Seattle family photographer…a hot tip for genuine smiles
Do you really want to know? It might not be what you expect. A word I have yet to say during family photos is "smile." The difference between telling kids to smile and making them smile is noticeable in the eyes. A mouth smile can be forced, but not an eye smile. Eye smiles are my specialty! As a communications major in college, one of our classes included movie directing. We learned that the true art of directing a subject involves getting a certain look or moment out of someone without explicitly asking for it. With young kids and photography, this means that instead of asking them to smile, I use silly word games, create conversations based on their current interests, make ridiculous sounds and faces, etc. If kids seem to have a forced smile while parents are nearby, I’ll sometimes give the parents a break from the action. During this parent-free time, I often get authentic expressions out of the kids, pulling from my former nanny bag of tricks. As most parents know, kids sometimes behave differently when parents are watching, especially if they’re standing behind the camera, telling them to smile or move their hand, to not do this or that, etc. A few times during in-home family sessions, I’ve even photographed almost an entire kids photo session while the parents enjoyed their morning coffee in another part of the house. They were thrilled with an hour of uninterrupted solo time. Kids are my specialty, and I’d love to photograph your family and the uniqueness of this time in your lives. What questions do you have about getting the most out of family photos?
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