social harmony, educate people in accordance with new values, and stimulate work. Therefore, the functions of photojournalism in the 1930s did not include coverage of social problems of society. The most striking example of documentary propaganda photography of that time, the main characters of which are members of a large Soviet family, is the series "24 Hours in the Life of the Filippovs", filmed in 5 days by reporters Arkady Shaikhet, Max Alpert and Solomon Tules and published in 1931 in foreign and Soviet press. These frames are:

Foreign documentary photography in the post-war years was also more often positive than negative. Society was worn out by the war and the horrors that accompanied it. Photography draws attention to universal human values, the concept of humanistic photography is introduced, striving for interhuman understanding. The epic photo exhibition of humanistic photography, organized in 1955 in New York by Edward Steichen - The Family of Man, also known as The Human Race - presented to the viewer a collection of 503 photographs, including family photographs, which included the work of Eugene Smith's Garden of Eden Walk, which features his own children, and Elliott Erwitt's Mother and Child, a photograph of his wife and child, as well as photographs of Lewis Carroll, Julia Margaret Cameron and other photographers of the time.

Walk in the Garden of Eden. Photographer Eugene Smith, 1946.

Mother and child. Photographer Elliott Erwitt, 1953.

At all times, family photographs of politicians, royal and imperial families and celebrities, showing an exemplary personal life, on the one hand, created a positive image of rulers and stars, on the other, they formed a system of traditional family values ​​in society, and on the third, they were role models from the outside. commercial photographers.

An interesting archive of photographs of American photojournalist Stanley Tretik, who has been filming the family of US President John F. Kennedy for several years. In the album "Capturing Camelot" the official photos of the president are replaced by informal ones. And these family photographs characterize and fully reveal the personality of Kennedy himself. Another famous photographer who shot the Kennedy family in 1960 was Alfred Eisenstadt.

Photographer Alfred Eisenstadt, 1960:

Photos from the album "Capturing Camelot", photographer Stanley Tretik, 1963:

Family photos of famous actors Serge Gainsbourg and Jane Birkin, taken by the photographer Claude Azoulay, they look very natural, as if they are opening the door to their privacy:

With the changes taking place in society, photography also changes. She becomes more frank, intimate, like a 1991 Vanity Fair cover photo in which Annie Leibovitz captured Demi Moore nude in her ninth month of pregnancy.

Nowadays, when the technique practically does not limit the photographer in creativity, we observe a huge variety of projects and albums dedicated to the theme of the family. One of the most scandalous in the history of family photography was the study of the period of growing up of their own children, recorded by their mothers.

Photographer Sally Mann, 1992.

For example, the album of American photo artist Sally Mann "Immediate Family" (1992), filmed in the style of pictorialism, the heroes of which were her son and two daughters from 7 to 13 years old, made a lot of noise. Mainly because of the explicit photographs of naked children. Thanks to this album and the scandal that accompanied its release, Sally received photographic acclaim.

It is worth mentioning the album “A Photographer’s Life 1990-2005” by the famous American photographer Annie Leibovitz, who collected the best photos over 15 years of her creative life. Family photographs coexist with photojournalism: advertising, reportage, pictures of celebrities and politicians. This album shows how versatile family photography can be. Annie's works reflect in detail the life of her family: the birth of children, fragments of their childhood, the celebration of her mother's jubilee, trips to the sea, the relationship of her parents, their illness and death. They show a careful and respectful attitude towards the life of their family.



Pictures from the album “A Photographer’s Life, 1990-2005”. Photographer Annie Leibovitz, 1992.

Returning to the topic of photo shoots of celebrities and their families for famous glossy magazines such as Vanity Fair and Vogue, it is impossible not to mention photographers Tim Walker, Annie Leibovitz and Jason Bell. Their modern staged photographs are very different from staged portraits of the Victorian era in a variety of plots and poses, naturalness and emotionality. Colors, images, outfits are carefully thought out.

Singer Madonna with children. Photographer Tim Walker, 2005.



Actress Angelina Jolie with her adopted son. Photographer Annie Leibovitz, 2013.

Prince William and Catherine Middleton. Photographer Jason Bell, 2013.

An interesting cycle "Sisters Brown" by American photographer Nicholas Nixon, consisting of annual family portraits, traces the external and internal changes taking place with the four sisters over the course of 36 years.

Sisters Brown. Photographer Nicholas Nixon, 1975-2011.

In modern Russian photography, one can note Vladimir Vyatkin and Pavel Krivtsov. Their works are distinguished by a special soulfulness, warmth and love.

Photographer Pavel Krivtsov.

Photographer Vladimir Vyatkin.

