Stressed and cranky? Your kids will pick up on it and act accordingly. Firstly, lead by example! Their behavior will reflect that. You may have to make some compromises to keep the peace such as letting your energetic daughter’s hair stay straight instead of curling it because she won’t sit still. Instead of focusing on everything that isn’t “perfect”, focus on the big picture and don’t sweat the small stuff.
Let the kids have a couple “fun pictures” where they get to pick their own pose. You get to keep the more emotion filled photos while they get to keep their silly photos; This way everyone wins! If you are struggling to get your kids to listen to directions, turn the photo session into a game! Your photographer should be able to handle this as well; I have a ton of fun games up my sleeves!
The day of your session, have your kids well rested and ready to go. Session at 6:30 pm but their nap is usually at 4? It’s okay, just this once, to push the nap back a few hours. It will be worth it! Bringing some snacks and activities along is also a great idea. If you happen to be shooting in a remote location, you never know when you might need something like bug spray, tissues or a first aid kit, so bring that a long too.
Save your sanity by trying not to control the photo session too much. Sometimes the best photos come from kids just doing their own thing. This is why I’ve started to implement “free time” at the end of my sessions. Kids get to play, parents get to play, and I capture some amazing images. Work with your photographer and your photos will look fantastic.
Get your children talking to both you and the photographer about topics such as school or their favorite songs, books, toys. This allows them to feel more comfortable around your photographer and the more comfortable they are, the better the photos.
Story time! In regards to tip #5, I once spent many a minutes talking to a 4 year old about Paw Patrol, and that’s how I got him to open up.
March 30, 2022
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[…] To read more about sessions with kids, check out my blog post about 5 tips for photoshoots with kids! […]