Tips & Tricks for Capturing Great Smiles

Photographing Children:

Tips & Tricks to Capturing Real Smiles

Photographing children can sometimes be a real challenge.

Hold off on bringing the camera out. Instead take some time to meet and greet and get to know the parents and the child or children. If there is one thing I have learned through my years of being a photographer and working with children, it is that children need more than 15 minutes to trust a stranger. Children need to feel comfortable before you start photographing them and having the camera in their face won’t do the trick. This is especially true for kids who are shy and have a difficult time warming up to you and the camera. Try kneeling down to their level so that they can get to know you and you can build that comforting trust with the child.

Don’t say cheese. It’s always best to avoid the word cheese or asking kids to smile. The smiles that come from these methods are usually the forced, fake, cheesy kind that does not let the children’s true personality come through. It’s all about being silly with them. Make the photography session exciting for the children by playing peek – a –boo, bang on the floor, jump around, make funny noises (flatulence sounds always make older children laugh), and act like a goof! I find that bringing this kind of energy to a child session really makes the experience of the session fun and entertaining, and again makes children feel more comfortable in front of the camera lens. The most important key is to have fun and relax. Try to avoid frustration, as that will rub off on the children and your clients and if they don’t want their picture taken, don’t push it. Learn how to “read” children and find what makes the children smile and take advantage of it. You can always ask mom and dad what makes their children laugh. Sometimes children have songs that make them laugh. Being armed with a favorite child toy, stuffed animal or squeaky rubber duck usually does the trick for capturing some great smiles. If all else fails throw the session to the wind for a few minutes and just be silly and goofy with the children. Pull out some coloring books and give the children a mental break for a few minutes. If you are photographing a family session, I bet it may be a long time since mom and dad have had their own nice picture together. Take a moment to capture just an image of mom and dad together.

It is stressful for children to be forced to stay in one place and have their picture taken. It can also be stressful for mom and dad who are wishing for beautiful portraits of their adoring children. Often throughout my photography sessions I say to mom and dad, let’s just take a few minutes and let your baby girl or baby boy just be them. They don’t know what I’m up to, but this is when I snap the camera and capture my favorite images from their session. Capturing candid moments of their children are always my most loved images by mom and dad. I bet mom and dad have tried hard to capture that special way their child clasps their hands together at one year of age or that silly certain expression the child makes on their face. If you can capture that moment on camera, mom and dad will love you!

Always be ready. As a photographer, it’s important to be ready for any moment. Sometimes the moments or expressions of a child can happen so fast.

Please visit the Toronto Newborn Photographer | Baby and Maternity Photography portfolio for more newborn, baby and maternity pictures.