I get asked quite frequently for tips on how to take good photos of kids, so I thought I’d share my top ten tips to help you out.
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Choose your setting wisely
If you’re going for some decent wall worthy images then have a think about what sort of background you want behind the people you love. Yes you can use a white sheet or a plain wall if you’re indoors but unless your wall is really clean (with kids in the vicinity it’s unlikely!) or your sheet is really straight then you won’t be happy with the results. Why not take make the most of the beautiful backdrops the great outdoors has to offer? Go play football in the park, go to the Castle with your little Princesses or Knights or take a trip to the bluebell woods on a Gruffalo hunt…
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Make your camera child friendly
I have had one child (I’m so sorry Baby J) utterly terrified of my camera. Actually since that fateful day in the studio I’ve done another session with him and he was fine; see above! I think it was the lights rather than the camera, or worse – me, that did the terrifying. From a child’s perspective a big ol’ camera and bright, flashing studio lights can be quite intimidating, which is why I disguise my camera with Elmo and have magic fairies in my lights. The little ones find it all rather exciting looking for the fairies in the flashes, and directly at Elmo when I’m clicking the shutter…
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Relax & let them take the lead
No matter how big or small they are I do not boss my clients into position – particularly not my littler clients. As any parent knows once a child’s mind is made up that they’re not cooperating then there’s very little chance of talking them round. Relax and go with the flow.
My kids are especially bad at letting me take their photo so I have two options; I catch them when they don’t realise I’m about to click the shutter, or I let them decide when they’re ready. I don’t make photo taking a big ‘to do’, and if one of my clients isn’t ready for me to take their photo then I’ll happily play peek-a-boo with them until they are…
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Make it fun
Consider incorporating props – a tube of bubble mixture will entertain your little one for hours and you’re more likely to get a genuinely happy, natural smile plus bubbles look fab in photos.
What about taking them out in fancy dress? If my boy wants to dress as a Jedi and shoot me with his nerf gun in the woods smiling and laughing through the session then so be it. It gets me good photos:
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Embrace the grumpy face
A trick I use to entice the less willing to be photographed into warming to me is to tell them to pull the “Mum told you no more biscuits face…” because telling a seven year old to do that tends to make them giggle instead. I don’t always ask for “bestest smiles!” either.
Kids don’t always smile and some of the grumpy faces I’ve seen from my own little darlings really need to be remembered.
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No cheese please
“Say cheeeeeeese!” doesn’t work for me, and it doesn’t really work for my clients. Take a look at what people do when you mention the smelly stuff – they don’t smile, they grimace. When people know the shot is coming they brace themselves as if they are literally about to be…well, shot. I find that what really lights up a child’s face is talk of their favourite TV character or even better their favourite type of cake.
I’m all about the natural look so I don’t normally tell people when I’m taking their photos; especially not the kids. The best smiles I’ve gotten recently are talking about chocolate cake – who wouldn’t smile thinking about cake?! Then there was the time when I let my own little monkey run freely, fully dressed, around the Water Maze at Hever Castle…
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Change your perspective
Take a look at the photos you have of your kids. Are lots of them taken where you’re standing up and they’re running off into the distance, or they’re sitting away from you? Try taking a photo from a different angle. One of my favourite ways is straight over the children, so they look directly up at the Elmo and the light illuminates their angelic little faces perfectly…
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Don’t miss the mess
Kids aren’t all about smiles are they? They get messy, they cause mischief, they draw on your walls, they cover themselves in sudocream, nail polish and birthday cake and they think it’s funny. Don’t miss those moments. Yes, they freak you out at the time but afterwards you will look back and laugh when you see photographic proof of when, on his 1st Birthday, your youngest thought that it was hilarious when he stuck cake up his nose:
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Crop it
Rather than always looking to feature a whole face, look at what else your child’s up to. The expressions in their eyes, the curls of their smiles, splashing in puddles with their wellies. Little hands and feet don’t last, so don’t forget to document the details as well.
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Get in the picture!
Don’t forget – and this is a really important tip that even I should take more notice of – sometimes it’s nice to have a complete family photo, which means including yourself in the shot. Utilise the self timer; nearly every camera has one. If you have a tripod, great but if not then make use of what’s available to you; a tree stump, a sturdy wall, a bench.
Even better why not get in touch and invite me along to share my tips whilst documenting your whole family – including you!
