General Tips
Take pictures of everything - Carving the pumpkins, your decorations, the trick or treaters, yourself...

For film cameras, make sure you have plenty of film and extra batteries for your camera. For digital cameras, make sure you have and extra batteries and a spare flash card or two.

Take as many pictures as you can, so you have a better chance of getting a good one.

People & Group Photos
Be sure to get your entire group together for a Halloween portrait. This makes a great addition to your Halloween photo album or Halloween scrap-book. Be in as many pictures as you can. If your camera has a timer or remote you can use it while posing for the picture. If not, see if one of your guests or neighbors will snap the picture for you.

When taking a group picture, have everyone move in as close together as possible before taking the picture. The closer you can get to your subjects the better. So, either move closer to your subject or use the zoom. Try to take pictures of people at eye level. Use of a tripod helps a lot, and keeps the camera steady.

Position your subjects so they are illuminated by the best light source in front of them, not behind them. Be sure to select the best white balance setting for your camera based on the light source. Back-lit people don't come out very well and are difficult to see pictures. If you do use the flash make sure you are within its effective range, typically between six to twelve feet, depending on your camera.

If your kids are having a Halloween party or other event at school, be sure to show up and snap some pictures. Its appropriate to let the teacher know in advance that you will be showing up.

Remember, pets are part of the family too. So, if you have pets, be sure to take some pictures of them, whether you put a pet costume on them or not. I've seen some great candid shots of cats curious about pumpkins and dogs sniffing the fake graveyard in front yards.

Halloween Scenes
Since most of your pictures will be shot at night, its important to remember a few basic rules. When taking pictures of Halloween lights or lighted decorations, be sure to hold the camera very steady or use a tripod to avoid any movement.

For most pictures you will want to turn off the flash on your camera, as they only light things up a short distance from the camera, usually five to ten feet. Use a high speed film such as ASA 400 or if using a digital camera, set the ISO to 200 or 400. Try to experiment before Halloween to figure out the best setting for your particular camera.

Jack O' Lanterns
The light used to illuminate the outside of the pumpkin and that of the candles inside is actually a delicate balance. Ideally, your photographs will want is to capture the candles glow from within the pumpkin, but still be able to see the outside of the pumpkin it's self.

If you use a flash, you'll over light the surface of the pumpkin and drown out the light from the candles inside. First off, turn the flash on your camera off, you don't want it. To help avoid the light inside the pumpkin from being to faint, we use two or even three candles.

The best technique is to take your pictures around dusk, before it becomes totally dark. Be sure to use a fast film, ISO 400 or faster is best. Use high quality film such as Fuji Film. Wait until dark, illuminate the outside of the pumpkin with in-direct artificial light, i.e. a lamp and light the candle(s) inside the pumpkin.