Entertainment
How to Take Better Photos of Moms (Listen Up, Dads)


One of my favorite things is seeing moms in photos with their kids. But sometimes even the most well-meaning spouses can be…not great behind the camera. So! In partnership with Aura Frames — just in time for Mother’s Day — here are 12 tips for taking beautiful snapshots of the mothers in your life…

1. Look out for candid moments. The quickest way to become a great photographer is just to keep an eye out for sweet moments. Kids move quickly, so don’t hesitate: grab your phone and take a shot.

2. You don’t always need faces. Photos of feet or hands or people from the back can be so charming and tell a story on their own.

3. Take a LOT of photos. Seriously, take 30. One is bound to be good, and then she can pick her favorite. You can also use “live photo” mode. It will capture a few seconds before and after you snap. You can go back later and pick the best frame — aka the one where no one was blinking.

4. Take photos of views. If there’s a view, pull that camera out. Every. Single. Time.

5. Move the camera around. Positioning your camera above eye level often makes faces look brighter (think: fewer shadows) and more engaging. Also, move around while snapping photos. Different angles can make a big difference!

6. Remember the cuddles. “When I lost my mom, I realized I had a finite number of photos with her,” my friend Liz Libré once told me. “I want pictures of my arms around my own children, my body touching them. I want to be represented in my camera roll.” Same, oh my gosh.

7. Capture the daily routine, too. Photographing activities she does all the time — running errands, taking a kid to school, helping tie shoelaces — can feel real and beautiful.

8. Play around with light. Golden hour — in the morning or evening — is always soft and magical. If you’re indoors, switch off the overheads and move toward natural light by the windows.

9. Try black and white. If the lighting is wonky or the colors feel off, switch to black and white — it instantly looks classic. We especially do this on photos taken at night.

10. Offer to take photos with mom friends. Parenting takes a village, and it’s so nice to look back on times you were raising your children together.

11. Perfection isn’t necessary. Even a blurry photo can become an all-time favorite.

12. Enjoy the photos! Don’t let them waste away on your phone, soak up all the beauty with her. I’d highly recommend Aura digital frames, which let you easily share photos from multiple phones (you can invite friends and relatives through the app) and display them in an ever-changing carousel. My mom, my dad, my sister, my aunt, my cousin, and I all have Aura frames in our homes, and they help us feel like part of each other’s everyday lives. The frames are one of those things that bring so much joy, and they’d make a really meaningful Mother’s Day gift, don’t you think? xoxo
Bonus for all readers: Get $25 off this Aura frame with code CUPOFJO, good through May 13th.

