When I look back at our family photos, the best ones are of the candid moments, camera unaware, doing the things we loved to do. And most of the time, it’s in summer. On the water. Hiking outdoors. Airport games while waiting for a plane. Playing on a cabin porch. Queued up at the local ice cream stand. Those photos are priceless reminders - memory placeholders - of the times we shared together and the special ways we connected.

Vacations in general, and summertime in particular, are times when we get to be ourselves. I love seeing vintage photos of vacation travelers at play or just enjoying a thoughtful moment outside the daily routine. It’s about who we are, and not how we look. Someday our photos will be vintage too, and I hope our family will remark on what we did and talked about when there was no point except to enjoy the moment.

Which is why the “too busy for photos” thing in the summer drives me nuts.

People don’t get it. When you’re in the middle of it, those summers seem endless. But even if we’re lucky, we only get about 18 of them with our kids.

Now, for most families, summer offers special photo opportunities that are rare or simply unavailable the rest of the year. It’s the time we look forward to. Work is on hold. Easy to be outdoors. It’s often the family high point of the year, which ought to make summer a slam-dunk winner for the best photo memories.

But somehow those photo ops become more elusive, not less. Family vacation pictures can get reduced to infrequent selfies or random photos at events and outings. Unless you have a photographer in your family, the really good stuff that you would cherish in times to come gets missed.

So with summer on our doorstep, here are some guidelines for creating a richer summer photo collection.

• Think in terms of stories. A day at the beach. Play dates. The summer cabin. Travel to Grandma’s. Each one has a story arc with a beginning, middle, and end. Just a few pictures and maybe a video can flesh it out into a nice narrative. A short story. A week on vacation might be a book. Conceptually. If you made an Apple Photos Memory Movie of that experience, what would it include. That’s what you’re going for.

• Take pictures for your grown children. Even if you remember each day in 4k detail, they won’t. There’ll come a time when the photos you take today will be the only clear reminder they have of these times.

• Nominate an assistant photographer. There’s usually just one photographer in a family who’s never in the pictures. Don’t be that person. Doesn’t matter if you’re out of shape or need a haircut. Everyone has a role in the story so you need a backup photographer to take the photos you can’t. Designate an assistant photographer each day and you’ll be amazed at the images you get. Have a family gallery show at summer’s end.

• Capture some shots of the summer activities. Camp. Sailing. Hikes. The ice cream shop. Tide pools. Include familiar signs and landmarks.

• Backyard antics and swimming pools are great for video slo-motion (built into your iPhone Camera) or burst photos. They add spice to the collection.

• Slow days. Hanging out. Sunday breakfast. Playing games. These are the things get overlooked but will define the summer in their grown up minds.

Finally, treat yourself to a professional.

• Find a great photographer. Not the one who has a playbook of the 50 best family poses. Or has an MFA diploma from ArtCenter or RISD hung on their office wall, even if they earned one. Find one who you’d have dinner with. Who plays with your kids. Someone you connect with. It will show in the photos. Do a whole day in your life, an afternoon, or a favorite activity that shows your family’s summer side. You will love having pictures that capture the soul of your whole family.

And here’s the thing. Committing to a photo project should not intrude on your own enjoyment of these special times. You’ll find joy in just watching for those moments and situations, where a shot or two can carry a whole experience. The beauty of summer is that we fall into habits that are personal and predictable. All that works in your favor.

Good photography is a mind set. If you go into the summer with a purpose - creating a narrative for your family (and you) twenty years from now - you’ll add some wonderful photos to your collection and feel great about the process too.

You only get this summer once.

Find Your Photos Fast: Master the New Apple Photos on iPhone.

Coming in June.