Ok so firstly, find the bossiest person in the family and recruit them as your assistant.

Alert everyone that there will be a group photo at a set time so they can be ready.

Best to start early in the day. Before lunch with 1 or 2 pre drinks for a happy mood.

Check everyone looks good and add some Xmas hats or Xmas deco's in the shot. Don’t forget the dog and cat.

Veranda’s are great if you have one big enough.

What you are looking for is even lighting on the whole family.

Don’t have people looking into bright sun as this will cause them to squint and blink.

Smaller groups can be shot inside in front of the Xmas tree or fireplace.

If park , river or beach is an easy walk that maybe an option. But if your family want a quick shoot, keep it within the grounds of the house.

Here we have nice even ambient lighting. Relaxed pose leaning on the fence. Shooting down from an angle eliminates the distracting background and now we can also see the family dog!

Here we use the table to bring the babies up to adult height and the others make the back row behind. Once again slightly higher camera elevation gives everyone a good jaw line. But can you spot the error in this pose?

“We are proud of our garden so go wide to show that” Dad leans on the post showing ownership. Mum puts 1 leg up making her look slimmer. The boys take a casual stance linking arms showing family love.

A simple lounge in a simple home can be transformed into a great family set up. All I asked for here was Grandfather in middle kids on knees. This was the result! The family usually set them self up pretty well. All you may have to do is tweek a little once they are in place.

Adding some Xmas deco’s adds to the mood. A pretty simple shot with window light.

Heads of family sit down with smaller kids to make the front row. Overall the look is a relaxed loving family in their home. Place a couple of chairs in front and seat VIPs, the rest will gather around and create their own set up. Then you just adjust it slightly. Try to keep it balanced. Sun behind, fill flash in front. F8 to F11 to get everyone in focus. Don’t use wide angle lens’s as it will stretch the people on the sides. Try to keep no wider than 35mm (full frame) where possible.

This was my family Xmas shot 2016. Before the shoot it was perfect lighting. By the time we were ready the sun came out and through the trees giving this harsh contrasting light. My option was wait till the sun goes behind the cloud again. But the back row boys wanted to get back to their beers so it was that shot or nothing. Compact camera on an ironing board 10 sec timer. ( You can get away with a few things with your own family but you would never do this with a paying client)

Most Aussies will say ”We just want natural , un-posed shots” However turning a few people on a slight angle and getting the little kids up high will help to balance the photo a little. The shot in front of the family home ( Sullivan's style) sounds boring but often works well.

If you have a nice park close by it may be worth the effort to take the family there. If you want more than a happy snap do some research on the locations available. Always try to keep the leaders, elders, Bride & Groom or VIPs in the middle of the group. This gives a good balance.

The back light, fill flash combo works every time. Overexpose the background a little, Fill flash in front. Test a few shots first. Turn the flash power up or down to get the desired result. Shoot Raw and tweak in photo shop.

Look for structures to set family groups on. Park bench’s , picnic tables, rocks, gazebos or even a couple of chairs to break up the standard straight line look. Set women for a model stance and slightly angled shoulders.

Good quality ambient lighting is best but not often available. Off camera flash or a reflector is great if you have an assistant. But when your on your own and the light is fading fast, on camera flash will always get a pretty good result if used correctly.