HOW TO...
Photograph Children

In this article, you'll learn some very effective practical and easy-to-use secrets that professional  photographers use to create award-winning, heart-melting, smile-provoking pictures of kids!  Whether it's a photo session you're setting-up for your own children or doing some child portrait photography work for a paying client, these tips will help you create the kind of photos with genuine personality that every parent will want to hang on a wall.

How to Take Great Pictures of Kids
By Emma David
Staff Writer/Photographer
© 2011, FreePhotoCourse.com; all rights reserved

One of the most rewarding aspects of portrait photography is that of photographing children. O.K., I'll come clean here; to be totally on the level, the photo shoot itself can actually be anything from mind-numbing to frustrating. It all depends on the age and mood of the child. However, when done right (and with a nice measure of luck) the results can be exhilarating and heart-warming, and that makes it all worthwhile!

One of the best things about a good child portrait is that it can reveal a great depth of emotion and personality, and can do more honestly than is generally seen in most portraits of teens and adults. The child IS honesty and a good portrait can show this in spades.

Before revealing my own secrets for award-winning child portraiture, let me draw a line of distinction between that of photographing your own children and those of other parents. Photographing your own children is an absolute breeze compared to being hired to do portrait work for a stranger's kids.
  When they're your own, it's a walk in the park, because if you're any kind of decent parent, you know your own kids more than anyone else. You know when they're happy, upset, sensitive, agitated and so-on. You can pick and choose the particular mood you're looking for and the day that works best. You also know how to make them laugh, when to say nothing and how to calm them down.

 

But when it's a paid photo gig for a child who is not your own, it's an entirely different situation. You'll find that everything is just about as opposite as you could imagine from your photo experience with your own child. When it's a stranger's kid, you really don't know how to approach them, what makes them tick, how to quickly establish trust or how to turn their mood around when they are nothing but miserable. Your intuition is also not as sharp when it comes to anticipating when to snap the shutter.

But, alas, there are some trade secrets that I've found work like a charm! I've divided them for you  into tips for parent photographers and tips for the photographer of other parents' kids.


Tips for Photographing Your Own Children:

1.  Plan an activity, hobby or event around the photo shoot. That way you have a better chance of getting some authentic expressions and candid moment-in-time frames.

2.  If your child is old enough to trust with a camera, have him or her take photographs of you first; they will enjoy and be much more receptive to taking “their turn” to be the subject. If they are too young to use a camera safely but old enough to understand the idea, why not let them use a toy camera?'

3.  If doing an outdoor shoot, take advantage of early morning or late afternoon light for a warmer tone that really suits the feel of this kind of photography.

4.  Speaking of time of day, consider your child's own internal clock; Plan the photo shoot at a time when your child will likely be at his or her best, mood-wise.

5.  Choose clothing that both look and are comfortable for your child. This will ensure a more casual, relaxed and natural mood.  In the event that you're going for a more formal look, then make sure you get everything ready in advance before your child changes into that pretty dress or dapper suit; most kids don't like dressing-up for photos and even little girls who love donning a "princess dress" during play time, somehow become cranky and obstinate when told to wear the same dress for photos!

6.  Formal Portraits – You have a set amount of time until everything goes down-hill and that will happen far sooner than you plan. Regardless of the age, expect to have your child's attention and good behavior for about five-to-ten minutes if they have to sit still in formal clothing. Anything beyond that is unlikely. Therefore, be absolutely prepared in advance so that you can accomplish what you need to in that very tight time frame!

7.  Don't say "cheese", "one-two-three" or ask your child to smile. Instead, talk about upcoming events that they are looking forward to. Ask them questions about things that make them think.

The close-up in this portrait allows us to take-in the simplicity and expression that's so
pure and authentic. Using simple props and age-appropriate toys can help
put children into a personal zone where they may forget and ignore
the photographer and simply concentrate on 'being a kid'.

