It's Always Autumn

creative tutorials for everyday life

  • Holidays
  • Holidays
    • back to school
    • birthdays
    • Christmas
    • Easter
    • Halloween
    • July 4th
    • Mother’s Day/Father’s Day
    • teacher appreciation
    • Thanksgiving
    • Valentine’s
  • Crafts
  • Crafts
    • crafts + DIY
    • handmade gifts
    • photo crafts
    • kid crafts + activities
  • Recipes
  • Recipes
    • bread
    • dessert
    • main dish
    • side dish
  • Sewing
  • Sewing
    • free sewing patterns
    • sewing for women
    • sewing for kids
    • how to sew
    • gifts
  • Photography
  • Photography
    • beginning photography tips
    • posing tips
    • photo editing tips
  • Tips
  • Tips
    • parenting tips
    • travel tips
    • books I love
  • FAQ

beginning photography tips Halloween holidays photography
October 10, 2014

best tips for taking great photos of your kids this halloween

Looking back at the photos I have of my kids over the year, Halloween photos are some of my absolute favorites. The kids just look so adorable in their costumes, and they’re usually grinning ear to ear in anticipation of candy overload. But since most of the action on Halloween happens after sunset, it can be hard to get really great photos. I’ve rounded up the best photography tips that will help you get amazing Halloween photos of your kids!

Halloween photos: boy dressed as firefighter; girl looking at jack o lantern; baby girl in ruby slippers

1. Whenever I want good photos, I get online and look at examples to give myself ideas. Having an “inspiration photo” can make the difference between getting something amazing and getting the same old photo of the kids standing in front of my garage door in their costumes. Do a search for “Halloween photos” on pinterest or check out this post from Click it Up a Notch, which is full of gorgeous Halloween photo inspiration.

2. The best tip for great Halloween photos is not waiting until it’s time to head out the door to take pictures. Let the kids dress up a few days ahead of Halloween – tell them you need to “try out” the costumes to make sure everything works (this is actually a good idea even if you aren’t taking photos.) Then find somewhere fun to take pictures, where the surroundings will compliment the costume. Be creative – I obviously couldn’t find a real castle to photograph my daughter at, but I did find a rock wall at a local park that gives the photo a medieval feel.

A little girl in a red princess costume in front of a stone wall

3. If you don’t have a chance to take photos ahead of time, grab 15 minutes right after school and get great photos in your garage. Find out how easy it is to set up an impromptu “photo studio” in your garage in this post.

get great photos of your kids this Halloween - tips & tricks

4. Head out for trick or treating a little early, while it’s still light out, for great photos. Just before sunset the light is warm and soft, creating a nice “mood” in the photos. Be sure to turn your flash off for the best pictures. No flash means your shutter will stay open for longer, so you’ll get the best shots when your kids are standing still, not moving around a lot.

A little boy dressed as a ghost knocking on a door

5. Get photos from different angles as you follow the kids around. Visit Click It Up a Notch for lots of example photos showing how different perspectives can help you get better Halloween photos + even more Halloween photo tips.

close up of baby girl\'s ruby slippers

6. Zoom in. Yes, of course, take photos that show the entire costume, but then zoom on in for a closeup. Use a zoom lens if you have one! Standing back from your child and zooming in close will automatically blur the background of your photo. (Learn how zooming in affects background blur here.)

A close up of a boy in a dog costume

7. Don’t forget to photograph the pumpkins! Visit Simple as That for great tips on taking the perfect Jack-o-Lantern photos.

little girl looking at lit jack o lanterns

8. Having a Halloween party? Get adorable pictures of the fun with these free Halloween photo booth printables from Bird’s Party Blog.

kids using halloween photo props for funny photos

9. Try your hand at taking “ghost” photos – what kid wouldn’t want to be a ghost? It’s really easy to do with this tutorial from Doodlecraft.

A vintage photo of a group of people where the people look semi transparent

10. What if your photos don’t turn out as well as you’d like? Try adding a little “atmosphere” using actions in Photoshop Elements. This fairly blah photo got a great boost from the CoffeeShop Vivid 2 action:

boy and girl in prince and princess costumes walking down the street; edited version of same photo

And lots of Halloween photos would look great with a vintage b&w feel from the CoffeeShop Gray Velvet action:

A little girl in a princess costume in black and white

(Don’t know how to install/use actions? Don’t worry. Click on over to the CoffeeShop Blog – she has step by step tutorials and her actions are FREE!)

