Trying to get better at taking pictures

So I have to confess a scrapbooking sin... I don't like to take photos. There, I've said it! That's right, I just don't seem to have that shutterbug gene. So what's a scrapbooker to do? The very essence of the hobby is to capture memories, and well, it's just a little hard to scrapbook without photos.

Lately I've been surfing blogs and taking note of some of their great photography skills. (Here are is a link to one of my favorite local photographers: Captured by Sarah). This past Christmas my brother and his wife received an "Our First Christmas" ornament that had a place to display a photo. In Illinois on Christmas Day we had a beautiful snowfall all day long. So, my brother, my sister-in-law, and I decided to take advantage of the weather and take their photo for their Christmas ornament that very day. It took us a couple of attempts, but I think we captured some pretty good photos... especially given that I was using a Nikon Coolpix and we were standing on covered deck! *Note: These photos have not been retouched.*

Of course one major problem is that my brother is nearly a foot taller than his wife, so although we had some good shots from our first try, none of them allowed both of their heads to be in the frame at the same time. So we had to try again, and finally landed with this one: