Bonus – Take a great picture of your mum .

The basement. The garage sale. The dustry corner of the attic.

This is where your annual Mother’s Day gifts end up – Snuggies, digital photo frames, that dog sweater. Trust me, your mother doesn’t need another dog sweater.

So forget the spa certificate for mum this year and try something that she’ll brag about to her friends for months to come.

Take her photo.

That’s right. Give mum one of those shared experiences that neither of you will ever forget. Here’s how to make it all happen.

Think about what your mum likes.

A great photo starts with a great idea. Mum like flowers? Take a shot with her holding a big bunch of colourful tulips. Big on the grandkids? Have all of them hug her and catch the expression on her face. Ultimately, you want to think about a couple of different ways you’re going to make her look fab.

Get outside.

Darkness can be your enemy, so go somewhere where there’s a whole bunch of light. If it’s super sunny out, make sure you take the picture in the shade of a tree or a building for a more flattering look.

Wait until late in the day.

Photographers call the last hour of daylight the “golden hour” because the light is richly warm. Go for a post dinner stroll (you are making dinner aren’t you?) with mum to take the shot.

Turn your camera to P and turn off the flash.

We’ve talked about these before and now that you’re getting super confident with your photo skills, you can decide on how the photo should look. Need more (or less) light? Remember ISO, shutter speed and aperture. They’re you’re friends.

Get closer and off centre.

Don’t fall into the trap of putting six miles of headroom at the top of your shot – unless that’s what you were going for. Step in close to mum and make sure you put her in a power position of the frame.

Reminisce.

A lot of our first Frame One posts have been about how you get comfortable with the camera, but that’s just the starting point to a great picture. You want some emotion. Instead of saying “smile,” start a conversation where you both remember what it was like when you were a wee one with scraped knees. That smile – a real, honest smile – will come before you know it.

Hey! Intel’s running a pretty cool contest and time’s running out to enter. Check out Intel’s “Build Your Dream Cave” contest for details – and a chance at more than $15,000 in prizes.