Noel Sign/Prop DIY //Children Holiday Photography//

I looked and looked for a sign for my next Children Holiday Photography session but I could not find any. Well, I could not find the one with a reasonable price. So when I was looking around at Michael store - I came up with an idea using the single alphabet that are available there. There are tons of alphabets with different sizes and shapes. I always love browsing around at Michael trying to find a DIY ideas. And you can't go wrong at that store since there are so many crafts and tools to work with. Not to mention that the price are reasonable too.

So here is the tutorial.

What you need.

~ 1. Decide the size of the entire sign and pick the alphabets

~ 2. Dowel (available in the dowel area)

~ 3.  Loctide glue

~ 4. A brush

~ 5. Paint (I used red acrylic paint)

~ 6. X-acto knife

~ 7. A few of small christmas decorations to decorate the sign.

1. First arrange all the sign to form a word you wanted. Then flip it up side down. 2. Cut a small pieces of dowel then glue it to the back of the letters to join them together. When it dries - paint it with the color you have chosen.

 

3. Do not forget to paint the back side as well.  4. Before gluing - arrange your decorative pieces on the sign. When you are happy with how it looks then glue it one by one. Now the Noel sign is ready. 

You can decorate with any decorative pieces you want. You can also put glitter on the lettering. I am planning to do this again next year.

So this is how  the Noel sign looks.

Thank you so much for stopping by!

Tips About Props for Children Christmas Photography

I always very excited during the  time close to a Holiday like now. Prior to this and a few weeks before, I started to look for props to do a Holiday theme photo shoot indoor. I'd be sure that I have what I need in order to do a Christmas indoor photo shoot. This mean I must have ;

~ Backdrop

~ Lighting

~ Crhistmas props

~ A  space near a window or door with a good natural light source

~ SD card 

~ Announcement about the mini session photo shoot on Facebook and I also put on Craigslist.com.

