Taking a nice photo for the Christmas card family photo sounds so easy. However as any parent who has attempted this holiday custom can tell you, it's not as simple as it sounds. What you want is an exceptional, nice photo Christmas card. And what you usually get is squirmy, stubborn kids that blink just as you're taking the picture. But don't give up easily and throw in the Santa hat just yet. Here are 6 simple, neat solutions to those top challenges.

Challenge 1: You want a cheerful Christmas background for your family photo Christmas cards, but you don't want to decorate your house with strands of lights and tinsel as early as November.

Solution: Go to the Mall. Department stores and shopping malls are decorating for the holiday earlier, usually right after Halloween. These Christmas backdrops are perfect for family photo Christmas cards. Take the kids to mall and gather them in front of the blinking lights with a few camera clicks and you'll have the perfect shot.

Challenge 2: Your young ones won't sit still long enough to take the photo.

Solution: Take out the props with you. Get the oversized teddy bear or other toys that mesmerizes them. Pose them with a dog or cat. Make them do something simple, like ringing a Christmas bell or kissing their sister's cheek. Use trial and error until you figure out the item or activity that interests them long enough for you to take a few shots.

Challenge 3: Your teenage kids don't want to pose for a family photo.

Solution: Get some candid shots. Make action the focal point of your photo Christmas cards, focusing on things that your teenagers like to do. Take pictures of them showing off their talents or skills. Whether they are in the swimming pool, a canoe, playing basketball, horseback riding, baking cookies, playing with the cat, or enjoying any activity, your holiday cards will provide a quick look into your family's interests and personality.

Challenge 4: You'd like to send photo Christmas cards that are humorous and entertaining, just like your family.

Solution: Fashion your very own holiday story picture, by setting up a view. Here are some ideas. The kids discovered Mommy kissing Santa Claus (Daddy in disguise). Put the young kids in a bubble bath with Santa hats on them or bubble beards. Take a snapshot of each family member grabbing a slice of pizza with the message "pizza on earth". Picture an empty plate of cookies and empty glasses of milk in front of guilty-looking children with the caption "sorry Santa!"

Those after-the-Halloween-costume-sales can come in handy when trying to set up a fanciful photo. How about posing your little dolls with angel wings you picked up at a discount? Other options could be your kids dressed as cats (caption: Meowy Christmas), super heroes (caption: have a super Christmas), a baby in a pea-pod costume (caption: "peas on earth").

Challenge 5: You'd like a beautiful photo Christmas card that doesn't look like the usual, exhausted, group family photo you send out every year.

Solution: Change the scene of your photo shoot. If you're within driving distance, go to a beach, there are a lot of exceptional photo opportunities. For instance, pose the kids on a sleigh on a sand dune. Engrave Merry Christmas on the sand, and have everyone sit behind the inscription.

Autumn makes a lot of great possibilities for photo Christmas cards. Try taking shots of the kids playing in a pile of leaves, or in a pumpkin patch. Make a lovely panorama of your backdrop and it can create an impression that takes your photo Christmas card to a new higher level.

Challenge 6: Whenever you thrash about to take a family group photo, somebody always blinks their eyes, turns their head away or doesn't smile. It seems just about impossible to get one great shot where everyone looks good.

Solution: Pick a card company that offers photo Christmas card designs that has multiple photos of your family. The latest fashion in holiday photo cards is to include a number of your photos on one card in an exclusive, holiday layout. This has become famous because it is much easier to take perfect, individual photos of your family members than one suitable group picture.

Whatever particular test you face when making your photo Christmas cards, there is always an easy solution. Try these innovative approaches and soon you'll be hearing from your friends, relatives, coworkers and neighbors how much they liked this year's family holiday photo card.

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