Whether you actually have the camera handy (and the batteries aren't dead), or the kids are mysteriously dressed in compatible tones, or even if the kids will simply stand close enough together to frame a single shot, somehow that serendipitous moment, when caught on film, is a magical gift to ourselves, family and friends, and, eventually, our progeny.
Accidental Art, I say!
Lian Dolan got me thinking about the best holiday photo I've ever seen (read her article about getting a jump on the hectic holiday hoo-rah at http://www.makinglifebetter.com/home-family/article/cut-the-chaos-getting-a-jump-on-holiday-madness). Getting a memory recorded for posterity can be a lot easier than one may think!
My cousin Bonnie and her family send a montage of photos every year, which I love. There was a time when I lived close and I could pick out the ones I'd taken myself. This can be overwhelming to some recipients, though, because each shot is so tiny.
Getting the subjects to play along can be also a challenge. I remember a particularly horrible photo "session" my sister and I endured on a hot summer day, dressed up in matching parkas with crocheted hats and mittens - cute, but horrible just the same. I recall year after year (after YEAR after YEAR... even as late as LAST year!) of being the single family member who ruined the family photo because no one had the patience to take more than one or two snaps.
Fortunately, I'm blessed both with photogenic kids and an occasionally-handy camera with auto film advance. Here's my favorite holiday photo, EVER, which doubled (thanks to Accidental Aura in clothing choices by the kids) as a phenomenal legacy desktop photo... from 2005 (I think). Again, a supreme Accident, as we'd stopped to see a breathtaking mountain view and, instead of snapping the standard tourist shot, we staged the photo against a spray-painted rock and decaying tree. A great memory of the days when the kids would share a hug and both had front teeth!!!Go out and snap some Accidental Art with your family today!!
