Last Saturday, I left my beloved city to go "home" to Kansas.  Big Jack turned 60 so we rounded the family up and had almost the entire family together to celebrate.  Garrett's deployment ruined our 100% attendance, but between Gunner, Beckett, and Papa Jerry, there were enough people running around looking like him to fill the gap. I also drank beers excessively, beer-pressured the slow drinkers, teased my friends, and wore a vest shirtless to make it feel like Garrett was present. 

In our family, you only know you're a grown man once you've lost all your hair. 

And the coolest gift of the night....

Duck Dynasty Keystone Lights! 

Photography

When photographing an event like a party, your goal is to chronicle the day as it happens.  This is a basic principle of photojournalism, and the trend-du-jour in wedding photography.   I started out my photography journey as a photojournalist for a college newspaper- where I was taught that if someone remembers you being there, you failed as a photojournalist.  We were to capture the event, not become a part of it.    While that may be true when working for a newspaper or documenting a wedding, at your kid’s birthday party, you’re likely not trying to hide from the action.  Instead, you want to be a part of it and the photography thing is more an afterthought.  So, how do you effectively capture an event that you are a part of?   First, make a plan for the things you don’t want to miss- special details you pinterested your ass off creating, Great Grandma holding the baby, a group shot of all the visiting relatives…. Whatever it is that is important to you.   Execute on this list early so you don’t forget or become too busy elsewhere.  Don’t forget the detail shots (cake, decorations, venue)- and try to take these before guests arrive.  After I have captured the don’t-miss list, I do a few laps around the party to take snapshots of the guests interacting.  Inevitably, people get self-conscious when they see a camera pointed at their face, so I put on a tighter lens (one that has a bit of zoom) and take photos of people who can’t really see me, standing further away.  You will find that you get more genuine smiles and end up with a more organic representation of the party.  After that, I strap the camera across my body and go about enjoying the party.  It’s always there hanging if a photo op presents itself, but is no longer my primary task.  

Other tips for parties:

• For Mom-tographers,  don’t forget that YOUR presence should be recorded in the photo books too!  Hand that camera off a couple times and be part of a few pictures too!  I usually set the camera up exactly how I want it to be shot, taking a test shot of the area I’m going to be posing for the photo to verify the exposure is correct.  Since not everyone is a photographer versed in composition, I usually set the lens very wide so I can crop into the desired composition later.
• Do group photos FIRST THING!  No one ever really wants to pose for a group photo.  And it’s hard to herd the cattle together, especially if the alcohol is flowing.  Get these done as soon as you can!