Children have a natural charm which comes across beautifully on camera, but these moments can be few and far between simply because children can be a real challenge to take pictures of, even for the most experienced of photographers.
You may be a pro at photographing nature or a dab hand at getting aerial shots, but children are a different kettle of fish altogether. Luckily, there are some things you can do to make your life easier when photographing children and we’ve detailed them in this guide.
Timing is everything
As is the case for most aspects of photography, timing is key, but photographing children takes that to another level.
Of course, you have to be in the right place at the right time, which often means getting your camera out as often as possible, but you need to ensure that it’s also the right time for your kids.
We spoke to Filming With Kids who said: “You will have noticed that kids just can’t regulate their energy like adults, one minute they’re bouncing off the walls and the next they’re falling asleep. A tired child is usually a grumpy child and it’s because of this that you need to get your timing just right.”
“You know your kids better than anyone else so pay attention to when they’re at their peak levels of energy and try to capture them during these moments.”
Get on their level
Particularly with younger children (but this technique can be used for older children as well), to get the best shots, get down to their level. This gives you a better perspective to get some really great pictures.
One way to do this with children is to get them to lie on their tummies. Then, lie on your tummy so that you have the best angle possible to capture all of their facial expressions. This also works well because seeing you at that angle may even spark a few giggles from your kids which are perfect for those natural smiles which bode well for charming pictures!
If you’re looking to get some shots of your kids posing, read this article for some pointers on some suitable instructions, games, and techniques.
Get a bit silly with them
You’ll quickly come to realise that, when you’re photographing your kids, it’s them as opposed to you who runs the session. Because of this, trying to get them to do anything that they don’t want to do is relatively pointless.
However, most children love playing with toys and enjoy games and are usually at their happiest when they’re doing so, joining in with playtime with your camera at the ready is an ideal way to capture images of joyful children.
To get these shots, you can’t be afraid to lose your inhibitions and embrace your inner child; be goofy, play games like peek-a-boo, get snap happy and you’ll be onto a winner. For inspiration on some games that you can play to get some great reactions from your kids, check out this website which features a whole host of games and activities.