For all the seasons, i think fall is the most richest for photography.  So many things are changing, and not only in the nature. Yes, the leaves are changing, abundance of colours is just fantastic.  Fall also brings other changes - changes to our families.  School is starting and for many it means loading up the car and taking the child away to a university. Perhaps for the first time, or this has become annual family ritual already. 

So, why am I talking about this now, since most children are already away. Because we are all so busy making sure our student got all settled well in to academia, we all forgot something.  The family portrait! Something to hang on the wall, that makes this moment in history, in our history, last forever.

So all is lost? Not at all. There is always Thanksgiving weekend, and what an opportunity it is.  Most students have settled either to dorms or their student rentals, and are very eager to come home to see family, (awesome meals and laundry done by mom) and reconnect with friends. This is a great opportunity to set aside an hour or so to get family portraits done.  Parks backyards and nature in general will provide excellent  places where to pose our family group. And if it rains? No worries, your ever so imaginative photographer has many solutions in mind, places where you can safely pose your group, be it studio or some other place.  Plenty of city parks have shelters, that will protect you from rain and and also give  plenty of room for your group pose and also provide a perfect backdrop.  I do encourage you to think and plan for this - it is never too late, never too early and never too expensive.

You also did notice that I said "Something to hand on the wall".  I am a huge proponent of photographs in print, especially important images.  Pictures in your phone are great.  You do have to remember that you will loose a phone, break a phone, it may get wet or dozen other maladies will meet your phone. Perhaps you cannot recover the pictures.  Computers are great for storing pictures - yes they are. They are so perfect that I have back up on two separate hard drives. One is stored at my house and the other back up is in my safe deposit box.  As you can see, I really trust my computer! You can get a virus, computer's hard drive may crash. Ask my daughter who lost 3 mother board on her Mac, and she now uses it for a boat anchor.  Memory cards, stick Usb storage can get lost, become corrupted (ask me what happened for large number of family photos that I took).  I have prints from my family from mid 1800's that are still in the albums. These albums were not stored vacuum packed, or in a climate controlled storage, they were in the attic. 

Today's paper and ink makers guarantee their products for 100+ years, as long as they are not kept in direct sunlight.  I think they are a bit conservative in their estimate.  And if you don't like art on paper, your family portrait can be on wood, on canvas, on metal, on acrylic and even on your coffee mug! I guess it would be sure fire way to wake uo to look at mother in law first thing every morning!  Photo books also make wonderful gifts to family members, Little Johnny may not care too much now, but 40 years from now he will be happy he has one!

     Just a last quick note about taking pictures in the fall.

When you go out to capture the blaze of colour, there are few things to remember.  Make sure your camera has full battery. cold weather is really hard on electronics, it eats battery power!  Make sure you have enough memory cards, nothing worse than running out of memory with that most perfect picture in front of you.  Dress for the weather, and bring some extra. Weather can change in a hurry sunny day can turn into a torrential downpour and to snowfall in a heart beat.  It is always better to err on the side of caution.  Be aware of your surroundings, be safe! Bears are hungry as they are getting ready to hibernate.  Just ask a restaurant owner in Terrace Bay, momma bear and two cubs came inside the restaurant just few days ago. There are animals in the forest, to whom you look like a buffet. Also there are poison ivy and poison oak...so before you lay down to take that lake shot..see what is around you.