When I know I have these ready; I can start booking clients.  It is just me that I like start much earlier than people anticipated. The reason is I like to give my client enough time for them to order and pick carefully their Holiday cards if they choose to do so.


~~~~o0o~~~~ 

BACKDROP

I bought my backdrop from Ebay (here). I am not ready to spend a good quality backdrop since I am new shooting indoor. But so far the backdrop does the job perfectly.  Before I bought the backdrop; my husband Steven made me a backdrop from pvc pipe got it from Home Depot. This backdrop came in handy.  And for one particular shoot; I need two backdrop to hang the props. In the future I am planning to buy the same professional looking one from Ebay. But with only USD 15.00 you can create a backdrop as well. Off course you need someone who can cut to size to create the pipe into a perfect photography backdrop. And I can assure you it is not that difficult.

LIGHTING

I also bought the lighting on Ebay. Again, I love them very much. For the price what I have paid for, I am one happy photographer shooting with these soft lighting umbrella. (here) I like to be prepared since the weather is not always good. Good lighting makes a huge different in the picture. So I like to prepapare myself in advance.

CHRISTMAS PROPS

I don't know this idea just came into mind that I want a strings of Christmas ornaments balls as a backdrop. So I bought 50 Christmas balls in one plastic box for USD.9.90 at a Dollar store near my house. I tied them with 4 or 5 inches a part on a clear plastic jewelry string bought from Michaels. Just to warn you that this took me almost 2 hours to do. But after the last 3 strings I got the hang of it that I did it quicker. You want it to cover the entire white cloth backdrop horizontally. And I hung these strings of Christmas balls on the pvc back drop placed about 1 feet in front of the white backdrop cloth.

I also bought other toys related to Christmas like teddy bear bought at Ikea. A small christmas tree decorated with christmas ornaments bought at Ikea. A  few fake presents also good as props. Usually these present won't stay pretty very long as the kids will pull the bow but that is the beauty of photograph toddlers because they are curious and often you will ended up with good pictures as if they are opening the real presents.

Also as seen on last pictures; I also bought a small white christmas lighting. Again instead of hanging strings of christmas ornament balls I hung strings of these lighting. You might need 4 boxes of 100 light bulb each. They cost about USD 4.99 per box. I got them at a Dollar store as well.

SPACE

If you do not have a studio dedicated just for photography; you need an extra space about 10 feet by 15 to 20 feet open space to put the backdrops and where you are shooting from.

And a good SD card. I bought mine from Best Buy.

ANNOUNCEMENT on Facebook.
There are ton of samples on google search (here). If you are good with basic Photoshop, you can do it yourself. I also look for graphic images on graphicstock.com to decorate the announcement card.

I created the announcement the next day I took the children's photo so that I will be on time to announce the mini session. I just like people to be prepared way a head so that they can take time to create the holiday cards.  I asked the parents if it is okay for me to post 2 or 3 of their pictures and use one of them for my Children Christmas mini session announcement on Facebook or have it written as a part of the contract. Usually they do not mind at all. Then I created using Photoshop Elements. I also put the announcement on craigslist.com a long with 2 pictures of the kids.

Like mentioned before, the metal backdrop bought from Ebay is where the white cloth is hanging. And the second backdrop stand from pvc is standing  in front of it where the strings of christmas lighting or strings of christmas ornament balls are hanging. The props must cover the entire white cloth horizontally. I did not cover the lighting a cross  as I was just testing to see how the pictures turn out to be.

 Soft box lighting will be put at 4 and 7 o'clock from the subject.

 Create different sizes of fake presents with different pattern/color of paper christmas wrap. Tie them neatly and nicely with a pretty ribbon.

Having different sizes with different paper wrapping creates drama and a feel of christmas mood. Try not to put too much props because they can be distracted and will take away the beauty of the subject(s); in this case, the kid(s).

Miniature christmas tree is lovely. But be prepared that the kids will pull the ornaments out of the tree. You will have to decorate the tree again for next round of a photo session. Remember to have a break so that the kids can have a drink or snacks. And continue on after.

I have not incorporated the lighting background on any kids. This is going to be for my next client. But it is always good to test it before hand. Playing with the aperture is crucial because it has a great impact on the look of the light itself. Below picture was taken with slight larger aperture like f/2.8. You can clearly see

the wiring of the light. The larger the aperture is the clearer the background will look.

And below picture taken with approximately f/2.0. The wiring less noticeable.

On below picture I deliberately lower the exposure. The reason is because I wanted you to see a string of clear plastic stars hanging next to the second row of lighting from the left right above the teddy bear left side head. I am planning to put many more strings of these clear plastic stars alternate them with the lighting. Experimenting with different kind of material is always good. You can store away the props for next year.

And here is the lighting I am going for. It creates dapple circular lights and it is so lovely. But this will perfectly work with lowest aperture like f/1.8

