When taking a photograph that you want to use for a card, invitation, announcement or other art project the single most important thing to remember is:

KEEP IT SIMPLE!

The focus of the project should be the subject of the photograph!

BACKGROUNDS

Consider the background when preparing to take a photograph.

In your day to day business, you probably don't notice the pile of books on the countertop, the cheerios strewn across a play area, laundry neatly stacked on the sofa....but these things do show up in your photos, and they are distracting.   Even outdoors, you need to consider the surroundings.  Is there a street behind that gorgeous oak tree your subject is standing beside?  What happens when the big 'ol garbage truck drives by just as your snapping your photo?  Consider any possible distractions and try to eliminate them.

CLOTHING

When possible, try and keep the colors solid and bright.  When you have multiple people in the photo, be sure that the colors are in the same family, or coordinate nicely.  If your daughter has a beautiful plaid holiday dress that you want in the photo, by all means, use it but be sure that no other colors or patterns in the picture clash with the plaid of the dress.  When considering clothing, also consider how the furniture in your picture is "dressed".  For example, the dress is lovely, but how lovely will it look if your perfectly dressed daughter is sitting on a floral sofa?  White sheets and solid throw blankets work wonders in eliminating problems like these...use them!

POSING

When you have multiple people in the photo, try and pose them so that the faces are close to each other.  A toddler holding his newborn sibling makes a beautiful photo....if he is holding baby on his lap proudly throwing his head back, it's cute....if you put baby safely on the floor, and have big brother snuggle up "cheek to cheek", it creates a much more friendly, inviting scene.  This same principle hold true with all photos of groups.  Grouping people so that there faces are all relatively close evokes a very warm closeness. 

HUMOR

To avoid the dreaded plastered on grins and deer in the headlight eyes, use humor to capture the spontaneous smiles and giggles that take photos from OK to WOW!  Say something funny....do something goofy, and watch the magic unfold!  I know a guy who carries a rubber chicken around with him everytime he knows he will be taking photos.  Weird, yes, goofy, yes...but it works!  When you are photographing a group, ask a member of the group to tell their favorite joke, or make the silliest sound they can....it almost never fails! 

AVOIDING RED EYES

Red eyes occur when the pupils of the eyes constrict after the flash goes off.  This is why many camera's flash twice, or have a bright light before the flash fires.  Most people have been frustrated by this as it causes a delay, and often the picture you tried to capture escapes before the photo was taken.  Turn off your flash.  If you are indoors, turn on all the surrounding lights, and if needed bring some extra lights in to illuminate your subjects.  If the scene is well lit, and you are close enough to the subject, you will find that you don't need the flash, and the more natural lighting in the photo makes for some fantastic pictures!

GET CLOSE UP

Close up shots are especially beautiful for birth announcements. 

When photographing your baby, take photos of all the little "parts"....ears, noses, fingers, toes.....Don't be afraid to get up close, but do keep in mind that when you are close, you may blur the photo. 

What you may NOT know is that there is an easy fix to this! 

Most digital camera's today have automated scenes and settings.  Look for one called "Macro"...it is usually represented by a picture of a little flower.  This setting is used to capture fine detail at close range.  Change your camera over to the Macro setting and get really close!

DON'T SWEAT IT!!!

And, of course, HAVE FUN!  And, be sure your subjects are having fun too.  Kids are especially finicky, so if they are not in the mood, put it off a little while...when they are ready you will capture the photo that will be a treasure!