Special Guest Blogger: Becky Higgins

10 Back-to-School Photo Ideas

Hello, fine readers! Becky Higgins here, stopping by my old stomping ground to say hello and share some ideas. After 12 great years with Creating Keepsakes, I spread my wings and started my own company last fall. You can see what I’m up to here. I even have a cool free download to make a personal yearbook  with your child and his class this school year. In the meantime, I’m pleased to be visiting here as a guest blogger on CK’s corner of the web.

Let’s talk about going back to school, shall we?

You may currently be preparing your child(ren) for a new school year. Or perhaps the year has already begun. Whether it’s tears or joy for you, you share a lot in common with other moms on the “big day.” I think a lot of moms put too much pressure on themselves to capture every detail of that first day of school. We know it’s a big deal. Our kids know it’s a big deal. But sometimes we just make it into something bigger than it needs to be.

Let me ask you something: Do you think your child loves the camera being pointed at her for 20 minutes on that first day of school? Or do you think she’d appreciate more of your direct eye contact and genuine conversation as you talk with her about the anticipation and concerns and excitement of the day?

Moms, relax. When you are calm, your kiddos are more likely to feel calm. The morning is busy as you get the backpack ready and the hair done and the breakfast made. You don’t need to put more expectations on your shoulders. And you certainly don’t want to rush your child on her first day when nerves are already high.

A kind suggestion: Snap a couple quick pictures on the actual first day. The other back-to-school pictures can follow in the days and even weeks to follow. After all, it’s still the same season.

I’m sharing some pictures with the hope that you’ll find the wheels in your head turning regarding some pictures you may want to take. You’ll notice that I’m not necessarily emphasizing the traditional first-day-of-school shots. And I certainly don’t recommend trying to cram it all in the first day.

The following photos illustrate more of a child’s day-to-day routine as she gets back into school. Think about the habits, traditions, and routines in your own home and how they’re affected by a new school year. Taking pictures of those things—the details—is storytelling at its best.

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1. Can you catch the kids as they’re waking up? Just let in a little sunshine with your camera already in hand.

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2. Snap a photo of what’s for breakfast on a typical morning or for a special occasion like the first day of school.

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3. Try to capture your kids doing their morning chores—or any time of the day, for that matter.

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4. The backpack. Of course, the backpack! It’s not likely that your child will hang on to this forever, so photograph it. It’s a part of the everyday.

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5. Get a snapshot of some of the supplies for the school year. Tip: This would be best to take before it all treks to school, ideally not on the first day of school.

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6. What accessories travel with your child to school? In Arizona, we don’t leave the house without an ice-filled water bottle in the backpacks.

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7. What is your child’s mode of transportation to and from school? Try to capture the walk, bike ride, car ride, or time getting on or off the bus.

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8. If you volunteer in your child’s classroom, bring along the camera to snap a few pictures of the room and surroundings the kids see every day at school. Be sure to ask the teacher for permission.

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9. After-school snacks are another part of a little student’s routine. What do you eat? What are the top picks for a snack these days?

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10. Try to capture your little student focusing on any sort of schoolwork at home such as writing a paper, working at the computer, drawing or coloring, studying with the nose buried in a text book—anything.

—Becky

P.S. Don’t miss Free Font Friday. This week, you can download the CK Good Dog font for free here.