Happy Halloween!

boys dressed as Mario, Luigi, and Toad

Share this:

  • Tweet
  • Print

Home » photography » beginning photography tips » best tips for taking great photos of your kids this halloween


11 Comments

free email series

NO FAIL CRAFTS + RECIPES

Get my favorite EASY craft and recipe ideas straight to your inbox!

« the very best Pride & Prejudice books {spinoffs, sequels, and retellings}
DIY leather deck holders for Pokemon or Magic cards {great tween gift!} »

Comments

  1. Melissa Mall says

    October 11, 2014 at 12:40 pm

    Great tips! I could definitely do with some better Halloween pictures. I always end up not having the costumes ready till the last minute, though, and once it’s over, I’m too tired to get them out again!!

    Reply
  2. Jhanis says

    October 29, 2014 at 1:09 am

    We already went to a trick or treating event last week and I have to admit my photos if my kids are not good! Will try your tips! Thank you for sharing!

    Reply
  3. Heather says

    October 31, 2014 at 1:51 pm

    Great ideas for tonight! Thanks for sharing so many great halloween photo ideas. I hope you enjoy trick or treating! Pinning.

    Reply
  4. marie says

    March 29, 2015 at 6:04 pm

    Hi , nice tips. can you tell me what software or how you got the double of the little boy in the firemen’ s suit?

    Reply
  5. data science training says

    December 9, 2015 at 3:50 am

    Thanks for sharing your thoughts about Big data training courses.
    Regards

    Reply
  6. Printable Calendar 2016 says

    January 20, 2016 at 12:43 am

    Very good post. I’m experiencing some of these issues as well..

    Reply
  7. Arlo Netgear says

    June 24, 2019 at 11:17 pm

    To resolve your issue which you are facing Arlo login, Arlo sign in, Arlo Netgear Login in your Arlo account contact to us we are available round the clock.
    https://arlologin.org/

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. CraftCrave | DigiFree | CraftCrave says:
    October 12, 2014 at 6:22 am

    […] best tips for taking great photos of your kids this halloween – 1 freebie(s)? […]

    Reply
  2. 11 Tips For A Spooktacular Halloween! | The Almost Indian Wife says:
    October 22, 2015 at 10:33 am

    […] a few healthy snacks to let your kiddos eat if they get hungry while you’re out.    Here are some amazing tips for taking pictures of your kids on Halloween too! […]

    Reply
  3. Costume Craze | Camera Shy says:
    October 26, 2015 at 6:08 am

    […] https://www.itsalwaysautumn.com/2014/10/10/halloween-photos.html#_a5y_p=2618835 […]

    Reply
  4. Ten tips to take better Halloween Photos of your kids • Insley Photography says:
    October 21, 2016 at 5:59 pm

    […] to take them before dark. I know that probably won’t work for a lot of parents or kids. But like @it’s always autumn suggests. Do a dry run before Halloween. This even gives you a chance to make sure everything fits […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Hey, glad you’re here!

I'm Autumn, a mom of five who loves ice cream, Masterpiece Theatre, and clothes that hide the fact that I eat so much ice cream. When I was 18 I got a job at a craft store and told everyone (regularly) how much I hated crafts. Well, things change! Read More…

Find me here

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter

free email series

NO FAIL CRAFTS + RECIPES

Get my favorite craft + recipe ideas straight to your inbox!

Popular Posts

101 fun activities that kids can do at home list on a colorful striped background

101 Fun + Easy Activities kids can do AT HOME

50 easy crafts and activities kids can do indoors! Perfect for cold or rainy days.

50 best indoor activities for kids: easy crafts + games

Gorgeous art projects for kids! Easy art that turns out amazing.

20 easy art projects for kids that turn out AMAZING!

Collage of different paper flowers tutorials

How to make GORGEOUS paper flowers

Various flavors of baked mini donuts made from cake mixes

How to make mini donuts! {baked cake mix donuts recipe}

Blog policy

All posts and pictures are copyrighted by Autumn Baldwin and blog content may not be reposted elsewhere. However, linking back to my content is just fine. You may use one photo as long as you link directly back to the specific post. Thank you!

Please view our Privacy Policy here.

Also, please note that this blog is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.

Copyright © 2021 · Divine theme by Restored 316192.168.1.1 router login

Copyright © 2021 · Divine Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

free email series

NO-FAIL CRAFTS + RECIPES

Get my favorite EASY craft + recipe ideas straight to your inbox!

x