Ready for easy tips that will make your Halloween Photos actually worth printing this year? With the combination of a night-time holiday and sugar-crazed tornado-like kids getting a good picture can be difficult!
So keep reading for the 10 easy tricks and tips for better Halloween Photos of your kids. The first one is what finally let me capture those awesome Halloween costumes, without the pictures being blurry!
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Tip #1: Have a Halloween PHOTOSHOOT
Don’t quickly stop reading! I’m not talking about a professional photoshoot of your little fireman in his costume.
I’m simply talking about taking Halloween photos before the actual night of Halloween.
For example, Halloween 2019 falls on a Thursday night. The prior weekend, you could have a dress rehearsal, or last costume check, before the big trick-or-treating night.
Talk it up to your kids, do their make-up and hair if needed, and have fun!
Take tons of pics of your cute little princess without the pressure of getting to the Grandparent’s house for supper or out the door to go trick-or-treating.
What works even better is if your child has a Halloween Party, Trunk-or-Treat, etc. that means they will already be wearing their costume.
Schedule 15 extra minutes before the event and you will have time for your mini photo shoot.
Tip #2: Seek the DAYLIGHT
If you don’t have time for a pre-Halloween photo shoot, then try to take your Halloween “posed” pictures as early in the night as possible.
First, this will help you with not having blurry photos. Second, it will also make sure you don’t forget to grab those classic costume photos.
Simply put, the more daylight you have, the better your photos will turn out. And if you are thinking, no biggie, I’ll just use my flash… check out tip #3!
Tip #3: Say no to the FLASH
Unless you know what you are doing, say no to the flash. Without going into a discussion of ISO settings, apertures, and shutter speeds; flash is often too strong and leads to images that even editing can’t fix.
If you absolutely can’t live without it – try using night mode. It’s preset on most DSLR cameras and some phones. It will soften the flash as needed.
Still worried all your action shot photos are going to be completely dark if you don’t use the flash? Check the next tip for some creative light ideas.
Tip #4: Find the LIGHT
Okay so we just talked about using daylight and also not using flash. So what in the world do I mean by find the light?
When you are out trick-or-treating look for creative ways to get light into your pictures.
The glow from a front porch light as your child picks a piece of candy can make for a great in-the-moment Halloween photo.
Or capture your child under a street lamp! The shadows and above lighting will make for an interesting and spooky Halloween picture.
There are also lights from jack-o’-lanterns, passing cars, and glow sticks.
Play around on Halloween and see what unique images you can capture with the lights you can find.
Tip #5: Definitely say no to the ZOOM
Let your kids do the zooming from house to house, and forget the zoom function on your phone camera.
Currently, most phones don’t have moveable lenses so think of zooming when you take a pic more of pre-cropping. It will kill your picture quality. Especially in low light.
Move closer to your kids or the amazing jack-o’-lantern you came across and snap away. You can always crop all your Halloween photos later if needed.
Tip #6: CLEAN the Camera Lens
The simplest tip that will be given – clean your camera lens. Nope, I’m not talking about the lens on your DSLR camera.
Right now flip your phone over and look at the tiny little circle that is your phone’s camera viewer. Are there smudges or a fingerprint or two on it?
Use the softest material you can find (I favor the inside of my sweatshirt), and gently clean your lens.
It seems silly, but a clean lens will mean much better photos! Yes, that smudge might end up looking like a ghost in all your Halloween photos – but that’s not what we are after (wink).
Tip #7: You must remain absolutely STILL
In low-light settings, it is so important to hold your camera still when taking photos. So if you can, stop walking when you are taking your pictures and capture it quickly.
Most phone cameras also have shortcuts of sorts that let you take pictures using the side buttons instead of the touchscreen circle.
Try it out on your phone, or look in your settings.
For my iPhone, I use the “down volume” button to take pictures when I’m trying for steadier photos.
Bonus – using the shortcut on phones also helps if you are wearing gloves! We had snow last year on Halloween!
Tip #8: Change your PERSPECTIVE
Halloween photos are the perfect time to play around and capture unique shots of your kids.
For example, try experimenting with different perspectives. Get down low and shoot up at your children.
Stand above your child and capture a shot of them from their mask down to their flimsy shoe covers; my least favorite parts of costumes, right after the masks.
Tip #9: Variety is the SPICE of Life
These tips apply more to the photo shoot aspect of Halloween photos. The ones you attempt to get before the trick-or-treating chaos begins!
Try finding backdrops that will make for interesting photos. Use a brick wall or your garage doors to have a calm backdrop that will make your child’s costume pop in the photo.
Or if you have a newer phone (or can attempt later in an app) use portrait mode to blur out the busy background behind your child. This is my favorite for the front porch decorations photo!
Make sure you capture close-ups of your child’s expressions when they are in character.
Also, have them pose like their character and get a full-body shot. You’ll want to see every aspect of that costume in your Halloween photos.
Tip #10: If all else fails – FILTER IT!
If all else fails, you can always filter your photos! I’ve found that Black and White filters are good options for low-light Halloween pictures.
Don’t be afraid to go in and attempt more than just a preset filter. Most apps have adjustments for exposure, white balance, etc. too. Give them a shot! You can always reset the picture and try again.
Being kind of a “photography wanna-be” I have several apps on my phone that I love to use. Instagram has great options too if you use the platform.
Other Apps I personally use are:
- Snapseed
- VSCO
- Afterlight
- Color Splash (cool black and white with color pop)
There is also an app named Word Swag that I love because it lets you put phrases and sayings onto your photo. It has tons (repeat, tons) of options for overlaying your text on your pictures!
Even More Halloween Fun!
Hopefully, you have some great tips and tricks for better Halloween pics this year. I’d love to hear your comments below about how you capture your memories. Share those ideas, please.
Before you go, check out Productive Pete’s other Halloween Ideas. We have a little bit of everything for busy mamas!
FREE PRINTABLE TIC TAC TOE GAME
NON-CANDY HALLOWEEN TREATS FOR KIDS
We have Last Minute Halloween Costumes for Busy Moms! Tons of easy costume ideas, with items mostly from your home.
Or our Cheats and Tips for Planning Halloween Games post. It has pre-made game ideas… time savers!
Of course, if you never want to miss a Productive Pete idea for busy moms, free printable, and more – sign up for our monthly newsletter below!
2 Comments
What great tips! I wish I knew them when my kids were small!
Thank you! I consider myself a wanna-be photographer so sharing my easy tips is fun!