DIY Affordable Photo Booth and Props

Before I begin this post, HAPPY NEW YEAR! I hope you had a great 2014, and that 2015 brings all the good stuff. Most of all, I hope you develop a close (er) relationship with God.  
Now, talking about end of 2014 and beginning of 2015, we had a small gathering for the New Year's Eve, and I wanted it to be fun - especially for the kids. I decided then to create a photo booth that could be done in the short amount of time I had, and would fit my budget. So here is what I did.

Supplies used for booth
Black plastic tablecloth
White and silver bulap
Happy New year sign
Two bar stools (you can use regular chairs or a bench too)

  Props
I bought a 'Happy New Year' hat, a tiara, shiny paper garland, and a mask. Everything else is homemade.
Supplies used
Paper: glitter red, pink, and black cardstock, blue and black plain cardstock 
Tools: computer, printer, craft knife, precision scissors, craft glue, hot glue, hot glue gun, long wooden sticks (the ones we use for smores),

Here is some of the props used

 Except for the glasses with 2015 on, I can re-use all the other props that I made for other parties. So go ahead and make your next party fun too. You can find some of the props to print here , then just print, cut, paste on the glitter paper, and cut again. 

Thank you for stopping by.

Happy New Year,

Vanías Reed   

Christmas Tree Picture

I love Christmas and I love to take pictures. So it's not difficult to figure out that one of my dreams was to take a good picture of my Christmas tree. We have a Canon DSLR Rebel T4i. After some research and several attempts, here is what I came up with. Set your camera on Manual mode, the ISO on 1600, Aperture (hold the AV little button while turning the dial on the top of the camera to change the aperture) 2.8, and the shutter speed (use the dial on the top) on 1/10. 

Place your child -preferably in their pajamas- in front of the tree for a cute picture. Winter pajamas look better, but we live in a warm climate, so my son wore his summer pjs.

Remember to use a tripod or set your camera on a sturdy surface. You can also create the 'elbow tripod' by placing both your elbows on a table and holding the camera with both hands. In this case it's better to hold your breath while taking the shot. You don't want your picture to be blurry.

Thank you for visiting my blog. Have fun shooting your favorite pics.

Vanias Reed