Sometimes we think that only people with a DSLR camera or a background in photography can take great photos but this is untrue. As long as you have a camera, you can take awesome photos of your children and life. Here are my top three choices of point and shoot cameras :

• Sony Cybershot- $176
• Canon Powershot- $229
• Canon Powershot Pro Series- $300

Photographers can charge thousands of dollars to take a few photos of your children but you can do the same thing by following a few simple tips and practicing. Most photos included here were taken with a point and shoot camera and were unedited to show you can do the same thing!

1. Always focus on the bridge of the nose not on the eyes. This will keep your shots balanced.

2. When shooting a portrait of a child always use back light. What is back light? It is when the light is behind the subject. This will create even light and allow the subjects eyes to be in the best color. With perfect back light you should be able to see yourself in the subjects eyes.

3. When shooting more then one child put them close together make it look like they know each other!

4. Get down to the child’s level and zoom in. This will take out any distractions.

5. Don’t use your flash when you are outside! When you use flash you will show every single flaw in your subject.

6. Keep your camera with you at all times because the more practice you have the better. This will also allow you to take photos you might miss if you have to run and grab a camera.

7. Try not to keep your subject in the front and center. Make your photos unexpected.

8. Do not take photos by looking out of the LCD screen. Again, I say DO NOT take photos through the LCD screen. Take your eye put it to the viewfinder, you will see a huge difference!

9. Be patient when photographing children, let them be them self and take photos of it.

10. Remember it is digital, you can take more then one photo! I usually take one good photo out of twenty-five.

11. If your camera allows you to shoot on RAW, do so, they will be much easier to edit.

12. Invest a Adobe Lightroom this will give you control over the post processing of your photos. You can get the academic version for $99 which is a lot cheaper then Photoshop.

13. Use the rule of thirds.

14. Just because you are taking photos of kids doesn’t mean it has to have the child’s face in it. Maybe you want to focus on the details like what they are eating or their skinned knee.

15. Lastly have fun! Sometimes it’s about preserving your memories not about having the best shot!

Really, there are no secrets to getting a great shot. This is an art and a way of freezing time. Photography is here to show the world who you were and what you did long after you have forgotten it yourself.

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