Thanksgiving weekend is the perfect time to give your camera phone a break and bring out your DSLR to capture your family’s memories.
Here are some suggestions for fun photos to take on the Thanksgiving weekend:
1) Traditions
If you celebrate with a family meal, don’t forget to photograph the table and decorations before everyone sits down to eat. It’s also a good idea to pull your camera out at the beginning of the day to record the entire meal preparation process.
Tattered recipe cards, Grandma’s apron, and kitchen antics are often overlooked when people are photographing the holiday feast. Every family has different traditions to celebrate the time they spend together on Thanksgiving weekend. Whether it’s shared stories, family games, a specific trail you hike together, or the dishes you eat your meal from, remember to photograph the details that make your family celebrations unique.

2) Pumpkins
Thanksgiving weekend is a wonderful time of year to visit the pumpkin patch. Rows of pumpkins lined up for sale, pumpkins still resting in the fields, the wagon ride out to the pumpkin patch, and your little one trying to pick up their favourite pumpkin. Make sure you get down on the ground and photograph your little ones from their level and the pumpkins from ground level as well as from above.

3) Playing in the leaves
If the leaves have started to Fall, gather them up to create a big leaf pile for your kids to jump in. Photograph the collection process (hands, rakes, wagons), everyone’s faces as they work together, and the action shots of your kids running and jumping in the pile. Make sure you stand right in the action to get close up shots as well as stand back to take photos of the entire scene.
4) Family photo
If you don’t have a tripod, rest your camera on a piece of furniture or ask a neighbour to help out. Outdoor photos are easiest (turn off your flash!) and make sure that everyone is standing in similar light (e.g., not under dappled light coming from a tree).
5) Fall colours
Take a walk in the early morning or early evening sun, when the colours are the most vibrant and the shadows are most dramatic. Early in the day is perfect for capturing the leaves with the morning frost and fog, while taking your camera out for a post-dinner stroll gives you the opportunity to photograph the vibrant colours in the setting sun (and to stretch your legs after a delicious meal).

Happy Thanksgiving!
For more photography tips, visit my website for photography class details.
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