Tips to create annual photo-books of your kids • Kid photographer in the dmv area
Since 2015, I've worked on this personal photo project about my kids and I’ve grown a nice photo-book series that brings me so. much. joy.
The idea is that on my kid’s birthday month, I take 1 photo a day for the whole month and print them into a book.
I’ve tried several times to commit to a 365 (where you take 1 pic a day for a year) but every time I miserably failed after a month or two… Not a good feeling.
This monthly project is much more digestible and feels less intimidating. I CAN commit to it for 30 days or so. Seeing the little books stacking up fills my heart.
Plus, in my experience, I took way more photos in their early years than now so it forces me to keep shooting.
I keep the project simple and as easy as possible. Here are a few tips:
One picture a day-ish…
Some days are easier than others so I don’t beat myself up for not having THE picture of the day. I can always shoot more the next one. I use the same camera (the big one) during the whole month but you can use whatever camera you have. Just stick to it to get a nice cohesive series. Your phone is great. Or an instant camera. Even a film camera if you are adventurous!
Photograph everyday activities.
Over the course of the month, my goal is to photograph them from morning to night. I try to capture what they usually do and their routines: bathing, breakfast, nighttime, snacks, getting on/ off the bus, school, the birthday celebration with cake, the toys they love, holiday traditions (it happens that my kids are born in February and October: perfect for Valentine’s day and Halloween!).
Include siblings/ loved ones.
I’m focused on 1 kid but I always include the other one and photograph their bond. If family or friends are present, I try to add them too.
One picture per page.
When I design the book, I keep it simple by using only 1 picture per page, in chronological order. If I have several photos (like for a birthday party where I’ll take a bit more), I might use 4 photos on 1 page.
No text.
This is a personal choice as I don’t want the project to take too much time. I don’t write anything to keep the focus on the images but you could totally add a date or a blurb at the beginning/ end to share the highlights of the past year.
Minimal edits.
I usually wait to have several days worth of images. I then select the keepers, edit and export them as jpegs in a specific folder. I rename the files with the date (YYYY-MM-DD) so they are in order when I design the book. If you shoot on your phone, you can put all your favs in 1 folder and batch edit. I like the snapseed photo editor app for iPhone photos.
Order the book.
I order my softcover books from Artifact Uprising, always in the same format. I don’t always print them right after I’m done shooting as I wait for any sale offers they might run. Sometimes I am 1 year behind but so far, I am pretty consistent in the printing.
Voilà! I hope this will inspire you to start documenting your little rascals. My kids love their books and I am glad they will have something to hold onto, just for them.
Every family is different and your uniqueness should be celebrated! It means YES to bed hair, non-matching socks, re-heated coffees. Like you, I am a busy mom trying to do #allthethings while keeping a record of it. I have a system to make sessions low-stress, artful, and perfectly unposed. You just have to slow down and enjoy the simple fact of being together.
I am also an eco-friendly business that tries not to harm the earth more than necessary by limiting plastic (or disposing of it correctly), finding sustainable products, contributing 1% of my revenue to help fund carbon removal.
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