Twelve Days Of Christmas: Everything To Include In A Christmas Photo Book Other Than The Day Itself
Christmas is a magical time full of festivities, fun and… carrots. Seriously, the amount of carrot sales must go through the roof in preparation for the big day, but the tradition of leaving food for Santa and his reindeer is always a bit of fun for the kids.
Not to mention, it makes a great festive photo for your Christmas photo book. That being said, there are a load of Christmas events to get into your photo book. Perhaps even too many.
If you’ve never made a Christmas photo book before, you’re going to find that it’s full to the brim with all of the activities that take place on Christmas day, so much so that you end up leaving out so many other things that make Christmas so special.
This is why it’s a great idea to create two Christmas photo books. Yes, you heard us right. Two. One for the day itself – including Christmas Eve and Boxing Day – and one for all the other exciting events that take place around the Christmas season.
They say there are twelve days of Christmas, after all. So here are twelve events you should wrap together in a pretty bow for the ultimate Christmas photo book that doesn’t actually include the day itself:
Day One - Decorating The House
Everyone puts photographs of them decorating on Facebook and Instagram, but not many of these photographs find their way into the Facebook and Instagram photo book. Start off your photo book with pictures of the process – just leave out the thirty minutes it took you to de-tangle the lights (seriously, how do they get so tangled by themselves?!)
Day Two – Christmas Shopping
Like it or loathe it, Christmas shopping is a big part of the festive season. It’s also great fun to see everyone out and about, shopping for things they would never need at any other time of the year: presents, strange cheeses, mince pies, turkey basters, the list goes on and on!
Day Three – Christmas Lights (At Night!)
If you want to make the most out of a photo book maker, it’s important to make the pages look beautiful and aesthetically pleasing. Ordinarily, you would do this by bettering your photography craft, but at Christmas time, all the work is done for you. The streets are naturally gorgeous, especially if your street has gone all out on Christmas lights. Include as many photos as you can and really show off the beauty of your hometown.
Day Four – Visiting Santa’s Grotto
If you’ve got kids, then a visit with Santa must be on the table. Photo books offer a great way to cherish these memories and give them the glossy treatment that they deserve. Also, listen out for what your kid asks Santa for Christmas, it could give you some much needed clues!
Day Five – Christmas Market
Nothing shouts Christmas more than a Christmas market. They are also incredibly photogenic, so get in as many photographs as you can, including all the stalls, rides, mulled wine… heck, even the bouncers at the gate. They’ll most likely have a Santa hat on!
Day Six – Winter Walks
The other great thing about Christmas – and a Christmas photo book – is that it takes place in one of the most beautiful seasons: winter. For this reason, you should try to get out on winter walks, up your winter photography game and include the results in your photo book to really show off your photography skills.
Day Seven – Snowmen Building
If you’re lucky enough to live in a place where it actually snows over Christmas, then don’t miss the opportunity to include snowy pictures into your photo book. Get the kids outside, make snow angels, create snowmen, go sledding; take advantage of the weather and make that photo book as Christmassy as possible!
Day Eight – Movie Nights In
Die Hard IS a Christmas movie. Ahem, sorry, we had to get that out there. Yep, it’s that time of year again where the age-old debate creates family arguments the world over. But even if you don’t think Die Hard is a Christmas movie (even though it definitely is) there are a number of great Christmas movies to watch and include in your photo book. Obviously, you don’t need photos of the actual movie, but try to include photos of the family huddled up in front of the fireplace, with blankets, sweaters and treats. It’s a sweet scene and deserves to be remembered with a place in your photo book.
Day Nine – Baking And Cooking
Whilst you spend most of the year making easy-to-prepare meals like meatloaf and oven-cooked pizza, Christmas is the time when you slap the apron on and suddenly become your household’s very own Gordon Ramsay. It’s a great idea to include some photographs of a day in the kitchen, especially if you’ve got the kids helping you out with the Christmas cookies!
Day Ten – Christmas Wrapping
With all the Christmas shopping done, it’s time to sit down and actually wrap the presents. Like the “movie nights-in”, this is always a sweet scene (provided you don’t get too frustrated with the process) and it definitely deserves to find a place in your photo book.
Day Eleven – Nativity Play
If you have kids, you’ll probably be treated to a nativity play at some point before school breaks up for the holidays. This deserves a good few pages at least, especially if your kid has a starring role in the production! Even if they’re just Shepard #3 though, it’s still a lovely part of the Christmas season that you will want to cherish.
Day Twelve – Welcoming Family
At this point, you will have finally gotten to the day itself. Finish off your photo book with the scene just starting to take shape. Include photographs of family arriving, presents under their arms and smiles on their faces. The festivities are about to begin, so it’s time to get the party started!
