Your Family in Pictures {book review}

“Your Family in Pictures” is a parent’s guide to photographing holidays, family portraits, and everyday life. It is written by Me Ra Koh who is a leading photography expert and educator to moms with cameras.

This book was quite a refreshing read. I wanted some fresh new ideas and advice when it came to taking photos with my DSLR. I hadn’t really picked up my camera in awhile, because I was always whipping my iphone out. With fall coming up, and then Christmas I wanted some tips on taking family photos.

I like how the book is broken up into sections. It starts out with setting yourself up for success, and knowing how to spot a great photo opportunity. There is a section that gives you tips for taking “everyday life” photos. Great photo ops just doing the normal everyday stuff, like when your kids are playing quietly in their rooms, or brushing their teeth before bed. These can be some of the best photos.

Next is the section on Holidays, with photo tips for each holiday. Not every single holiday known to man, but those where we take the most photos, like Christmas, the 4th of July, Easter, and so on.

There is a section on Family Portraits, a section for tweens and teens, and one for family vacations and travel.
So Me Ra Koh has you pretty much covered! 🙂

Here is the table of contents for more detail on what’s inside the book:

Setting Yourself Up for Success
7 Spots in Your Home for Great Light
10 Steps to Set Up Your Photos for Success
9 Ideas for Getting Your Family in the Mood
3 Ways Black and White Can Transform So-So Photos
My Top 10 Times to Take Candid Family Photos

Developing a Photographer’s Eye
Practice Framing Daily Moments
Unpacking a Photo
8 Ways to Discover Color, Line, Shape, and Texture
9 Cues for When to Shoot or Convert to
Black and White
No Longer Afraid of the Dark
Storyteller vs. Photographer

Everyday Life
Five tips for photographing everyday life
1. Saturday Mornings
2. Breakfast or Mealtime
3. Heart of the Home
4. Video Games
5. Backyard Fun
6. Outdoor Sports
7. Out and About
8. Bedtime Rituals

Holidays
Five tips for photographing the holidays
9. Valentine’s Day
10. Easter
11. Fourth of July
12. Halloween
13. Thanksgiving
14. Christmas
15. Birthdays

Family Portraits
Five tips for photographing family portraits
16. Self-Portrait of Mom
17. Portrait of Dad
18. You and Your Spouse
19. Sisters
20. Brothers
21. Cousins
22. Grandparents
23. Pets
24. The Family Portrait

Tweens & Teens
Five tips for photographing tweens and teens
25. Bedrooms
26. Tween Self-Portrait
27. Friends Forever
28. Performances
29. Senior Portraits: Girls
30. Senior Portraits: Guys
31. Prom
32. Graduation

Family Vacations & Travel
Five tips for photographing vacations and travel
33 A Day at the Beach
34 Snow Day!
35 The Great Outdoors
36 Sunset Silhouettes
37 Amusement Parks
38 Hotels
39 Visiting the Monuments
40 Breathtaking Landscapes with Kids

I enjoyed the tips on how to get your family in the mood, or at least prepared for a family portrait. From past experience, this can be a challenge. Sometimes kids are just not into it, but some of her tips are fresh take on how to make the process go smoothly. Some had me chuckling, as well.
This is a great book for beginners in photography, or for those of you who need some new ideas for pictures. It is just an informative and entertaining read, but no SO much that it is overwhelming. 😉 It would make a perfect gift for someone who just got their first camera, or for new moms (and dads),too. I really liked it, and think that you will too.

Visit Me Ra Koh’s website at www.merakoh.com for more information about her and her books.

I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.

Written by ItsSandraLynn