Now, what would you add? We’d love to hear your photo tips. Thank you, Aura! xo
(Photos in this post from Joanna Goddard, Alison Piepmeyer, Jannelle Sanchez, Selena Ma, Erin Jang, Julia Robbs, Merie Subryan, Leah Fink, and Jenny Rosenstrach. Aura frame photos at the end by Julia Robbs. This post was sponsored by Aura Frames, whose digital picture frames we’ve loved and used for years. Thank you for supporting the brands that support Cup of Jo.)
Entertainment
Access all your AI tools in one spot with this Chrome extension, now $75 for life
TL;DR: See answers from multiple AI models in one convenient spot thanks to ChatPlayground AI, now $74.97 for a lifetime subscription (reg. $619) through May 10.
Credit: ChatPlayground AI
Every AI model has its strengths and weaknesses. ChatPlayground AI lets you see results from all the major models side by side — from ChatGPT and DeepSeek to Llama and Perplexity.
You can save yourself time and get the best possible results all at once with a lifetime subscription to this handy tool — on sale now for just $74.97 through May 10.
Mashable Deals
Hopping between different AI models really slows down your workflow. If you’d like to streamline how you use these tools, ChatPlayground AI saves you time, letting you see responses from over 20 AI models in a convenient spot.
This Chrome extension lets you enter prompts and see answers from Gemini, Claude, ChatGPT, Llama, and more in one window. Easily see the best answer for your prompt, while avoiding paying all the different subscription fees.
Whether you need help generating code or images, or you just need to ask a simple question, ChatPlayground AI provides an answer for everything. It can even help you build better prompts with prompt engineering tools.
Image and PDF chat features let you get context-aware answers even faster, as they save you from typing things out. You can also reference past conversations when you need to — ChatPlayground AI saves them all.
Your Unlimited Plan includes unlimited monthly messages, priority customer service, and priority access to any new features and future models.
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Get a lifetime subscription to ChatPlayground AI’s Unlimited Plan, now for just $74.97 through May 10.
StackSocial prices subject to change.
Topics
Artificial Intelligence
Entertainment
This $10 upgrade transforms your PC — but it’s only on sale until midnight
TL;DR: Upgrade a PC affordably with this Microsoft Windows 11 Pro license, on sale for just $9.97 (reg. $199) through tonight at midnight.
Want to get the feeling of a new computer without having to shell out all the money for one? A new operating system gives your device a whole new feel, and if you’ve got a PC lying around, it could probably use this Microsoft Windows 11 Pro upgrade. If you act fast, you can get it for only $9.97 through tonight at 11:59 p.m. PT.
Windows 11 Pro breathes new life into an old computer, extending its lifespan for less than the cost of your lunch. Unlike older operating systems, this one was made with the modern professional in mind.
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Rest easy knowing Windows 11 Pro is filled with features that can improve your workflow — from an easy-to-use interface that enhances usability to snap layouts, seamless redocking, a more powerful search experience, and improved voice typing.
Take advantage of unique professional tools like Azure AD, Hyper-V, Windows Sandbox, and BitLocker device encryption. Then take a break and check out the impressive gaming experience offered by DirectX 12 Ultimate graphics.
Windows 11 Pro includes Copilot, Microsoft’s very own AI-powered assistant, which can assist you with a wide range of tasks. Get some help kickstarting your writing process, summarizing web pages, changing your settings, or even opening your apps.
You can also enjoy improved cybersecurity with Windows 11 Pro, as it adds biometric logins, encrypted authentication, and enhanced antivirus protection.
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Get your PC a Microsoft Windows 11 Pro license for only $9.97 tonight through midnight.
StackSocial prices subject to change.
Entertainment
3 AdultFriendFinder red flags — how to avoid scams on AFF
Depending on who you ask, AdultFriendFinder is either the Wild West of hookup sites, an “anything goes” paradise for adult fun, or a total scam replete with bots, fake profiles, and inactive accounts.
After months of personal testing, I can confidently say which AFF you experience ultimately boils down to how you use the site. If you approach it naively, without a strategy, you’re probably going to have some frustrating experiences. On the other hand, if you exercise a modicum of caution and common sense, you’ll discover a huge, fun, and kink-friendly community.
Here are three red flags to look out for as you use AFF, to help you spot potential scammers and separate the authentic users from the fake profiles.
Hookup apps for everyone
AdultFriendFinder
—
readers’ pick for casual connections
Tinder
—
top pick for finding hookups
Hinge
—
popular choice for regular meetups
Credit: AdultFriendFinder
Unverified accounts
AdultFriendFinder already offers a fantastic first step in combatting fake profiles that they call ConfirmID. Once you’ve created an account, you can, at any time, upload a clear scan of a government-issued ID card and then, using a webcam, undergo a quick face verification scan to confirm that you are indeed the person identified in the government document.
This step strikes the perfect balance between not being onerous enough to annoy the average user but still requiring enough effort to deter scammers, who notoriously go after the low-hanging fruit.
Mashable Trend Report
Once you’ve completed the ConfirmID sequence, you’ll be rewarded with a verification badge on your profile, and we strongly recommend that you limit your one-on-one interactions on the site to other verified users.
Perfect profile photos
Alright, admittedly this one requires some personal judgment, as everyone should strive to upload good, high-quality photos of themselves to dating websites. But if every photo looks like it belongs in a magazine, or if the person in the photo looks a little too good to be true, you should exercise caution.
In the age of generative AI and filters, it’s trivially easy to create a fake photo or series of photos, so you should also be on the lookout for what isn’t in the photos. Are there recognizable local landmarks (clubs, restaurants, well-known parks, or street corners) in the photos, or are they all equally generic?
Over-eager chatters
Ever since chat bots became a thing, dating sites have become plagued with them, and as AI improves more and more, it’s not always easy to know, right away, if the “person” you’re talking to is really human. One dead giveaway, though, is how much they chat and how quickly they reply.
Real people go off on tangents, employ non sequiturs, and sometimes stumble with awkward questions or comments. Chat bots, on the other hand, are typically always chipper and extremely fast-talking, so much so that a paragraph-long answer can come back to you in seconds.
They also almost always have an agenda, too, whether that’s directing you to click on a link (“Follow my Instagram profile”) or getting you to divulge some potentially compromising bit of personal information about yourself.
