SNAP! Making Mother's Day Memoriesby Michele Cheplic | More from this Blogger 24 Apr 2008 02:47 PM If you are a mom and the official family photographer then getting a photo gift of your children for Mother's Day is probably not in your future. Unless it's a framed shot you took yourself. I've had a few of those over the years. Don't get me wrong. I am very appreciative of the thought that went into the gifts. For example, a couple of years ago my mom got me a beautiful sterling silver frame for Mother's Day. Naturally, she didn't want to present me with an empty frame (or worse, leave the sepia shot of a random mother and daughter duo the manufacturer inserted for display purposes) so she did what any loving gift giver with zero photography experience would do---she color copied a shot of my daughter that I had taken at Christmas and stuck that in the frame. So you'll forgive me for being a tad bit envious about the Mother Day's gift my photographer friend (and father of two gorgeous daughters) plans to give his wife this year. Sure, I've read the magazine articles that provided tips on how Dads can make homemade Mother's Day gifts that mom "will cherish forever," but I didn't think anyone actually attempted to recreate the projects. Enter Sam. As I mentioned earlier he is the father of two young girls who have the most amazing naturally curly hair. A couple of weeks ago he gave his wife some "alone time" and took the girls out for the afternoon. His goal: snap enough photos of their daughters to fill a personalized scrapbook he had already picked out. Here's what this thoughtful and loving husband did in the course of a day: Took the girls shopping for new outfits and coordinating hair accessories. Drove 70 minutes north to a state natural area and found the exact waterfront location where he proposed to his wife 8 years ago. (I know... get out!) Brought a blanket, a swing that he rigged to one of the trees himself, and the dresses his wife made for the girls for Easter. He had scouted out the lighting conditions of the area during a previous visit so he knew what time of day to snap his photos. Also, he was familiar with the park so he knew what backdrops were available (field of wildflowers, rocky beach, wooded areas, etc.). Once he completed the formal portraits of the girls in their dresses and their new outfits he had them pose for informal shots in their casual clothes. He also took candid shots of each girl then had them team up on the swing. (Those were my favorites.) Then, he just stood back and let them have fun. He snapped them running through a grassy field, throwing rocks into the lake, and holding hands as the sunset. By the end of the day he had great formal shots and a slew of candid ones. One session with three different looks (including different outfits, hair styles and backdrops) - a photographer's dream come true... and one heck of a Mother's Day gift. Related Articles: Photo Cards for Easter and Mother's Day Telling A Story With Your Shots Snapping Frameworthy Shots Of Your Kids More Common Sense Tips To Capturing A Frame-Worthy Picture Common Sense Tips To Capturing Frame-Worthy Pictures Cameras: Knowing When To Upgrade Digital Photography 101: Getting To Know Your Camera Getting Digital Pictures To Friends And Family FAST! Learn more about Michele Cheplic  Michele Cheplic was born and raised in Hilo, Hawaii, but now lives in Wisconsin. Michele graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a degree in Journalism. Relevantphotography tags User Comments No comments on this article yet. Be the first to comment! Community Tags Mother's Day, photography, pictures, photo tips, photo backdrop Discuss this article
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