DIY Creepy Halloween Portrait Decor | Whitney Beth Photography
DIY Creepy Halloween Portrait Decor | Whitney Beth Photography
It's almost Halloween! Halloween is up there as one of my favorite holidays! I love decorating for it, and as my style has evolved over the years I've found I like a more classic haunted house look rather than gory or cutesey. This DIY stemmed from my photo friend Emily (over at www.emilysusankim.com) found this amazing filter on Instagram that closely resembles a tin type. (A tin type is a type of photograph printed on tin in one of the big cameras with bellows that required you getting under a sheet.) She found it one day and made her family recreate tin types. About a week ago I was playing with it and my kids when inspiration struck and this DIY halloween decor was born.
The first thing you'll need to do is find the filter (honestly you could get away with any "old timey" looking filter, but this one is my fave.) It's called "ELIN" and looks like this.
Next get dressed up in some clothes that could pass off as "old." The best part about black and white is that color doesn't matter! I wore a velvet red dress for the texture and for the color it would read on the camera. I had the boys just throw on some button ups and ties, suspender and vest, depending on the boy. An added touch for the ladies is pulling your hair back in a low bun and tying a ribbon around your neck. Line everyone up and take their picture! *tip: it works best if you face a window to get that catchlight in your eyes.
Here are the pictures we got! For the family one, my remote wouldn't work with Instagram, so I recorded a video and then took a screen shot of the frame I liked. This works fine if you aren't printing super big. If you plan on larger than a 5x7, enlist the help of a friend!
Then I sent these babies off to print at Persnickety Prints. I ordered 5x7's and 4x6's. For the 4x6's I printed them with a white boarder (which they do for free!) While those were being printed I stopped at the DI and scoured the frame section for old looking frames. I scored and even found one with an oval mat in it! I also found some ornate circle frames that I liked, so I bought those too and spray painted them black. The most expensive frame was $1.
When my prints arrived I stuck them in my frames and stood back to admire my handiwork! They look amazing arranged around my cheesecloth covered mirrors and classic Halloween decor. Depending on the frame and size of print, each picture cost around $2. *tip: don't forget to leave space for the printing ratios! That's why we are all a little squished in the family picture.
What do you think? Are you going to try it? There's still time before Halloween!
