Guest contribution

The intimate setting of a family event provides ample opportunities to capture emotions. What could be better than capturing pure happiness? It works best if you are a member of the family.

Spontaneously shot photos can capture emotions better than posed pictures. But you must always have the camera ready, otherwise the moments of happiness you are looking to capture will be gone. Getting up close to a person unnoticed, keeping them in your sights for longer and pressing the shutter at just the right moment – it all feels a bit like going on a “photographic subject hunt”.

If the photographer at your family event is good, it’s almost as if you don’t feel they are there, that they’re effectively invisible. If you have a personal relationship with your subject, they will present their best side to you. This gives you a huge advantage over a professional photographer, and you should use it. Emotions are found in people, not things. Of course you should also photograph glasses, the table decorations and the general ambience. But the real protagonists of a family occasion are the people taking part, the bride and groom, the birthday boy or girl or the people celebrating their anniversary, and their guests.

To prepare, you should visualise the process. Will the event be taking place outdoors or indoors, during the day or in the evening? What is the prevailing light? Do you want to shoot with the existing light, or will you need to use a flash? How will the flash affect the lighting mood? Will the flashes interrupt the party? The lenses I use for these occasions are fixed focal lengths of 35mm or 50mm. I also pack a zoom in a focal length range of 18 to 200mm. I usually don’t use a tripod because it’s too unwieldy and not suitable for capturing spontaneity.

Mobile phone cameras are getting better and better, and can also be used for filming, for example. Technically though, they are not on par with “real” photo cameras. But the downsides such as shakiness, blurring and noise only become evident when the image is enlarged and put on photo paper or in a photo book. Mobile phone photos can quickly become grainy, especially in low light.

The face is the part of the body that represents emotions. If possible, photograph people from the front or at least from the side. Unless you specifically want to put the focus on a hairstyle, for example, the back of the head is of no interest to someone looking at a photograph. I often wait in a “lurking” position, with the camera in front of my eye, until the subjects have the facial expression I want to capture. Then I press the shutter several times and capture a whole series of photographs. But I don’t work with the series function. Instead, I photograph and stage each image individually in a flow.

A good snap of one or two people can be taken using the “sneaking technique” so they don’t notice you’re there. The more people there are in the picture, the less effective a spontaneous shot will be. There’s also the risk that someone might be squinting or shown in a unflattering way. If there are three or more people, I take staged photos: I ask for a photo, get the group together, arrange them to find the best pose and positioning within the group and then take three or four photos, from which I choose the best one.

With individuals, facial expressions and light are key. Faces that are surprised, questioning, blurting something out or even pensive are loaded with emotion and have a particularly strong impact. But you can only capture emotions if you have the camera up by your eye and look out for the opportunities that present themselves. Where are the jokes being told, where’s the laughter, where’s the action?

Relationships are everything within the family, and I try to bring them out with photography. The bonds in a parent-child relationship will come out particularly strongly, while the relationships between grandparents, godparents or other relatives will seem a bit less intense. But romantic relationships or long-time partners can also be captured very beautifully. The facial expressions and the position of the people shown in relation to one another are important.

A great gift idea for a loved one or why not treat yourself to this great gift. Order your favourite family photos as photo prints and why not get some matching photo frames made out of real wood. Choose between black, white or black painted lime wood or maybe you would like to go for an oak wood, which has a more natural look. The photo frames come in various sizes so that they will fit any print you choose.