Reply To: family photography and difficult children

[cassie]

Little kids are simply very difficult to photograph. Period. Especially if you are trying to get nice pictures of them sitting down. My two year old NEVER sits unless she is strapped in her carseat. A picture like the one you have linked would just result in disaster for her. I did some for a couple friends and it was much easier to get pictures of the kids standing/ playing together, etc. I follow my toddler all the time for her pictures all over the place and then click away. Spray and pray isn’t the exact right term for what I do for her pictures- it’s not quite that bad- but I do expect to toss a lot of hers out.

When dealing with little kids, it is pretty safe to assume that not all of them are going to be doing what you want them to do at the same time. I’ve decided there is a reason my mom only has ONE picture of all four of us kids when we were little that we are all actually LOOKING at the camera and smiling. And don’t even ask how my attempts at getting a nice picture of my toddler and 9 month old together is going. I have lots of pictures of them together, and actually some cute ones, just not a single one with them both actually looking at me looking pleasant lol. I could care less about them actually smiling, I just want a picture of them both looking at me without one of them in the process of running away from me.

I did see a thing about putting a pez dispenser on your hot shoe though and randomly dispersing candy out when the kids behave, but I have yet to try that method 🙂

It definitely is an advantage to have your own kids if you want to shoot kids/ families because you get a lot more practice figuring out what they’ll actually cooperate for, and really thinking fast and shooting fast.

 

ETA here is one that I did for my friend of her four kids that I think turned out really well. Her son didn’t cooperate at all for portraits but he thought jumping was cool so it worked. It took like maybe 12 tries before we got this but it got the toddler tuckered out enough that he let me get a everybody standing still picture too: http://www.flickr.com/photos/64132459@N05/9324000346/