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7 Fun Ideas for Halloween Photos

October 12, 2020 · Stephanie Kay-Kok

Even if you usually take light, cheerful photos, Halloween is the one time of year when you can take scary, horror-themed pictures without anyone thinking it’s odd. You can get creative with creepy props, costumes, and special effects, or simply shoot the best decorations in your neighborhood. Here are some fun ideas to inspire your photography this Halloween.

Inspiration for Halloween Pictures

Although Halloween is celebrated differently depending on where you live, the following ideas could work anywhere in the world. Even if your country doesn’t celebrate Halloween, you could use these images and ideas as inspiration for a horror-themed or autumn-themed shoot at home. If nothing else, it’s a good excuse to try something new!

Set up a still life photo.

Like Christmas, Halloween comes with a lot of decorations, such as jack-o’-lanterns, skeletons, and spider webs. Along with special drinks and candy, the holiday has a lot of interesting subjects you could use for spooky or lighthearted still life photos.

Theo Crazzolara – Pumpkin Spice
Theo Crazzolara - Pumpkin Spice Drink

pixlilli – Halloween
pixlilli - Halloween

Definitely Dreaming – The Skull
Still Life - The Skull

David Geitgey Sierralupe – Halloween for adults
David Geitgey Sierralupe - Halloween for adults

Go out and photograph seasonal decorations.

If your area doesn’t have any Halloween decorations, you may still find beautiful harvest-themed decorations around your neighborhood or town. Though less scary, these decorations go back to the pagan roots of Halloween, celebrating the end of harvest and the beginning of winter. They capture the feel of the season surrounding Halloween, minus the ghosts and zombies.

Steve Stanger – Autumn at Allaire
Steve Stanger - Autumn at Allaire

Gilbert Mercier – Halloween’s pumpkins lineup
Gilbert Mercier - Halloween pumpkins lineup

R Casey – HFF and Happy Halloween!
R Casey - pumpkin by fence

Mitchell Askelson – Halloween
Mitchell Askelson - Halloween

Find a crow, spider, or black cat to photograph.

Like pumpkins, these ominous subjects have the Halloween vibe without the Halloween decor. You can take an intense close-up or use them as the focal point in an eerie scene. Best of all, it doesn’t matter where you live! You’re likely to have at least one of these three subjects in your area.

For tips on photographing crows, check out our post with cool photos of crows and ravens.

Caitlín Keller – good or evil?
Caitlín Keller - black cat

Carlos Echenique – Orange and Black
Carlos Echenique - black cat

Pascal Rey
Pascal Rey - spider

Doug Omedeo – The Crow
Doug Omedeo - The Crow

Krystian Olszanski
Krystian Olszanski - flying crow

Take a moody portrait.

You don’t actually need any props to create a nice Halloween image. Just make yourself look foreboding and take a self-portrait. You can go crazy with props or special effects, but sometimes, shooting in black and white is all you need to create a moody portrait.

Federica Giordano – o t h e r s i d e
Federica Giordano - closeup portrait

Ken Lane – Blue Eyes (Joey Lee)
Ken Lane - Blue Eyes Joey Lee

Arianna Ceccarelli – Buried by spider webs
Arianna Ceccarelli - Buried by spider webs

Arianna Ceccarelli – Devil’s Night
Arianna Ceccarelli - Devils Night

Capture a cool costume.

For some people, costumes are the highlight of Halloween. The holiday provides a great excuse for trying on clothes and makeup you normally wouldn’t wear. Even if you’re not going to a costume party, you can play with the idea of costumes in a Halloween photo shoot.

James Drury – the dead dancer
James Drury - the dead dancer

Federica Giordano – wicked games
Federica Giordano - wicked games

SooozhyQ – Bad Hombre
SooozhyQ - Bad Hombre

Stephane Roy – Halloween chic
Stephane Roy - Halloween chic

Hernán Piñera – Halloween
Hernán Piñera - Halloween

Create a creepy photo.

Halloween is a good time to dabble in conceptual photography. You have permission to experiment with creepy subjects and settings you typically don’t explore. While you might not want an entire portfolio filled with horrifying pictures (or would you?), it can be fun to step outside your comfort zone and play with horror for once.

Yane Naumoski – Sinister days (#1) – The Slasher
Yane Naumoski - Sinister days - The Slasher

Yane Naumoski – Sinister days (#2) – Possessed
Yane Naumoski - Sinister days – Possessed

Yane Naumoski – Sinister days (#3) – The witch
Yane Naumoski - Sinister days – The witch

Yane Naumoski – Sinister days (#4) – Trick or treat
Yane Naumoski - Sinister days - Trick or treat

Practice shooting in low light.

If you have no interest in Halloween decorations or scary photos, you can embrace the holiday by shooting in the dark instead. After all, darkness is a big part of Halloween. Whether you’re out in the city taking street shots or in the middle of nowhere, shooting the stars, you can use Halloween as an excuse to stay up late and learn more about capturing great photos at night.

Victoria Pickering – Dark Dolls of Halloween
Victoria Pickering - Dark Dolls of Halloween

Arrideo Photography – Halloween 2017
Arrideo Photography - Halloween party

Will Fisher – Halloween Haunt
Will Fisher - Halloween Haunt

Gerardo “Tito” Paez – El Portal…
Gerardo Tito Paez - El Portal

Many of the images above were selected from our creative Flickr community.

Filed Under: Inspiration

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