The comparative availability of modern professional photographic equipment has created a huge stratum of amateur photographers who take pictures of their families. It would seem that the topic has been revealed. All the more paradoxical is the enduring success of the Human Family photo exhibition. Since 1955, she has visited more than 150 museums around the world, now her permanent exhibition is "registered" in the Château de Clairvaux in Luxembourg. Since 2002 it has been included in the UNESCO World Heritage List. The exhibits are grouped by themes: birth, love, labor, joy, death. The pictures are equally close to all cultures, to all people. As Karl Sandburg wrote: “There is only one man in the world, and his name is All Men. There is only one woman in the world, and her name is All Women. There is only one child in the world, and his name is All Children. "

Family- these are the pages of our memory! Every moment in the life of a couple in love is unforgettable: meeting, meeting parents, holidays and celebrations, long-awaited engagement, marriage registration, wedding voyage, pregnancy and the birth of the first child, wedding anniversary, but it is important to capture it not only in the heart and memory, but with the help photos... Even if you are not a professional, you should not leave your children and grandchildren without the opportunity to see your family history. After all, photographs convey emotions, carry positive energy, “catch” such a pleasant and dear to the heart moment, looking at them, people remember the emotions they felt at that moment, and they become warmer in their souls, and there is something to brag about to friends, relatives and your descendants ...

As a rule, all photos of one family stored in the family album. This article provides tips on how to make a vivid and interesting "family history source".

Album design

The source of the family history must be original. If you are a creative family, do the artwork for the album, be sure to caption each photo.

"The Beginning of Your Family"

It is important to record the family history from the very beginning, from the moment the young couple met. This is the only way you can easily, and most importantly, reliably and illustrated, answer your kid's question: "How and where did you meet your mother?" And, of course, in this way, you will fix the "starting point", the beginning of your love story and remember the initial appearance your partner, for whom you had feelings at the initial stage, you will remember how and for what qualities and character traits you fell in love with him, what he was before. If you did not use this opportunity before starting a family, you can solve this issue with the help of photoshoot"Love story", which you can organize yourself or use the services professional photographer.

Approach her organization with a sense of humor, to be original, show more emotion and fantasy. And if there is a desire and opportunity, then create a photo presentation or video clip, which you will subsequently demonstrate at your first family celebration.

"Starting a Family - Engagement"

A marriage proposal is a magical moment for every couple in love. A photograph is intended to capture the emotions of a happy newly-born bride and her beau, which will decorate in the future, reminding you of the old days.

"The combination of two hearts in love"

Wedding photos must combine several qualities - chic, originality, madness. Use accessories, volumetric lettering, pose at ease, you can "play the fool", so your wedding photo session will acquire a touch of originality. Be sure to take a photo of two generations - children and mother-in-law (mother-in-law), father-in-law (father-in-law) and a young couple, it is advisable to repeat exactly the staged photo that was at your parents' wedding, not only your pose, but also the place where the picture was taken from the past may coincide ..

Honeymoon trip

Regardless of their financial capabilities, the newlyweds are trying to go on their first family voyage. This moment should be captured using photographs. Don't forget your wedding outfit, because photo at sunset, on the seashore in a wedding dress, this is just a magical addition to your wedding album. Even if there is no money for a professional photographer, ask tourists to take pictures with a regular camera.

"Waiting for the baby"

The young wife finally learns that an heir will soon be born. It is important to capture every period of pregnancy, and the changes that occur in the appearance of the expectant mother. The last shots are made already before the solemn event - the birth of a baby. When staging photos, use bright accessories, toys, the future dad should also participate in this event. Do not be afraid to show your "baby's tummy", as soon as he grows up, you will be proud to look at these photos with him. When you have a baby, don't forget to take your first photo, even on your phone.

"The kid meets dad and family"

The discharge from the hospital should be bright and unforgettable, it is necessary to photograph and shoot at this stage for relatives and young parents. Be sure to arrange the nursery where the happy mother will pose next to the crib. Make or buy a nameplate for your baby, this is a great accessory for a photo shoot.

"First birthday"

The main character of the photographs is your one-year-old baby, and the accessory is a large and delicious cake, and, of course, many gifts. If there are peers at the holiday, let them also become participants in the photo session, photos with the participation of children are always beautiful, they are easy-going, emotional, childishly naive.

There are an infinite number of moments in the life of a family that need to be captured, not only in memory, but also with the help of photographs. A family photographer will be your glimpse into the past. Love each other, take pictures, and be happy, appreciate every moment with those close to you.

interview: Svetlana Fomina
photo: Natalia Fedorova

Family phototherapy is not fiction at all. We all keep family albums with black and white photographs, and some families have valuable artifacts in the form of yellowed cards with great-great-great-grandmothers in crinoline dresses and grandfathers in pince-nez and three-piece. As a rule, these photographs are replaced by cards of men in military uniform, followed by photographs from the Soviet era. Photos are passed down from generation to generation, viewed at family gatherings, kept in closets, and taken out on the occasion of family celebrations. They are shown to relatives and new family members.

