Tag: halloween ideas by Nixplay

Halloween is just around the corner, and we are pretty sure that you’re looking forward to getting dressed and having some fun on the spookiest day of the year. And speaking of fun, taking photos of your favorite Halloween highlights is definitely a must-do.

However, some folks might find that capturing the spirit of Halloween is easier said than done. This holiday has several tricks up its sleeve, from low light situations to busy subjects, that can frustrate even the most seasoned photographer.

Here, we’ll share with you some helpful tips so your photos of the holiday’s trickiest costumes, decorations, and low-light spooky parties will turn out to be a visual treat. Read on!

1. Mind the light

Shooting using natural light is always sound photography advice. It’s especially good practice during autumn, when everything is bathed in a warm glow. Since Halloween happens during this time of the year, take every opportunity to shoot outdoors and fill your images with the golden tinge the season brings. You’re bound to have some stunning photos, and making the effort to go out of town to capture some Halloween festivities will be worth it.

The above advice, however, cannot be applied if you’re shooting indoors or at night. The good news is that many camera manufacturers have been making some really impressive improvements in their sensors, making some good progress in terms of ISO behavior. Test your camera before your big Halloween party or trick-or-treating escapade so it’ll be easy for you to shoot decent photos in low light with a minimal amount of noise.

2. Play with masks and costumes…

Halloween’s the one day in the calendar when it’s perfectly fine to walk around in costume. Experiment with different masks and outfits, and play around with various light effects (remember how you’d scare your pals by holding a flashlight below your chin?). You’ll be amazed by how easy it can be to achieve some crazy and eerie effects that will photograph well.

3. But don’t forget your photos’ backgrounds

Whenever you are shooting people dressed up in their costumes, remember to also consider the backdrops of their shots. A dark, gloomy background will give you photographs a whole different level of spookiness. You can even derive inspiration from The Haunting of Hill House and get other people to be “ghosts” in the backdrop, which leads us to the next tip…

4. Make ghosts appear via long exposure

Have you ever seen a photo with a ghostly figure fading away in the background? Are you curious about how these images are made? Well, they happen inside the camera, and not in Photoshop as some might believe. Fine, you can achieve this during post-processing, but trust us, it’s easier to do it using your camera.

What you have to do is to make sure your camera is perfectly still (using a tripod is the best way to go about this) and then expose manually in order to achieve a well-balanced exposure but with a long shutter base. Images with two to five seconds of shutter speed will work fine.

Now, put your subject in front of the camera for a brief amount of time, and then ask him or her to get away as quickly as they can. The resulting photograph should have a spectrum of the subject. There is no exact recipe for this, so you’ll need to play around for a bit to achieve your desired effect. Ask your subject to dress in black and stare blankly at the camera for extra goosebumps!

5. Document all your Halloween shenanigans

There are some really iconic activities that happen during Halloween like pumpkin carving and trick-or-treating. Take out your camera and get lots of photos of the Halloween activities you’ll be participating in. This is basically the soul of Halloween, so it really makes sense to have some nice photographs of these precious moments. Don’t forget to display your pictures on your Nixplay frame—we’re giving you up to 20 percent off, only until November 4!

However, you decide to celebrate Halloween, don’t forget to always have fun and take as many images as you can!

Federico Alegria

Federico is a documentary photographer, writer and educator based in El Salvador. Check out his photography portfolio.

https://federicoalegria.com/

Last Minute Halloween Costume Ideas For Children

By Beatrice Bisais

On October 27, 2017

In Holidays, Special Moments

Let’s just put it out there: You’re not the only one who forgot to organize a Halloween costume for your child this year. But now it’s the day of the party, and you really have to stretch to the limits of your imagination for those children’s costume ideas. So, we’ve done the thinking for you!

Quick, easy and simple, be sure to treasure the memories with some photos, perfectly displayed on one of our Nixplay Digital Photo Frames.

Emojis

You can get really creative with this one–and get your kids involved too! All you need is a large cardboard box, some scissors, string and paint.

Cut the cardboard into a large circle, get some yellow paint, and create the base for your emoji costume. The rest is up to you. Just choose your favourite emoji, or the one you think best suits your child, and paint the face onto your yellow canvas!

To finish it off, pierce two holes at the top, thread the string and turn your emoji face into a necklace.

And there you have it: A quick, easy kid’s Halloween costume!

Halloween Mummy

This one may be pretty basic, but it’s an absolute classic. Simply gather all the toilet paper in your house (don’t worry, you can pick some more up at the grocery store tomorrow), or a roll of bandages may be more robust. Dress your kid in all-white, and get wrapping! Leave some strands of toilet paper hanging from the body for the complete mummified-effect, or go one step further and add some black face paint to the eyes!

Bag of jelly beans

This last minute Halloween costume involves blowing up a lot of balloons, so if you have an air pump handy for birthday parties, you’d best bring it out.

You will need:

1.Various colored balloons

2. A clear trash bag

3. Scissors

Cut 4 holes in a clear trash bag for arms and legs and get your child to wear it. Blow up a couple of different colored balloons, enough to fill the trash bag, and tie the bag loosely around your child’s nect. And there you have it, your own little bag of jelly beans!

Hershey’s Kiss

You will need:

1.Wire hangers

2.A hula hoop

3. Chart paper strip

4. Lots and lots of foil

This last-minute Halloween costume is so adorable, you’ll want all the kisses!

First create the foil cap by layering and molding sheets of foil into a conical shape. Use a strip of white chart paper and write ‘Hershey’s’ on it in blue. The first part of your two-part, last minute Halloween costume is done!

The main costume is a little harder. Bend the hangers into a straight shape and attach the ends to a hula hoop using lots of duct tape. Attach one of the wire hangers into a circular shape so it can fit on the top of your child’s body, and attach to the rest of the shape. Now, use foil to cover the wire shape you’ve created. There you have it, give your little one a big kiss!

Stranger Things Kids

This one’s pretty easy–and it’s certainly on-trend. All you need are your kids’ bikes, some 80’s style clothes, and a group of friends! If you’ve got time, a trip to the thrift store should sort you out. And for a little extra something, pull out the battery-powered multi-colored Christmas lights.

Minions

Best ideas for halloween costumes, last minute ideas for halloween costumes by nixplay digital photo frames

Source: www.fabeveryday.com

This kids’ Halloween costume is far from despicable! All you need is:

Yellow full sleeves hoodie
Denim Overalls
Thread pipe cleaners
Toilet paper roll
Black chart paper

Before you start, pull out the yellow hoodies and denim overalls.

Take the empty toilet paper roll, estimate an inch from both sides, and cut it off. Glue together the pieces you have cut off. If you have time, spray paint them silver. Then, cut a strip of the black chart paper, roughly the size of your child’s head. Staple the chart paper strip to the toilet roll spectales.

By this time, the kids have already put on their clothes (and have possibly guessed that this a last-minute Halloween costume attempt!) Cut the black thread pipe cleaners into small pieces and pull the bottoms through the cloth on the hoodie. Then, make the kids put on the spectacles you’ve made. Et voila, you have your little minions!

We love pictures! If you try any of the ideas above, or just fancy sharing photos of your ideas for kids’ Halloween costumes, share them with us. If you don’t already know about Nixplay digital photo frames, they allow you to share your trick-or-treat memories and other special events with your family. With just a few clicks, using your phone, social media or email, you can share your precious moments with loved ones using our Nixplay digital photo frames.

Beatrice Bisais

Bea is Nixplay’s Social Media Manager. She enjoys drinking coffee, reading about wars, and writing stories. Send her a message at beatrice.bisais@nixplay.com.