Halloween Photography Ideas: Get Ready to Trick or Treat

Autumn is such an amazing season for vibrant, colorful photography! Now that the Halloween is just around the corner, it is about the right time to impress your viewers with some new photo tricks. Without further introduction, here are the Halloween photography ideas and tips we want to share with you. Don’t forget to spread the enthusiasm!

Eye the Wow Factor: Shoot a Halloween Parade

The beauty of this celebration is that everyone will dress-up.  Ghosts, witches, goblins, and monsters of all kinds will pervade the streets, all smiling and ready to be photographed. All you need for fantastic, memorable shots is to get out there with your camera in hand and see what tickles your imagination. Ghostly, spontaneous portraits are allowed. This is a simple point and shoot strategy. Photograph a Halloween parade and have some fun.

Halloween photography ideas shooting a parade

New York’s Village Halloween Parade, 2014

Capture the Atmosphere: The Challenge of Shooting in Dim Light

Shooting in low light settings is a real challenge if you are not well-equipped. A good DSLR can do the trick for you with a few adjustments, but if it lacks image stabilization, we recommend mounting low light, fast lenses.

However, there are a few tricks you can do and catch the Halloween feeling in your shots without employing extra equipment. Halloween photography should be all about having fun, not carrying around heavy gear.

Here’s what you can do to improve the accuracy of your images when shooting in dim light:

  1. Most cameras come with a Night Mode that allows you to capture your subjects in detail, and emphasize the setting at the same time. The disadvantage, though, is that, if your subjects don’t remain still, the images will get blurry.
  2. What you can do best is take full control of your camera settings. Start by selecting a high ISO speed (400 or more). The downside of doing it is getting noisier images. But if you know your camera well enough, you’ll find the right value.

Learn more about ISO meaning and uses in photography. Leave the flash at home and experiment more.

  1. Don’t forget to select a slower shutter speed when adjusting the ISO sensitivity. If you want to capture a sense of speed or, on the contrary, to freeze the moment, we’ve got the best techniques for shutter speed photography explained here.
  2. Choose a wide aperture and shoot in RAW format if possible. This way you will avoid a reduction of the image’s saturation.

By increasing the aperture, more light will get into your camera’s lens. This will also result in a shallow depth of field. If you wish to learn more about how aperture affects the quality of your images, check out our article on aperture settings and techniques.

  1. Use a tripod. To get astounding night photographs, you need to control the composition of your shots. The easiest way to achieve great exposure is by keeping your camera still.

Consider Candid Photo Techniques

I cannot conceive Halloween photography in the absence of a few candid shots. Move around, experiment shooting from different angles, mix the perspectives, and be ready to take some unusual group pics.

Halloween Photography

Capture a Spider Trick

What I love about candid photography is that it doesn’t require posing. It is all about picturing how people interact and enjoy their time. Plus, candid photos add fun and a sense of story to the images.

Choose Your Time Wisely

Shooting in low light does not necessarily mean to wait until the night comes. Profit from the magical hour (actually, those 20 minutes before and after the sun goes down) and make your subjects look like fairy-tale characters.

This is also the perfect time to take incredible silhouette images by playing with shadows and backlighting. As a top tip, try taking photos of your subjects holding lit pumpkins. Position them against the sky at dusk for a more dramatic effect.

We’ve got more golden hour photography tips to help you find the best perspectives.

halloween photography - scary pumpkin

Halloween Scary Pumpkin – Autumnl Setting

Focus on Halloween Photography Props

Halloween pictures are all about capturing the spooky mood. Try setting up a bit the areas you photograph. Bring on the devilish cakes and spooky decorations.

What you can also do is find innovative ways to light your images. You know, this is the only time of the year when taking creepy photographs is entirely acceptable. Use flashlights, lit pumpkins, or glow sticks to accentuate the spooky traits of the characters your subjects impersonate by pointing them up, at their face. Also, you can photograph them with and without their masks.

Focusing on Halloween props shouldn’t be something static or boring. Besides a few close-ups of bleeding cakes and creepy cocktails, make Jack-o-lantern the main character of a time-lapse video. You can also capture the pumpkin’s transformation in a series of creative pics.

Dress-Up. Enjoy Halloween.

You cannot naturally interact with your subjects if not dressed-up. Play your role and you’ll make everyone feel more comfortable. Make it fun. Make it exciting. Don’t be afraid to go overboard with your shots. It’s Halloween!