Christmas Card Creativity

I don't know about the rest of you...but I'm diggin' Emilee's awesome ideas from last night. After I type this up, I'm definitely heading over to Pinterest to put things into action. 

So...my last post before Christmas. I've had this on my list of things to stress over because I wanted to do something big and fun and awesome. Well, last night I sat finishing up photo shoot edits and staring at my still undecorated tree (seriously...it has no lights or ornaments...it still looks exactly as you last saw it) and worrying over how to finish everything I needed to before Christmas, and I made a decision. I decided that I'm okay with being average today. So this post may not be super witty or inspiring, but in a way it was therapeutic for me, so I count it as a win. 

What is one thing about Christmas that many women (and some men I'm sure...but in my experience, not so much) stress over starting in September? The Family Christmas Card. What do we do? What do we wear? Will Aunt June think it's too cheesy? Will the Donald's think it's too ostentatious? Do we do a classy picture or one that shows our true side? Portrait or landscape? How can we crop out that guy picking his nose in the background that the photographer didn't notice?

Here's an awesome little Calvin and Hobbes sequence that I think many people can relate to on this very subject:

http://www.gocomics.com/calvinandhobbes/1988/12/14

http://www.gocomics.com/calvinandhobbes/1988/12/15

http://www.gocomics.com/calvinandhobbes/1988/12/16

http://www.gocomics.com/calvinandhobbes/1988/12/17

 I made our cards last year, but this year I went quick and simple and ordered cheap ones online. The photo of us is from last year, but we pretty much look the same (I'll attach our card at the end of this post). Besides, it's not how beautiful, clever, or cool the card is that matters. It's really not a competition ladies. 

Rachel sent us her Christmas Card story and the adventure she had getting it. 

"I wanted to share with you my Christmas card fiasco."

"So the past few years my husband and I have done Christmas cards with a photo of us, and this year I wanted to make it a little more interesting by including our dog, Lexie. I saw this pin of 40 Christmas Card photo ideas with dogs and thought I'd try one of them."

http://www.hohumcards.com/2010/12/ideas-for-christmas-cards-with-your-dog-40-amazing-photographs-of-holiday-dogs/

"I decided on this one:"

The Original Pin

 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/lamygrrl/3129803046) 

"because our Lexie is a fellow German girl like the pup in the picture, and I thought it'd be pretty easy to recreate since Lexie always has a stick in her mouth anyway." 

"The first part of finding a "Christmas Tree Stick" was pretty easy. We clipped it off a try and then stuck a simple ornament on the end of it. Next we rounded Lexie up, grabbed the camera and handed her the stick. Easier said than done! I swear to you Lexie is always gathering sticks, playing fetch and gnawing on them, but this time she wanted nothing to do with it! She would not keep it in her mouth long enough to snap a single photo."

"We gave up pretty quickly, but then I had the idea to put some peanut butter on the stick, so that maybe it'll heighten her interest. I wanted to be sure to get them printed in time, which meant I only had time after work to do it. My husband gets home after it's dark out, so I had to handle both posing Lexie and taking the photo on my own." 

The Pinstrosity

"As you can see, she finally held the stick, but it was so awkward and hard to get her to pose nicely with it. In many of the pictures her eyes are freakishly bugged out and in many other you can see the peanut butter on her gums." 

"In the end, I am grateful I have a husband who knows how to use photo shop."

The Pin Spin

"Our card wasn't exactly what I had in mind but still a big hit nonetheless. If you want to try this for next year, I wold recommend peanut butter, a second hand, and someone who can use photo shop!"

"Merry Christmas!"

Working with animals is hard...you often don't know what to expect (even if you think you). An animal can be well trained and still get camera shy. Just be patient, stay calm, be adaptive, and have treats on hand. Sometimes everything will go just as planned, and sometimes you have to adapt. I was doing a goofy shoot for fun at my aunts house, taking portraits of her chickens, when we came up with the idea of bringing in their "big mean pit bull" (Patch is the coolest dog) and posing him with the chicks. I originally had the picture in my head of Patch sitting up tall with the chicks at his feet, but he wanted to be down on the same level as the chicks. So we let him lay down and he let the chicks crawl all over him. In the end I loved that picture more than the one I originally had in my head. 

http://marquettephoto.blogspot.com/2011/03/blog-post.html

So just go with the flow and be adaptable...you might end up with something completely different from what you planned (as both Rachel and I did), but it may still be wonderful.

I hope your final Christmas and Holiday preparations are going well and that you have a season of peace and joy wherever you are. 

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