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Holiday Photo Hoopla

I remember when one of the highlights of Christmastime was going to Hess’s department store to see Santa.

However, Christmas magic starts long before the kids come along if hundreds of holiday romance movies are to be believed.

There are a variety of fun photos to make holiday memories last a lifetime. Let’s take a look at some.

Falling In Love With Christmas

Christmas Night Portrait Photography in the Streets!

Christmas isn’t just for the kiddos. Falling in love during the holiday season is the very heart of the Hallmark Movie Channel. There’s a special magic at Christmastime that lends itself to mismatched lovers like Bryce and Veronica or any number of characters in prose and film.

Nowadays, almost everybody has a high-resolution camera in their pockets. The chances of catching an enchanting holiday memory on the very day you meet your special someone are better than ever. Whether it’s a chance encounter with an unexpected new interest or a day out with the love of your life, making memories with your camera is easier than ever.

As in the video above, Bokeh brings a certain magic to your holiday romp. The deliberate blur of the background adds a quality of fairy lights while protecting the anonymity of whoever might be wandering behind your actual subject.

There are a number of Android and Apple apps that add a touch of holiday magic to your photos. Frames, captions and even Santa hats that can be added to any snapshot you take with your phone or tablet can make the yuletide a little brighter.

In a world and a life that moves so fast, photography just makes the sound go out and it makes you stop and take a pause. Photography calms me. ~Drew Barrymore

Yuletide Magic

Christmas Photo Shoot Ideas You NEED To Try! ☃️🎄🎅

Christmas is a great time whether you’re enjoying some “Me Time” or whether you’ve got a gaggle of kids like Bob Cratchit. Capturing the magic of the season in photos is a great way to make the joy last indefinitely.

One of our favorite ways to capture the Christmas spirit is our annual church picture. Our church has a beautiful Christmas Eve service that ends with a candlelight singing of Silent Night. After church is over, since we’re in our “Sunday Best”, we stand in front of the wonderfully decorated altar and have one of our church friends take a family photo. It’s really fun to watch the kids grow year after year dressed in their holiday finery.

Another approach is to have a family portrait taken at home in front of your Christmas tree. It’s fun to take this sort of picture with pajamas on or maybe festive holiday sweaters.

If you’re not a homebody like me, you might like to take your picture while you’re out and about. Getting a picture in a horse-drawn sleigh wearing Santa hats and a toasty blanket might be a fun thing to do with or without the gaggle of kids.

Whether you’ve got a talented shutterbug like my firstborn or whether you hire a professional like my friend, Colleen, you can get a variety of wonderful holiday photos at home or abroad.

Look for opportunities to capture a memory wherever you go throughout the holiday season. Some locations are absolutely made for memorable holiday photos.

The giant Christmas tree at Rockefeller Plaza is a very noteworthy spot for holiday memories. If you don’t live in or near to New York City, there are a variety of wonderfully decorated locales across the nation and the world where you can take fabulous Christmas photos.

Light makes photography. Embrace light. Admire it. Love it. But above all, know light. Know it for all you are worth, and you will know the key to photography. ~George Eastman

Santa Baby

20 Hilarious Pictures Of Kids Meeting Santa On Christmas That Will Make You Laugh

Pictures with Santa can be hit or miss. On general principle, kids and Santa go together like peanut butter and jelly.

In actual practice, they sometimes go together like oil and water. Some of the most memorable photos are the ones where the kids are crying their eyes out or trying to escape from the jolly old elf.

One of my all-time favorite Santa pictures is of my firstborn daughter in “nope” mode with Santa. We set her on his lap and stood back so the picture could be taken. She was having none of it. She slid down his shin like a sliding board. The resulting picture was Santa holding her arms to keep her from falling off of him and her trying to deftly slither from his grip.

There are a lot of opportunities to get your kids’ pictures with Santa.

Most shopping malls and some department stores have a dedicated layout.

You can go to a studio like Payton’s Photography in Montgomery, Illinois where they have their own Santa and Peppermint P the Elf.

You can even hire your friendly neighborhood professional Santa like Santa D in Lehighton, PA to come to your house.

Failing all that, you can always buy a Santa suit of your own and take the pictures yourself.

No matter how you go about it, pictures with Santa create memories to last a lifetime.

Santa is our culture’s only mythic figure truly believed in by a large percentage of the population. It’s a fact that most of the true believers are under eight years old, and that’s a pity. ~Chris Van Allsburg

There are a lot of ways to make holiday memories with photography. Whether it’s an impromptu shot with your phone or a professional session, capturing joyous moments makes the yuletide a little brighter for everyone.