Family Picture Walls

When Eli was a baby, we went to JC Penney and had some cute family photos taken. That was the last time we got a nice family picture and that was five years ago. We've had snapshots taken at various times and even had a few decent ones taken when our families all got together and had a big family photo, but I haven't really liked any of those and never got more than an 8x10 to stick in a little frame.

So this year, I was determined to get some nice family pictures. I didn't want to go to JC Penney because I wanted a nice outdoor setting. I asked around and talked to a couple photographers and was a bit shocked at how much they charged! I have no doubt that we would have had some AMAZING pictures, but it just wasn't in the budget to spend that much. So, since I got a really nice camera last year and really need to learn how to use it, I decided to invest some time into figuring out how I could get some decent pictures myself. I also invested in a new lens for portraits of the kids since it was just a fraction of the cost of what I would have spent on a photographer and I'll be able to use it for years! We were VERY happy with the end result and I'm excited to keep learning and get better. I have a LONG way to go.

I took the boys' pictures just outside our house and I took Anna's when we were in Nauvoo.

The family one was at the park near our house. It's not perfect, but it was free and and everyone's looking! :) The kids are at great ages for a family picture right now too. I don't have a tripod (yet...) so we brought our music stand to set the camera on and Eli, Jeremy, and I took turns running to push the self-timer button. I think Eli pushed the button for this picture! Way to go, buddy!

Thanks to Costco, I ordered some very inexpensive 8x10 prints of the kids (and bought those frames there) along with a nice canvas of our whole family. That was the first time we've ever had a wedding/family picture larger than an 8x10 and I love it! I got an 18x24 but I'm thinking I probably could have gone even bigger. 

 I love looking at these all day!

I also finally put up the rest of the pictures I've had stacked in a closet since we moved here. I wasn't sure where I wanted to put them all, since we hardly have any wall space downstairs, but we do have a big wall right as you get up the stairs, so I made a little picture wall and I love it! It has an assortment of pictures from the last ten years! I hope to add to it eventually (whether in this house or the next).

I had a few other frames leftover, so I printed a few other pics and put them on top of our TV cabinet. It actually looks like a real family lives here now! And isn't Eli's school picture adorable? I love it.

It feels good to put all my frames to use so we can appreciate them.