Why I’m Not Taking Photos on Christmas: The Present of Presence

Photographers, Slow Down and Enjoy Your Holiday

This December has flown by, and if you read this post, you know I was working hard to make this a more slow and sacred season, one filled with more time together than time running around.   I’ve tried to keep the focus on what we can DO for each other, not what we need to BUY for each other. 

Has every day been perfect at accomplishing this goal?

Absolutely not.  I’ve fallen short, on many occasions.  I’ve taken the path of easy over meaningful, busy over slow.

But, I’ve been hyper-aware, working hard to reel myself back in when I find myself drifting away from my vision of the kind of Christmas season I want to create with my family.

We’ve made decorations, a gingerbread house, lit candles over dinner, read Christmas stories, sang songs, looked at lights, and more.

And I’ve documented it all.  The messes, the wonder, the magic.   It’s all safely preserved, telling our story of Christmas.

Christmas Morning Photography

But there's something I won’t be doing this year?

Taking photos of Christmas morning.   I want to be there, without letting my photographer mind wander to compositions and settings and “Ohhh! Christmas light bokeh would be pretty perfect right now!” thoughts.

I want to watch my kids open their simple gifts and see my husband laugh as he unwraps his underwear.   I want to just be there, and live it.

I don’t want the piles of RAW files sitting and nagging at me to edit them.  I don’t want to feel the need to post a photo of my son opening a marble run or my daughter squealing over her doll house.  I just don’t want to, so I won’t.

I've spent years taking photos of my kids on Christmas, one year even shooting a video.   And there was my husband, putting pieces together and pushing my son on a bike, and there I was, hiding behind a camera to tell the story.

And those artifacts are special, yes, but not worth the price for me.  Not worth the distraction or the hustle.

For me, I've already got the photos of what Christmas is, and it’s not the boxes that Santa will bring one morning.  It’s the frames filled with traditions and memories that will come back, year after year after year.

Eventually, there will be photos of my son playing with his marble run and my daughter with her dollhouse.  But the time they ripped the paper off of them?

Well this year, those are photos to be taken silently by my heart, locked in tight, with hope they will stand the test of time.

However you choose to document this holiday season, best wishes and merry everything to you and yours!

How are you spending your holidays this year?  Are you planning to take lots of photos or will you put the camera aside?  Leave us a comment below - we would love to hear from you!  And please share this post using the social sharing buttons (we really appreciate it!)