*********************
The Right Way to Travel
October 29, 2009 - "Better Holiday Photos" Tip #1
*********************

Dear Reader,

Christmas gets earlier every year. Stores are already pulling out the red and green displays, the Santa Hats, the lights and... yes... playing Christmas music on loop.

A month ago it was still summery outside. Personally, I’m not yet ready to think about eggnog.

However, Halloween and Thanksgiving aren’t so far away. And right now -- during the calm before the holiday storm -- is the perfect time to start planning for holiday photos.

So for the next three days, I’ll send you a new Halloween, Thanksgiving, or general holiday photo tip, plucked from our popular Holiday Photo Guide.

Here’s today’s...

3 Quick Tips for Better Halloween Shots

Maybe you plan to sell your photos. Or perhaps you’d like to frame them and keep them in the family. Either way, here are three things to keep in mind before you start snapping shots of your little ghouls and goblins this Halloween:

** 1. Move in close.
Use your camera’s zoom or a telephoto lens to give your subject some breathing room, but make the child the dominant feature in the photo, filling 50% to 70% of the frame.

** 2. Catch them in action.
Let’s face it: kids are all about action. Sure, there’s something endearing about a snaggle-toothed youngster grinning from underneath her princess crown. But you tell an entirely different story when you photograph your princess racing across the room with the werewolf from next door.

** 3. Play with your angles.
Don’t always take eye-level photos. Think “bird’s eye view” and “worm’s eye view.” Lay on the ground if you have to... or use a ladder, but push yourself beyond the normal “snapshot” mentality.

Stay tuned for tomorrow’s tip, with three ways to take better family and turkey photos amid the cooking, eating, and general merriment this Thanksgiving.

-- Bonnie

Bonnie Caton
Editorial Manager, AWAI Travel Division

P.S. As I mentioned above, this Halloween tip came from our Holiday Photo Guide, where you’ll find 82 tips for taking better photos at Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, indoors, in the snow, of holiday lights, fireworks... even how to take photos to make your own holiday cards, and much more. Plus, it includes a reference guide on exposure, photo planning checklists, and flash photography do’s and don’ts.

You can snag a copy, free, right now -- along with a whopping $700 discount -- when you reserve your seat at the Ultimate Money-Making Photography Workshop in Nashville before midnight on Saturday, October 31, here: http://www.thephotographerslife.com/phw/Nashville.  

And be sure to check out all the photography and travel writing resources on sale now during our Website Sale on our catalog page, here: http://www.thephotographerslife.com/get_started. You’ll save 20% off PLUS receive FREE shipping on everything listed.  

**************************

(c) 2009 American Writers & Artists Inc.
245 NE 4th Ave., Ste 102
Delray Beach, FL 33483
Phone (561) 278-5557
Fax (561) 278-5929
http://www.awaionline.com/contact

To LEARN MORE, visit:
http://www.thetravelwriterslife.com
http://www.thephotographerslife.com