Some of the most treasured things a parent can own are photos of their children. But getting a great image of them can be like trying to capture sand with a sieve! My own kids either go totally overboard with the ‘modelling’ so I don't get the true smile, or they slump and sigh, 'Oh no, here she is again with that camera!"
To make it easier for you I have put together a few tips for capturing those priceless memories of your kids.
Tip #1: RELAX Taking photos of your children should be FUN. If you allow yourself to get frustrated while trying to take great pictures, your child will sense that frustration and it will be difficult to get them to relax and smile. Remember to have fun when you are taking pictures — you will have these moments for a lifetime!
Tip #2: MAKE YOUR CHILDREN LAUGHWe have all said it at some point, but urging your child to smile or say "Cheese!" seldom gets you what you're looking for. Usually all you will end up with is an image that tells you nothing at all about your child’s character or personality.
Once a child has learned to say "Cheese," however, it's a hard habit to break and they will often automatically respond on cue as soon as they see a camera!
One way to capture the real child is to just start snapping away. Don’t make a fuss about the fact that you're taking your child's photo. Don't ask them to freeze, or look at you, or smile. Just let them be themselves! There will be times when you will want to pose your child in a particular way, but many of my favourite images are when I capture children doing their favourite activities. Try to fade into the background so they forget you’re there.
Sometimes, my favourite images are very natural ones where the child is not smiling. When you can look right into their eyes and see so much of who they are and what they are thinking. The shots I love of my children are the ones where their eyes are sparkling, and they're giving me a genuine, warm look. It doesn't have to be a smile, just a familiar look — the one I see in them everyday.
If you absolutely, positively MUST get a smile, then make faces, sing funny songs, make weird noises, do whatever it takes to get your kids to look at you and laugh. THEN click the button and capture their REAL smile!
Tip #3: KNOW YOUR CAMERAGet to know your camera so you can use all of its functions. Knowing how and when to override the automatic flash and how to adjust the ISO (film speed) to allow you to avoid flash will make a huge difference in your photographs. Read the manual!
Tip #4: THINK ABOUT THE LIGHTPerhaps the number one thing you can do to improve your family photos is to steer your child toward natural light sources — place them next to a sunny window or go outside. Get in the habit of opening the curtains when you're taking pictures during the daytime so that the entire room is filled with light.
Look for the way light is reflected in your child's eyes. It's this light in the eyes – catch lights – that makes people seem really alive. Sometimes it's just a matter of slightly repositioning yourself or the child to capture that light.
Though you can create catch lights with a flash it can be very harsh, it can startle and distract a child and it can result in that all too common red-eye! I suggest always turning the flash OFF!
If you're taking pictures outside be aware of glare and harsh shadows. The light in the middle of the day, when the sun is directly overhead, can create dark shadows under the eyes. What you want to see when you're looking at your child is their eyes and you can’t do this if they are surrounded by shadow. If you have to take pictures during the middle of the day, try to get your child into some shade.
The best light is in the morning hours, a couple of hours after sunrise, or in the evening, in those few hours before sunset. The sun at these times is lower in the sky which results in a softer, warmer glow and longer softer shadows.
Be aware of artificial lighting, like bright lamps, in the background of the shot. Our eyes are naturally drawn towards light, so if you have something bright in the background, your eye is going to go to whatever is brightest in the photo. You won’t even notice the child. Simplify the background and you'll take dramatically better photos of people.
Tip #5: CHECK THE BACKGROUNDPay attention to what's right behind your children when you're photographing them. You want the viewer of the picture to focus on your child and not the background so make sure that the background of the photo is not too distracting or overpowering.
Also, you don’t want it to look like a telephone pole or a tree is sprouting out of your child’s head! Checking for these things before you start taking the photo will produce a much better result.
This, however, doesn't mean you have to always eliminate everything from the background. It's a matter of personal taste — some people don't ever want to see messy bench tops, toys on the floor or unmade beds in their photos — but sometimes, such elements can add a sense of context to the photo of your child.