Family photographs are an important part of our life. Thanks to them, we build the history of our family within ourselves and strengthen our family with memories that will forever remain in our memory and, sooner or later, delight new generations with a careful attitude to the history of our family. The tradition of depicting a family "in a row", or even in two or three, with the same petrified faces directed into the lens, is a thing of the past.

The power of family phototherapy has become particularly evident when the many technical possibilities have emerged to visualize our lives from different angles. If you use them correctly, you can literally weave your own happy family story. Bright memory props in the form of snapshots of highlights bring joy both in the present and in the future. Well, when a professional gets down to business, then any, even the most ordinary day, becomes "the same". "Letidor" asked family photo Count Natalia Fedorova on how a happy family history is created using photographs, and why we need to visualize our history and the history of our family.

What is a family photographer? Who can become a family photographer?

The issue of photographic genres is generally quite controversial. In modern commercial photography, for example, there is a well-established status as a wedding photographer. Wedding photographers have their own "subculture", awards, associations and other delights of life. But the first question that arises is: isn’t a wedding photographer photographing a family? Family, of course. What, then, is the difference from the “family” photographer?

A wedding photographer works with an event around which an entire industry has existed for a long time. Yes, he can do family portraits at the same time, but he faces a completely different task, namely, to capture the one and only day in the life of people, the most important day is the wedding day. The task of a family photographer is to make an event out of an ordinary day, to capture it, on the one hand, as one and only, and on the other, as a typical day in a series of everyday life. When I photograph a family, I want people to see in them not just one day, but every day of the life that they have lived together, when looking at the photographs received later. That is, they saw what was inside the family. Well, that is, of course, the ideal. Anyone who considers this title worthy of themselves can become a family photographer. Nothing special is needed for this, except perhaps to believe in family values.

What are the trends in modern family photography?

Unlike the already mentioned wedding photography, family photography as a commercial direction is much less developed. I would say it is in its infancy, especially in our country. And the American-European trends are very different from ours. If in American family photography the trend is joy, naturalness, fun, then here it is more of a magazine gloss. Our people are very closed, and it is difficult for them to show their sincere emotions, it is easier to put on a mask of decency. And we know how to enjoy life, alas, very badly.

What should you consider when shooting a family?

Do you have any rules that you adhere to when photographing children and adults?

To be honest, I am not a rule-lover. I am often asked: "What do you usually do to liberate people and win them over?" This "usually" does not exist for me. Each time it is a new story, I am guided by the situation, I try to understand people and trust my intuition. Perhaps my main rule is that what is good for one person (or family) is completely unsuitable for another. And if you act according to the same scheme with everyone, then the photographs lose their mood and soulfulness, they become the same. This is true even at the moment when we choose a place for a photo shoot. A place that is ideal for one family will not play at all in another case.

Who is more interesting to shoot - adults or children and why?

It is widely believed that children are more interesting to photograph because they are more open and direct. In fact, I would argue that this is more a matter of simplicity than interest. It is much easier to find an approach to a one-year-old child than to a 10-year-old. What can we say about a teenager or an adult. And if you are at the same level of understanding with an adult, then with a teenager you are at completely different levels. Therefore, adolescence is the case when maximum effort is required to gain some minimal trust. It is absolutely amazing how a child, completely closed, gradually opens up, and such depths open up in him that it takes the breath away. If we talk about preferences, then I'm more interested in filming a family than one person. The age of family members does not matter.

Why are you interested in filming large families?

I think that not all photographers are interested in this, so I can only answer for myself. I love to shoot large families, because during such photo shoots, communication and interaction of all family members with each other occurs continuously. You find yourself in the epicenter of the family whirlpool, and this is a kind of challenge for the photographer - to be able to see, understand and “catch” in the lens all family relationships, their subtleties and nuances. That is, for example, if we compare a photo session of a family with a newborn baby, and a photo session of a family with two children over three years old, then the number of interactions doubles, and if it is a family with three children, then triples. Here, the relationship between parents and children is connected to the relationship between brothers and sisters. It is interesting. In rare cases, it is possible to attract older family members, grandparents, to a photo shoot, and the situation in which generations converge is also very exciting.

What do families want to see in their photos?

Well, of course, yourself - beautiful, happy, loved and loving. Another thing is that for different people these qualities are embodied in different ways. For some, this is an ideal picture, where all family members are looking into the frame, for others - complete confusion and a lump of hugs, blurry movements and other "mood" techniques. I believe that it is impossible to please everyone and become the perfect photographer for every family. Therefore, you need to choose your own line and develop your style, then the heroes themselves will better understand who exactly and why they are choosing, and this is a guarantee that everyone will be satisfied.

