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.


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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 ?