There’s definitely no such thing as “best tips on how to make THE BEST outdoor family photography”. At least not from a single person. All photographers nurture a style on their own, different equipment and most importantly, have set their mindset differently.

So, take it from my husband and me, who have always been upside down with photography on this blog, don’t chase perfection. You won’t find it anywhere. But chase as many tips as you can, remember them, write them down. Then, among a bunch of tips, decide on which style better suits you.

Now that I’ve been super real with you, let’s get right to the point. Even though I’ve previously stated that there’s no such thing as “best outdoor family photography tips”, I’ll try my best. I’ll give my best that you end up reading this article feeling inspired to go out and bring your camera. After all, certain things are kind of necessities.

It’s best to take outdoor family photography in autumn!

Obviously, because of the colours and the lightning, that is not too bright nor too dark. Well, depending on where you live. The leaves that kids find super interesting (great entertainment for younger kids). Your emotions. Mine, for instance, vary between nostalgic and inspiring. We LOVE making outdoor family photography! Here’re our best tips!

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The equipment.

I’ve seen people go anywhere from iPhone to a professional camera and take great photos. So, no, you don’t need a camera to capture beautiful moments. My brother has sometimes made better photos, with less trouble, with his phone camera.

Anyways, the photos from this blog posts are exclusively taken with Canon 5D Mark II using the 85 mm lens.

You must consider me a lucky girl that blogs and has a professional photographer (among many other things he is, read more here), who has solo exhibitions yearly, as a husband. And you’re right. I am.

However, nor does my husband agrees that everyone should buy a professional camera right away. Let’s face it, a professional camera is amazing and it makes amazing photography. But it’s also an expensive toy.

There’s a whole lot to learn with the settings section. So if you’re not ready to learn the stuff, then you’re probably not ready to invest in buying it as well.

The ultimate photography course.

We highly encourage you to take a look at this photography course from The Ultimate Bundle company. If you haven’t heard about them previously, here’s a glance about what they are doing. They collect everything from books and courses about a certain thing (in this case, photography) and gather them up in ONE PRODUCT THAT SELLS HALF PRICE.

The Ultimate Bundle is designed for people who want to learn.

This particular product ($37 USD) teaches you how to:

• Shoot stunning natural light portraits (NO FLASH);
• Give your images an attractive, consistent look with 50 different Lightroom presets;
• Photograph candid vacation or travel memories in a meaningful way;
• Capture your baby’s cutest expressions fast and never miss the moment again;
• Frame or stage beautiful photos by understanding patterns, symmetry, leading lines, curves, shapes, depth of field, long exposures and minimalism;
• Discover the features that make your phone such an amazing compact camera;
• Take advantage of advanced techniques if you own a DSLR camera (Canon or Nikon!);
• Get your photos organised and printed without spending hours at the computer;
• Edit your phone photos with free and cheap apps;
• And more!

What we love about this bundle is that they are honest and helpful with both taking and editing photos with a DSLR camera and phone camera. You get the $1,228.98 products value at a 97% discount.

Not only is this bundle a 97% discount off the normal price of these eBooks, eCourses and presets, it’s also WAY cheaper than hiring a professional photographer for a single session. 
It allows YOU to start taking beautiful photos of your family and friends — and all the special moments in your life.

Hurry up, because the sale ends soon!

Golden hour + natural light rule.

If you’ve read my previous article on photography, then you know how much we love the golden hour. Most of the moments from this article we took just before the sunset and darker ones at the sunset hour.

Oh, and natural light is our golden rule. Using flash and any studio lights won’t satisfy us. Not again. We used to be trying hard to make great photos after the kid goes to bed, at night. And we never said more than “they’re OK” about them.

So, as long as it’s not me, the kid, or any product, in front of direct sunlight, we hold onto our golden rule. When I tried to pose for beach photography at noon, under direct sunlight, this vacation, we made POOR photos. My body was too bright and without any shape. Not attractive at all.

Outdoor family photography – my editing process and tips

My editing process hasn’t changed since summer a lot. I’ve downloaded a mobile phone version of Photoshop recently, where I first colour correct, then soothe white surfaces if there’s too much light, or vice versa (the same for black surfaces). Next thing, I go to exposure and basically apply the same rule there.

I would also play with the temperature a bit until the image tone doesn’t satisfy my eyes. Ideally, it won’t be too blue nor too yellowish. When days are sunny, each photo surface gets this yellowish tone and the blue tone on rainy days and a bit before dark.

Lately, I’ve been trying to establish contrast as a necessity in my editing style since my husband suggested that. However, the 85 mm lens gives contrasted and clear results itself, so I’ll go there only if it’s a must.

If necessary, I’ll use the “remove blemishes” brush too (for any rubbish, or similar). It probably doesn’t look logical to crop the photo after previous steps. Sure I know many people do this at the beginning. But, let’s forget the basic cropping rules, it gives me a much clearer picture when I crop it AFTER I’ve made all the corrections.

The only filter I’m using on ALL my photos is the S1 filter from VSCO. I used to apply it at the very beginning of my editing process, but soon I figured out that doesn’t lead me anywhere. My life is just too busy to do photoshoots in front of the same light with as many pictures and combinations as I can. Therefore, the corrections are MUST. Only after applying those little corrections, I know how much of the filter do I actually need.

That’s all from me, and how about YOU?

Use the comments section to share your experience, we’d all love to hear from you! Which tools, apps and programs do you use and what’s your editing style? Also, don’t forget to spread the word by sharing the post or pinning one of the images! 😉