Tips For Photographing Beautiful, Unscripted Moments With Your Phone

I participated in a Influencer Activation on behalf of Influence Central for AVEENO. I received product samples as well as a promotional item to thank me for my participation. #AVEENO #UnscriptedBeauty

You don’t have to carry around your DSLR to take beautiful photos, especially with the quality of today’s tablet and cell phone cameras. In fact, I find that a lot of the times I like the pictures I take of our family moments with my phone better because it’s so handy for me to whip out and snap a quick photo. I feel like I capture more authentic moments that way.

I want to make sure that even though I’m not using my “fancy shmancy” camera, the photos I take of our life’s unscripted moments turn out. I have a discovered a few easy to follow tips through my own trial and error. And, as you may have already suspected, all of the following photos were taken with my phone (Samsung Galaxy Note 4) during last weekend’s family trip to the cabin so that you can see the tips in action!

Get Down

It’s easy to just whip out your phone and snap away. Don’t just take the photo from where you’re standing. My go-to angle for taking photos of Bean is getting down on her level. I think this angle is the best for shooting photos of children. It let’s you see life from their perspective. You’d be surprised how different a photo can look just from changing your angle.

Tap for Focus

Make sure whichever part of the photo you want to call attention to is in focus. Give the screen of your phone a tap to select which part of the frame to focus on. I wanted to make sure that the bonfire pit rocks were in focus so that the sparks the fire was letting off would leave blurry trails of light.

Watch Your Light

The more natural light you’ve got, the better. Especially when it comes to taking photos of such active and moving subjects as kids. Or, in my case, capturing a shot of Bean jumping off the dock. Not only will your subject be more in focus with more natural light, you won’t have to –shudder- use your flash. I am a firm believer in natural light photography. Bonus points if you happen to be outside during the “magic hour” when the sun is starting to set. It’ll give your photos a dreamy, warm glow.

Get Up Close, Back It Up

If you’ve got a reluctant model like I do, the chances of getting a good photo is greater from farther away. When you’re farther away, the kids aren’t as aware that you’re taking their picture. Bean woke up with an epic case of bedhead that I wanted to capture, but I knew she wouldn’t be in any sort of mood to have me take her picture. So, I planted myself in front of her but several feet away and she was none the wiser. Although, sometimes you can get lucky with a good close up. That’s the beauty of digital photos, you can snap away and take as many photos as you want.

Let Them Be Little

This is by far the most important tip: let them do their thing. This would be Bean watering the plants with her “shooter gun”. The best and most beautiful photos come from moments that aren’t at all staged or provoked. According to a recent survey done by AVEENO, most parents say that “unscripted” moments are more beautiful than those that are perfectly planned and posed. Kids are imaginative, active, creative little beings. Have your phone on hand just in case you stumble upon one of those beautiful, unexpected moments.

If you happen to catch one of those unexpected, beautiful moments, AVEENO has created an #UnscriptedBeauty movement that encourages parents to embrace the beauty in life’s unexpected moments. They’re running a photo contest on their Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram page, tag your photos with #UnscriptedBeauty, #Contest, and #AVEENO to be entered to win a photo-shoot from acclaimed photographer, Danielle Guenther, as well as AVEENO products!

Do you do the majority of your picture taking on your phone or other camera? What’s your favorite phone camera tip? Let’s discuss in the comments below!