When do you talk about color and when do you talk about black and white photography?

I have regular participants in photo sessions who like b / w more, and those heroes who prefer color. Taking them off, I keep it in my head. You can initially talk about this issue in order to understand how to cost shooting and processing. But here the individual preferences of the photographer and the content of the portfolio play a major role. Heroes form their expectations based on what they have already seen in your photographs. If they go to a photographer who has most of the pictures in his portfolio in b / w, then he will expect an appropriate result. The talent for making beautiful black and white photographs comes from two different skills- the ability to see the frame in black and white during shooting and the ability to correctly select images for black and white processing.

For myself, I can say that I love both color and b / w about the same. Although if you look at my folders with favorite pictures of classic and modern photographers, then there will be more b / w pictures there. Color is good for mood, and black and white is for depth. But in order for the shot to be successful in b / w, you need to take into account several points - light, texture and contrast.

Uncover the therapeutic aspect of family photography?

This important point, which, it seems to me, not everyone thinks about. Two aspects come into play here. First, the rhythm in which most of us live rarely allows us to simply enjoy the present moment. We are all the time running somewhere, in a hurry, guided by to-do lists. Even on weekends we carry out definite plan and we have a list of activities to attend and things to do.

To my heroes of filming, I always say that a properly organized family photo session is a great way to just spend time with your family, live the day with loved ones, take a walk, perhaps go somewhere interesting, realize some old idea, or just sit home on a frosty day and play scrabble. The second aspect is related to the result that the heroes of the photo shoot get. These are not just photographs of yourself, a child, yourself with a child. This is, first of all, a look from the outside at your family.

Very often, being in the cycle of everyday life, we simply do not realize what happiness we have been given - to love, to be loved, to wish “Good night” to our children and tell them “ Good morning". We are close to loved ones, and we take it for granted. But, on the one hand, this is a huge gift from above, and on the other hand, it is a lot of work that we ourselves have invested in these relations. And the result of a family photo session is material evidence of happiness. As the heroes of my filming once wrote to me: “When you look at your own life from the outside, it looks a little like a fairy tale. When you live inside, there is no such feeling. "

This is very understandable. Vision is an important source of information that we receive about the world around us. And it is with the help of pictures and visualizations that we construct the world around us (pinterest.com service confirms this). When a person receives his family photos, the reality of his inner experiences is transformed from "Why does the child eat poorly, and the husband is late at work in the evenings?" in "How beautiful and happy we are." So much for visualization, which has a wonderful psychotherapeutic effect. The example, of course, is simplified, but I think many of my heroes will confirm my words.

In my family, fortunately, a lot of good photographs have survived, because my mother loved to take pictures from her youth. Therefore, our children's photographs are not only interesting to review from the point of view of history and emotional connection, they are pleasant to look at. Most of my childhood photos were shot with Zenith and Kodak film with beautiful colors and depth of field. So when one of my new acquaintances stumbled upon my childhood photos, he was amazed at how professional these homemade homemade photos look, in contrast to their albums shot on a film soap dish.

But there are even older photographs - black and white, yellowed, with curled corners. I don't even know who all these people who are depicted on them and who were once close to my parents, grandfather and grandmother. But my favorite pastime was to sort through these old photographs and look for familiar and at the same time unknown faces of very young mothers, fathers and other relatives. This is precisely the value of a family album - in the transfer of memory between generations.

So print photos, create family albums and photobooks! Think with what interest your children will be able to turn the pages. Printed photographs are much more vivid and valuable than their digital counterparts.

Speaking about family portraits, I could not help but touch on the topic family photo sessions... I have great respect for the good family photographers that help people preserve their family history in beautiful photographs. I know that many of my readers are interested in the sphere of child and family photography. So I decided to put together a small collection ideas for a family photo shoot... Hope some of these ideas inspire some great new shots!

The photographs below serve solely as illustrations for this article. All rights belong to the authors of the photographs.

1. There are usually at least 3 people in a family. Arrange them compact in frame... Ask to hug, stand closer to each other, at different levels (sitting, standing). Good idea in this case, use steps, chairs or the back of the sofa. Place larger family members further from the camera in half a turn, they can also be "covered" by more slender "models" or children. Ask your models to hug, partially hiding the fuller person behind the shoulders of the other participants in the family photo shoot.

4. After some good fun it would be nice to take a break - ask your models to lie on the floor, on the lawn, on the autumn leaves or directly on the snow.

5. Use special effects to diversify your family photo session: frames, mirrors and natural reflections. Don't forget about the well-known powerful picture-in-picture trick.

6. Ask to show love to each other

7. Use an unusual angle - upside down or bottom to top, everything looks much more interesting!