5 Tips for Unique Family Portrait Photographs

Using your creativity can change a typical family portrait photograph into a something unique and personalized. The photograph will say something special about your family. All it requires is a vivid imagination, some interesting props, a few camera tricks, and, of course, the family.  See the tips below and try them out.

1. Dramatic background:  

This is one of the easiest ways to create a dramatic effect.  Select the theme you want to use and then get a picture or poster representing it to cover the wall behind the family. It could be something like a war photo, space themed, or some kind of Gothic architecture. To add to the effect, you could have the family in costumes to match the theme.  

2. Use of frames:  

Frames can be used in different ways to create a unique family portrait photograph. One interesting option is to have frames within frames, keeping the youngest child’s picture innermost and growing outwards. Other ideas are to have one or both parents holding framed pictures of the children. You could also use empty frames as props either in the background or held in someone’s hands.

3. Hands and feet:  

This is a wonderful concept where only the hands or feet of the family is photographed.  It could be the tiny hands of a baby held in the parents’ hands, or it could be something like the entire family’s hands around a sand castle on the beach. Similarly with feet, you could have the child’s feet standing on the parents’ feet or next to them. This concept will work best when there is a clear-cut difference in size of the hands or feet of each person.

4. Action photos:  

These are fun photos.  Just ask everyone to do something silly – make funny faces, jump around, or act out something. Children especially will love this. Try to use a high-speed camera so that you capture the actions and expressions. You can select a photograph from some of these shots for a family portrait. Alternatively, you could select the best action photograph of each person and then create a superimposed portrait with a suitable theme background to create a unique family portrait photograph.

5. Letters, words, message:  

Family portrait photographs can also be made unique by adding words or messages on them. Each person in the family could hold a letter to form a word, like “Family” or “Happiness” or even the family’s last name. The word or message could also be added later on to the photo with special effects.