Children are wonderful! Parents want photographs of their little ones that genuinely show personalities and memories. I love photographing children in a natural way and capturing genuine smiles and moments parents will cherish forever. Whether you are photographing your own children or your client’s children, you can implement these tips and get genuine, natural photographs.
1. Don’t “Say Cheese”
I have noticed that every time a child is told to “say cheese” their smile and/or posture becomes very unnatural. You want genuine smiles, and the happiness, laughter, and playfulness of your child to come through in the photo.
2. Play
Plan activities that your child enjoys and have your camera ready to go. Be patient and just play. Blow bubbles together, dance, play a game, go to the park, etc. During these activities interact with the child. Ask questions. Be silly! Ask the child, “Is there something on my head?” On numerous occasions I’ve actually put something on my head and acted silly which almost always gets the child laughing, and as a bonus, looking at me.
When photographing babies, you can get natural moments also. Play and talk with them. It might take some time to get a photo of the child looking at you smiling. You might even find that your favorite image isn’t even that one at all.
3. Use continuous shooting
A perk of digital cameras is that you can take photo after photo and later delete the ones you don’t want. I always shoot in continuous mode. This allows me to take numerous photos as the child is playing and moving around at a fast pace. Doing this will enable you to get photos that really show your child’s personality.
4. Get on their level
Whenever I am taking photographs of children I spend most of the time at their level, kneeling or sitting on the ground. Doing this allows for natural looking angles and helps the child feel more at ease. I often use live view instead of the viewfinder so that the child doesn’t even realize I am taking their photo. It just looks like I am holding the camera.
5. It’s okay if they aren’t looking at you
Even though you may think your number one photo will be the one when the child is looking right at the camera smiling, you might be surprised to discover that in your favorite photos the child isn’t looking at the camera at all! These photos can be very special and really show who your child is. Be sure to take some detail photos also. These can be faceless photos sometimes but they show little details that many parents will want to remember. For example, how adorable are little feet and hands! I love photographing these features!
6. Let them be themselves
Most importantly, let the child be themselves. If you are a parent, don’t be afraid to carry your camera with you and take it out and use it! When photographing client’s children or your own children, take your time, play, interact and photograph, photograph, photograph! Let the child run and play and just have fun, totally being themselves. Make the fact that you are photographing them be just a small part of it.
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Kaela is a natural light, lifestyle photographer living in Ohio. She specializes in newborn, child and family photography. Along with those genres she also enjoys macro and still life photography. Using a Sony camera, Sony lens and Lensbaby lenses she enjoys capturing authentic moments and personalities.
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