4 Memories to Photograph this Thanksgiving

Canadian Thanksgiving is just around the corner. To all my fellow Canadians, I wish you the happiest of Thanksgivings.  For my friends worldwide not celebrating Thanksgiving this upcoming weekend, you can tuck away the information below for when your celebrations arrive. 

I know you'll agree with me that this year has been unusual in many ways. Change and stressors have been great in many homes around the world. However, amidst the COVID-19 heath pandemic, I have observed more family time, stronger relationships, an improved appreciation of others, and resiliency like I've never seen before. Despite the challenges this year has brought, I have much to be thankful for. I plan on enjoying a quiet Thanksgiving with my family, focusing on what is most important to us and the little people growing up before my eyes.

Whether you are celebrating this weekend or another time, I think you should take the time to photograph your important memories over the Thanksgiving long weekend. Here are a few must capture memories during Thanksgiving.  

1. Food

Delicious food and Thanksgiving are the perfect companions. Whether you or someone else is baking and cooking for your Thanksgiving feast, be sure to capture a few of these moments. It's a great idea to keep your camera close at hand and have user-friendly settings dialled in. If your camera is visible, you're more likely to capture a snap or two without feeling like it's too much work during the hustle and bustle of meal preparation. I like to keep my camera close to my kitchen because that's where all the activity is. Think about photographing your subject close to a natural light source as this will help darken the surrounding Thanksgiving clutter that is bound to occur during this type of meal preparation. 

^{ISO 1250, 35mm, f2.8, 1/250SS}

 2. Outdoor Thanksgiving moments

Canadian Thanksgiving occurs while fall is coming to a close. I like to make an effort to infuse as much as fall as possible into my images around Thanksgiving before that white snow kisses nature into a frozen slumber. Enjoy some fresh air this Thanksgiving, and capture your memories while outdoors. It doesn't have to be complicated as sometimes it's the simplest of details that can capture the essence of what Thanksgiving is all about. 

^{ISO 800, 105mm, f3, 1/500SS}

 3. Indoor Thanksgiving moments 

There's no denying that fall colour steals the show during this season. Including fall and Thanksgiving decorations within your images over the long weekend is a fun way to infuse personality and style into your frames. If decorating isn't your style, you can think about bringing the outdoors inside through a window or even through a flat lay of found fall treasures while you were out on that Thanksgiving weekend walk. 

^{ISO 200, 122mm, f3.2, 1/500SS}

4. Family 

The number one memory I want to capture this Thanksgiving is my family. Lately, I've been keenly aware of how quickly my children are moving on from childhood into the tween and teen years. I want to savour every moment and capture them, while I still can, in my growing memory bank of childhood images. I also want to capture our togetherness this Thanksgiving. We've been in our little family cohort for months now, and we're as tight as ever. I want to capture that feeling in my photographs this Thanksgiving because this is what I am most thankful for this year, my family.  

^{ISO 800, 14mm, f2.5, 1/250SS}

Holiday weekends can be busy and filled with a flurry of activity. This Thanksgiving, keep your camera close at hand so you can capture a few precious memories. I wish you a wonderful and laughter filled Thanksgiving weekend.