Today's tip is to check your background.
I have learned that more than anything else, improving your photography is primarily about training your eye to see more and more details. All too often we are snapping pictures of our children and we are SO focused on their cuteness that we don't notice how cluttered the background it. At my house we have many, many pictures of somone sitting at the table, with their lit birthday cake and behind them, the pantry door is wide open. All too many times I would only notice it days later as I was looking at the pictures. For the rest of their lives, my children will be able to look back at their childhood milestones and see the dissarray of pasta, can goods and other chaos in our pantry. I have now gotten much better about scanning the background BEFORE we light the birthday candles. All too often we take pictures only from the view point where we happen to be with out realizing that if we would just move 3 feet, we would no longer have a cluttered background. Some of the easiest ways to simplify the background:
Stand Up- a higher vanatge point will turn more of your background into the surface that your subject is standing on
Reposition your subject- Especially when you are taking those "stand against the wall and smile" milestone pictures (such as first lost tooth, first day of school, etc.) Find a plain wall or other surface and have them stand about 2-3 steps in front of it. Watch for picture frames or other wall hangings that might be creeping in.
Use a shallow DOF- One great way that some photographers will simplify their background is to use a shallow "Depth of Field." The result is a blurry background that attracts less attention. If you are shooting in manual or aperature Priority, this can be a great option.
There are some major things to avoid in your background
Trees, Poles and other things growing out of your subjects heads.
Horizons, or other prominant horizontal lines dissecting your subject (especially anywhere between the shoulders and top of head).
Patches of bright light or other prominant objects that would draw attention away from your subject.
Taking pictures of your life is first and formost about capturing the moment. All too often, especially when photographing children, the moment passes too quickly to make sure that you have all the pieces right to make the perfect photograph. During those times I will ALWAYS fall on the side of seizing the moment, but when there are just some little changes to make to get a better picture, it is worth it.
I have attached some snapshots taken in bright sun with only somewhat cooperative subjects. :)
The first one exemplifies my seizing the moment, despite the bright pink object behind her.
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