10 unique family photo ideas for organised or DIY shoots

Whether you're trying to create a unique family portrait to print and give as Christmas gifts or simply for hanging in your own home, it can be hard to come up with creative ideas that make a welcome change from the norm.

We've put together our top 10 ideas for unique family photos which you can carry out yourself, either with the assistance of a sturdy tripod, or a willing extra pair of hands to stand the other side of the camera. If you're paying for an organised, professional shoot, it's also worth asking the photographer if you can implement some of these ideas on location or in the studio.

1. Hands – feeling camera-shy? Then take a different angle on your family photos and opt for an image of your hands. Side by side in size order, laid one on top of the other, or all touching in the middle of a circle – the choice is yours!

2.Feet – much the same as the first idea, you could have a photo of the family’s feet all snuggled up together, hanging off the end of a bed, or touching toes in the grass. Play around with your feet and see what other ideas you can come up with!

3. Chalkboard – get yourself a small, A5 sized chalkboard and some chalk, and use this to write a message to include in the photo. You could sit or stand in a line with the smallest in the middle holding the message, place it in the foreground while the family sit further away in the image, or have the parents holding it so they’re not fully in shot and using their arms and the board to frame the little ones sat below or behind. If you’re printing your unique family photo onto canvas as a Christmas gift, you could even write a personal message on it, such as ‘We love you Nan and Grandad’ or similar.

4. Baby in the middle – with baby or children in the middle of their mum and dad, you can play around with either group lying in the opposite direction, with heads level, or you could sit together with the parents on the outside, both facing in to plant a kiss on the little one(s).

5. Perspective shots – these can be a little tricky to get right but are highly effective. You could use mum and dad’s hands with the kids stood in their palms, or play around with some sillier ideas, such as grabbing or pushing them off something in the background.

6. Profiles by size – add a bit of extra interest to the traditional family photo by placing each family member in size order, facing profile from the camera, with the dad at the back, the mum, then kids. Organise yourselves so that each face is in front of the previous one, but slightly set back – so you’ll get a set of staggered profiles, decreasing in size as they get closer to the camera.

7. Steps – use a set of steps or stairs (or even some sturdy boxes) and arrange each member of the family so that their heads become level. This is a cute way of showing an equal family and you can either face forward, or all look at the person next to you for some funny face pulling and animated interaction.

8. Playground – the playground is a place of fun, so it stands to reason that it will make for some fun family photos too! The choices are almost endless – all on the swings, with the little ones in your lap, in size order down the slide, heads all laying towards the centre of the roundabout, or even a mix-match of weights on either end of the see-saw!

9. Kiss kiss – it’s up to you who puts the lipstick on and who gets kissed, but this is a really lovely way of showing affection in the family. Maybe the girls could cover dad in lipstick marks while he smiles in the middle as he receives more? Or you could let the kids play with the colour with mum and dad being smothered in smooches?

10. A laugh in the bath – not for the introvert, but a brilliant way of capturing a regular and much loved family moment. Build up LOTS of bubbles to preserve your modesty and use a remote trigger (unless you have someone you feel comfortable enough with to take the image in person!) – have mum and dad (or just one of you if the other is taking the snap) at the ends of the bath with the kids in the middle. Play with bubbles on the face, get some toys in there and have some fun!