A box of 100 white christmas light is USD 4.49. And the clear plastic stars contain 10 stars per pack is USD 1.00 at a Dollar store.

Remember always plan your session a head. And don't forget to test it. Use a toy or an object to replace the kids. This way you will see what works and what is not. Think outside of the box to create props and backdrops. The sky is the limit!

Thank you so much for stopping by!

Happy Tuesday Everyone ?

ELLA + CHRISTOPHER + THOMAS //Children Christmas Photography Indoor//

This is the first time I have taken pictures of children for a Holiday theme.  I must admit that I love doing it so much.

Taking picture of kids within the age of 2 to 5 is not the easiest. But somehow I love capturing children's expression when they are happy or cranky. It takes a lot of patience when taking picture of children in these age bracket because they aren't always in the best mood.

When they seems not want to cooperate - you as a photographer must not force the kid to pose or do what you want her/him to do. The trick is try to get their 

attention like giving them a new toy, try to act funny (I always ask the parents to do this), and by calling their name. So you must always have an extra soft toy with you but do not let them see it all. You can give it to them one by one to buy time so that they always feel surprise and excite seeing the new toy. Inform the parents that they must have their meal just before the photo shoot it always help. Because feeding the kids during the photo shoot will give you an extra time to edit because you will finally see their picture with some crumbs on their lips. This happened on one of the children's pictures. I did the painstaking job, brushed off the crumbs out of his mouth during editing. Telling the parents to feed the kids at home  before shooting is now my top priority.

Toddlers are the most adorable human being to be photographed. I love their candied expression. That's why as I mentioned above sometimes you will get a great shot when you let them do what ever they wanted to do. It unexpected and the result always the cutest.

All and all the shooting was a fun day for me.  I selected and created the backdrop myself (I will talk more about this on my next post).

So take a look at these adorable kids. First group are Ella and her brother Christopher. And the second group is Thomas.

Thank you so much for reading!

Petite Meringues with White Chocolate Pudding

I am sorry if you see that all pictures here are smaller. I do not know why when uploading picture the format has changed slightly. There is no font button, and images has became smaller. I hope this is temporarily and blogger should bring the old format back.

{2 hours later. I apologize, I did not know why the format changed but when  clicked 'custom' it went back to normal again. My bad ! I am fixing it right now!}

These little snowy white delicate tower meringues treats are pretty to display on the Christmas desert buffet. Although it taste a little sweet {it is meringue, you know} but eating it with White Chocolate Pudding is quite tasty. 

 

::Recipe::

PETITE MERINGUES WITH WHITE CHOCOLATE PUDDING

~ 4 egg whites

 ~ 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

 ~ 1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar 1 cup extra-fine granulated sugar White Chocolate Pudding *Pomegranate seeds* (optional) Small fresh mint leaves (optional) 

1. Place egg whites in a large bowl; cover and let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, cover two baking sheets with parchment paper. Using a 2-inch round cookie cutter and a pencil, trace 12 evenly spaced circles on each sheet of parchment. Turn parchment over; set a side. 

2. Preheat oven to 225 deg.F. For meringue; Add vanilla and cream of tartar to egg whites. Beat with an electric mixer on medium speed until soft peaks form (tips curl over). Gradually add sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, beating until stiff peaks form (tips stand straight). 

3. Spoon a rounded 1 tablespoon of meringue onto each parchment circle on the baking sheets. Using a thin metal spatula, spread as evenly as possible to the edge of each circle. Place baking sheets on separate oven racks; bake for 40 minutes. Turn off oven and allow meringues to dry in the oven overnight. 

4. To assemble each serving, spoon 1 teaspoon of the White Chocolate Pudding onto a serving plate (this will hold meringue in place). Top with a meringue, then about 1 tablespoon of the pudding, and finally a third meringue. If desired, garnish with pomegranate seeds and mint leaves. Serve immediately. 

Makes 8 servings. 

WHITE CHOCOLATE PUDDING. In a medium bowl, beat 2 egg yolks with a fork, set aside. In a heavy medium saucepan, combine 1/4 cup granulated sugar and 4 teaspoon cornstarch. Stir in 1-1/2 cups milk. Cook and stir over medium heat until thickened and bubbly. Cook and stir for 2 minutes more. Remove saucepan from heat. Gradually stir 1 cup of the milk mixture to milk mixture in saucepan. Bring to a gentle boil; reduce heat. Cook and stir for 2 minutes more. Remove saucepan from heat. Stir in 4 ounces white baking chocolate (that contains cocoa butter), chopped; 1 tablespoon butter; and 1 teaspoon orange food flavoring or vanilla, stirring until melted. Pour pudding into a bowl. Cover and chill for 2 to 24 hours. Stir before assembling petite meringues. 

 Note. To easily remove pomegranate seeds, quarter a pomegranate and immerse the pieces in cold water. With the fruit under water, use your fingers to remove the seeds. Drain, reserving seeds, discard fruit. Prepare the White Chocolate Pudding and the meringues as directed through step 3. Chill pudding for up to 24 hours. Store meringues in the unheated oven. Just before serving, assemble as directed in step 4. 

{Aghhhh....this is so much better posting now !}

Good luck Everyone ?

 HAPPY HOLIDAY AND HAPPY NEW YEAR TO YOU ALL......