Tip #6: CHANGE YOUR PERSPECTIVEFor great eye contact and a natural sense of engagement, you really need to put yourself at your child's eye level. Whether that means holding the camera just an inch or two above the floor to photograph your baby hard at work during "tummy time" or sitting cross-legged on the footpath to capture your preschooler's expression as she rides past on her bike, getting low is the way to go. We are (usually) a lot taller than our children, taking a photo looking down at them distorts their body shape and will often end up with them looking up and giving a full ‘cheesy’ grin just for the camera!
Having said that, those of us with older children, who are now taller than we are (yes they do get that tall, ask my 14 year old!) it may be necessary for you to stand on a stool or chair to get to their eye level. Try not to take your photograph looking up at them. Nobody looks great when photographed from below!
Close-ups are another great angle for photographing kids. A baby's teeny-tiny fingernails or the little dimples on his or her knees are. These are the details you'll want to remember long after your little cherub has grown up. Snap pictures of your child's hands holding a sippy cup or a special toy. Capture a close-up of her face when she's licking a lollipop or zoom right in on her eyes with those long dark eyelashes.
Tip #7: RECORD THE CANDID EVERYDAY MOMENTS
Capture your kids brushing their teeth, eating their breakfast, zoning out on the couch, reading a book, hanging upside down off the swing set, jumping up and down on the bed, in the bath splashing water at each other, or beating the stuffing out of a pillow (preferable to their siblings!). Kids don't have to be posed and looking at the camera to get a great shot. These everyday moments are great memories to have later to remind you of them being kids.
There are so many moments that occur in a child’s day that it would be impossible to capture them all, but some wise advice is to always have your camera ready — you don't want to have that once-in-a-lifetime moment pass you by and not be ready for it!
Tip #8: RECORD THE MILESTONES
While capturing the everyday leads to great shots, don't let the special days slip by.
Babies and children change so fast — from what your child looks like to what she's able to accomplish, like smiling, sitting up, pulling up, and so on. You want to be sure to capture those special ‘first’ moments… the first tooth, the first solid foods, the first steps.
It’s a good idea to take a portrait (or have them professionally taken) of your baby at the newborn stage, then again at the sitting-up stage, and again at the one-year mark. After that, a professional portrait once a year is a great way to keep a record of how your child is growing up and changing… and you will be surprised just how much they DO change over a year! I recommend having a professional portrait taken each year during the month of the child’s birthday. I have a very special BIRTHDAY CLUB set up for this very reason.
While the yearly professional portraits are great, make sure you are documenting your child’s special milestones in between as well. The first loose tooth – and when it finally pops out! – The first day at school, or learning to ride a bike, or going off on their first school excursion, are irreplaceable memories and worth documenting in photographs.
Tip #9: USE SOME PROPS
People in general, but particularly children, tend to be more at ease when they're holding something in their hands. Let your child play with some toys, teddy bears, books—or a candy cane at Christmas, or chocolate Easter bunny for Easter (wrapped, of course, with the promise of eating it later!). Your child will become engaged with what they are holding, less focused on what you are doing with that big scary camera, and you will be more likely to get a natural and relaxed photo.
Tip #10: TAKE MORE PHOTOS
With digital cameras, there's no reason to limit the number of photos you take. The more pictures you take the more chances you have to get that one great image. Just resist ordering copies of every single one! But then, how many photos do we actually get printed these days anyway? Now, that is a whole blog post on its own…
If you want a couple of fabulous pictures of your child, you should plan on taking at least 75 photos. Make taking photos spontaneous and relaxed. Just keep clicking! Allow yourself to take A LOT of photos, because then you will have more chance to find the great one amongst them when you sit down to sort through them.
Likewise, be patient when you have a particular photo in mind. You might want to take a photo to use on your Christmas cards to send to relatives. Your specific pose for what you would like to achieve might, for example, involve the child’s hands crossed in their lap, face looking forward, and smiling — but your child is just not going to do that for you today!
You could try ten shots trying to achieve that pose, and then put your camera away and give up.
But if you take your child outside or have someone read a book to her or let her play a game on the floor or blow some bubbles, and then you snap another 100 photos, you're going to have a perfect shot in there somewhere — once your child forgets you're taking photos.
The biggest mistake is giving up too quickly!
I wish you a lot of happy snapping and lots of FUN in capturing the special little people in your life… Cherish the moments and cherish the memories, they are gone far too soon.
But the photos will be around forever to let you revisit them each and every day!
