How to take the best holiday photos ever!

HO HO HOOOOOOLD UP! Here are some handy-dandy photography tips for this holiday season!

During the holiday season, there's always bound to be a camera or an iPhone stuck in your face at one point or another.

Whether it's posing in ugly sweaters or grinning with the super lame gift you unwrapped from your Uncle Danny, snapping pictures of the beautifully roasted turkey & centerpiece or of your two-year-old niece screaming on Santa's lap, there's always someone somewhere looking to capture a festive memory on camera.

After all, 'tis the season!

Nowadays, there are dozens of opportunities available to snap some truly breathtaking and unique holiday snapshots; you just need to get creative with it!

Here are a couple of ways you can take some wickedly festive photos this holiday season!

• Let there be light!
• Angles, angles, angles
• #Boomerang4life
• Unwrap those photography toys (& get creative!)
• Get weird and play with your editing

Let there be light!

Regardless of whichever awesome holiday you celebrate at this time of year, there's always one factor that's bound to be a common one in every household: some sort of holiday lightning.

Whether your family hangs up colored lights, lights candles, or has the fireplace crackling, there's probably a new light source in your house that isn't normally there during the other months of the year, so take advantage and play with it!

Try capturing a portrait by the candlelight of a Menorah or wrapping you and your BFF in Christmas lights for some adorable Instagram-worthy snapshots. Force yourself out of your comfort zone and light up your photos with some holiday flair!

Angles, angles, angles

Okay, sure. You can take a dead-on picture of your stunning tree decked-out in all of those ornaments, or you could shift your perspective and snap a photo from a lower angle. But oh! Wait! What about the star? Guess you're going to have to get that high angle, too.

Switching up your perspective and shooting something at a number of different angles can really change the look, feel, and quality of a picture. Most newbies who are just picking up a camera will take a standard, centered picture, but getting low and going high can produce some funky alternatives that just aren't normally seen in holiday photos.

Not only can you alter the angle, but you can change up your distance from an object as well. Try taking some extreme close-ups of metallic green tinsel or the oil bubbling with your latkes, and if you're worried about not being able to get close enough or detailed enough, then pick up a macro lens; you'd be surprised at how much you can see up close.

If you think it feels weird and unnatural shooting at a different angle, don't worry! That's just what it feels like when you step out of your comfort zone.

#Boomerang4life

While taking a Boomerang isn't necessarily the same as taking a picture, it allows for a bit more movement and fun-ness as you're capturing the holidays on camera.

Boomerangs create a GIF-like effect for your video, so it's perfect for capturing those holiday moments, like excitedly unwrapping gifts, eagerly digging into dinner, exhaustingly shoveling the walk, or anything that has to do with movement.

You don't end up getting the bulk of a video, but you do get that split-second repeat of a memory.

The downside to Boomerangs? Obviously you can't print them out and watch them in real life, but there is some tech that will let you do just that (#HarryPotterisReal).

Unwrap those photography toys (& get creative!)

If you're someone who loves to take photos with your iPhone, then you need to add a few camera accessories that will take your photos to a whole 'nother creative level of euphoria.

Just like adding different lenses and using different gear with a DSLR will change the quality and look of photos, so too will adding some extra bells and whistles to your iPhoneography arsenal.

Whether you're using external lenses to get that fisheye, wide-angle, macro, or fly-eye effect, various lights to make your pictures brighten and pop or a selfie stick to change your angles and alter your regular #selfie routine, accessories for your iPhone photography hobby are fun to collect and play with!

Even if you're picking up a super cheap lens set from Amazon, partnering external tools with your iPhone and playing with them can open a whole new world of perspective for phone photographers.

(Plus, phone photography accessories make great gifts!)

Get weird and play with your editing

This year, everyone was obsessed with Prisma. Why? Because the app edited your photography in cool, stylized ways, while still making your picture look like your picture. There wasn't any extreme warping or wild edits, just a cool, awesome-looking photograph with an eye-catching effect over it.

This holiday season, try playing around and editing your photography in a bunch of different ways. Download new photography editing apps, screw around with Photoshop, or even take selfies in Snapchat so you can save all the festive filters that appear on your face.

Heck, why not try to warp and manipulate the photo in some strange ways? You don't know what looks good unless you've tried it! Add in some fake snow, edit in some stars and a Santa Claus, do whatever you want!

What types of photos are your favorites to take during the holiday season?

Are you a big fan of family portraits? Or do you prefer artsy, Instagram-worthy food pics? Let us know what you're shooting (and how!) this December in the comments below.

Updated December 2017: This article has been updated with the best of the best holiday photo tips and tricks. Happy shooting!