Our diy holiday backdrop

Alright! I busted out the tripod and camera and turned on the self timer to FINALLY get some shots of me with the people I love.  I invited some family to come by on Sunday to get a shot or two for the holidays. Since Ben and I had already planned on doing a mini holiday shoot, I thought, why not?! I’m SO happy that I learned how to use the self timer mode because I don’t even care how perfect or not the images turn out, I just wanted a few shots of myself with everyone else. I am always behind the lens and I can’t remember the last time Ben and I took a photo together (our wedding I suppose). That’s the most common thing I hear from my photography clients and I can’t believe I’m saying the same thing! No more though, I’m promising myself. Ben was such a trooper. He let me snap away over and over and didn’t complain once. It made me so happy and I think that made him happy too.

To make your own holiday or any occasion backdrop …

* Find a space with great natural light and place yourselves so you’re facing the light. In these shots, we were all seated facing the sliding glass door. Open all blinds. Let it in baby. But watch for streaky sunshine creepin’ in on your subjects. You may have to move some things around to control the light. But that’s all part of natural light photography

* Hang a blanket or background against a plain wall (if you don’t have a backdrop stand). Make sure whatever fabric or blanket you’re using has been steamed … best advice ever, I promise. We used a clothing steamer from none other than the clothing queen herself (my bff Courtenay, pictured below). Whatever you do, just be sure it’s all flat and free of creases. That’s why blankets can work better in some cases since they don’t wrinkle the way sheets do

* Fasten your backdrop to the wall however you can. Make sure you use fabric wide enough that it will cover a larger space than just your subjects. You’ll need some wiggle room! Think white or cream. Light colors work best

* Gather your pretty background add ons. I choose a few painted pine cones (I did a post on them previously).  I also used a string of Martha Stewart white wedding lights (50 lights on a long strand for $10 from Walmart!) I thought that was pretty good seeing how white Christmas lights can be significantly pricier than colored ones. These are soft and are a great option for more gentle lighting. I added a strong of mini christmas balls in white and strung them onto the same color yarn. Finally, I found this white garland at the dollar store … yeah … I thought it was a strange place to find this there too. I added it at the last-minute and I really like the look. It was like an accordion and just folded perfectly back into itself when I was done with it. Perfect to store away for another event. I handmade the fabric joy banner which I plan to place in our tree this year. We are off to get it this wknd – YAY!  I hope that this post at least showed you how simple it can be to get some great shots in a diy fashion and with a diy budget too.  So get out and snap some shots this season! My camera will be right with me for the tree hunt too …  my rainboots, hot chocolate in hand … I love it. I’ll post soon.

xo