Casual is in! This adorable little girl is just being herself, apparently ignoring the photo session that's in progress. Her dog gives context but does not steal the show. Simplicity in location and an unassuming perspective from the chilld's eye level makes it a hit!

 

Tips for Photographing Other People's Children:

1.  Talk in advance with the parent/client first about the style and type of portrait they expect. Make sure you pin-down whether they want candid, formal portraiture, relaxed, “doing something” or a combination.

2.  Have all of your gear ready to go. Build-in some redundancy in terms of duplicate equipment, batteries, photo cards, flashes/lighting, etc.; if you have back-ups, use them.

3.  Decide, along with the parent, on a location that will produce the best results. Your choices are generally: the child's home (indoor/outdoor), another outdoor location (such as a playground, park or landmark), your formal studio or setting-up a portable studio space in the parent's home (ie. portable tripods and core for seamless paper, portable tripod and softbox lighting combo, etc.).  Working at the child's home has the strong benefit of being at a location in which he or she will be more relaxed and natural.  If the child and parent are heavily focused on a sport or activity, you might even suggest a photo shoot at the rink, field, dance studio, ball diamond, etc.

4.  Smile, smile, smile. Establish trust and friendliness by smiling when you first meet them and don't stop smiling throughout the session. Children respond well to this and even if they are ornery at first, your continued smiles and gentle approach will eventually win them over.  Also remember to get down to the child's level.  Don't be afraid to kneel or sit on the ground.

5.  Use props and baby toys only for the very young. Older kids will think it's lame and will peg you as a dolt from the get-go. Infants and toddlers respond well to toys that are brightly colored and that make sounds. They also tend to like stuffed animals. (But be prepared to let them have and keep the stuffy if it makes them happy...take their new stuffy away from them and you've lost the battle, my friend!)

6.  Bring age-appropriate toys and encourage the parent to have some of their child's favorite toys on hand. It doesn't have to be any super-expensive. A bubble wand and bubble liquid kit costs about one dollar, but can be worth one hundred dollars if it works!

7.  Let the child see your camera and gear early into the appointment. Get them comfortable with the equipment so that it doesn't seem so artificial to them. The toy camera idea works well with children in the range of one and a half – to – three years of age. Very young children often like seeing themselves on an LCD digital frame. Have one handy (best if you can use a battery-operated frame of some sort) so that you can show the child their picture.

8.  BE PATIENT and don't expect angelic behavior!  If the infant or toddler goes ballistic (and I've been there many times...), wait it out. Get someone else involved with the child, use distraction techniques and change their position.

9.  Consider the technical aspects. Children move around a lot and tend to move more quickly than you ever will. Plan to use a fast shutter speed to preserve clarity and freeze the motion. Short depth of field is always preferred with portraits and this is especially true of children's portraits; accordingly, make sure you choose a low f/stop number as a priority for shallow focus depth which produces those attractive blurry backgrounds.  As well, remember to increase your ISO as the natural light begins to wane in the late afternoon.

10.  Set your camera to use “burst” or continuous frame shooting. You will thank me for this one! Whether or not the child is in motion, burst shooting provides the ability to take multiple frames in just a few seconds. If the child is moving a lot, having many pictures in succession over a short period of time will improve your chances of getting good composition. It also helps you capture those stellar, candid and unexpected expressions that seem to come and go without warning.

11.  Consider the composition. Get close and then get closer again. Children's eyes are amazing and should take-up a big portion of the frame.  I like to use an 18-200mm zoom lens which provides outstanding versatility.  When my camera is close to the child subject I can zoom out, but have the option of zooming-in very deep to capture wonderfully candid and close-up shots when my subject is off playing in the distance.  The zoom lens also provides great background bokeh blur when taking a tight shot.

These tips will definitely help you to compose the kind of child portraits that win awards and that
parents will want to hang proudly on a wall – whether the parent is you or a paying customer!

Next Photography HOW-TO Article:
How to Get Dramatic Dark Blue Sky in Your Pictures

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