How to take better pictures of your kids | Covid 19 Quarantine and beyond | Seattle Family Photographer | Brooke Holliday Photography
With all that we are experiencing globally, many of us are all at home with our families.
We are spending lots of time with each other these days. Here at my home I am capturing some of the daily goings on and little trips out into nature, thanks to the nice weather.
If you are like me you love to photograph your kids or you may want to do it more. If you are looking to photograph your kids more, and better, then this is the blog post for you. I am going to go over some simple things to look for and do when you are taking pictures of your own kids.
Technical stuff
No matter what camera you have you can take great pictures that will have meaning and be treasured. From a DSLR to an iPhone. Keep your camera on auto mode. This will take all the guessing out for you. With your phone this should be just how you are taking photos now, however turn your flash off. Rule of thumb with a pop up flash or camera flash is that it doesn’t photograph well.
Turn off your lights in the house
When inside the number one thing I would say is to turn your lights in the house off to photograph your kids. Make sure to open all your windows to let in as much nice natural light as possible. What this will do is not mix the light in your photos.
Below are examples that I shot with my camera phone.
This is an example of mixed light. You can see that the colors are funky and off on the skin and hair.
Now look at this one with just the window light. In this one the color is all unified. Much better!
Pay attention to the sun
There is one big factor to think about when taking photos outside, the sun! Typically we don’t want to take photos when the sun is high in the sky over head. This is because it will cast dark and hard shadows under the eyes.
See this example below.
When you are out in the sun, positioning the sun is important. If the sun is straight on to your kids faces they may have to squint to see. This is not what you want. Keep the sun at a 45 degree angle or behind your kids this will allow them to have their eyes open and you will be able to see their faces.
See an example below.
Note: Wait until the sun is a little lower in the sky. Ideally a few hours before sun set. Also when you have an overcast day you should be set to go in any situation!
Now that we have discussed how to shoot inside and outside here are some tips for a better overall picture.
Capture everyday life
When you look back at your memories do you want to remember the feeling of summer breeze and the delight of playing in the sprinkler or a forced cheesy smile from ear to ear? I bet you would pick the first. This is why capturing activities over your kids just standing uniform with a giant grin is so much better. When your kids are coloring or working on an art project photograph them. When you are out on a walk or playing in the back yard photograph them.
Get different angles!
From Above
From Below
Straight On
From Behind
The Details
Artistic Child Head Shots
Lastly, stop asking your kids to say cheese. When you can capture the soul of your child, just as they are, that picture will wow you. Our kids are complex little people with such wonderful expression and limitless imagination. When we stop forcing them to do things, their beauty will really come out.
Tips to get your child to look at you with out a forced smile is to ask them if they can see themselves in your lens or ask them if they see a rainbow in there or simply say don’t smile.
You can even capture their eyelashes by holding your hand out and down in front of them and ask them to look down at your hand. That is always a beautiful shot! Kids have the most gorgeous eye lashes.
The setup for this photo was having my daughter stand right next to our window I told her to just look at me. I did do a little bribing with a piece of chocolate. Don’t over over bribes though. That could get dangerous for you.
