HOW TO SHOOT KIDS?

SHOOTING KIDS IS EASIER THAN YOU THINK, REGARDLESS IF YOU ARE A PARENT OR A PHOTOGRAPHER

The question I've often been asked is: how do you shoot kids?

The truth is, it's almost impossible to get a child's attention for a longer period of time. Little kids up to the age of 3, often do what they want. They are not bothered about posing or smiling when you ask them. They love playing and finding out about new things around them. So basically, to shoot kids, you should make sure they have something to play with. Alternatively, should just step aside and watch them explore the world.

Together with five other moms, we decided to go for a walk. It doesn't happen very often, so I decided to take my camera to take some pictures. A playground is a great place to organize it a group shooting, as the kids are pretty much in the same place. There are loads of things going on around them, so their minds are constantly occupied. We did bring some toys and snacks with us just in case they would get bored.

To take pictures like the ones below, you basically need to follow the kid and observe what they do. If you want to get their attention, it's worth calling them by their name so they may look directly at the camera. As you can see, I managed to achieve that quite often. Sometimes they want to show you something or see what is that big thing you're holding in your hands is. You don't have to be afraid that they will start crying when they see you. They are usually very friendly and curious. They may be a bit tense at the beginning as they may not know who you are but usually, they treat you like a friend very quickly especially if you offer them your genuine interest.

Things get more complicated when you want to take a group photo of such small kids. The children you see in the photos are between 18 and 24 months old.

The best practice is to find a place like a bench that is a bit high so it will take them a longer moment to get off it. As they sit next to each other it's easier to get their attention. If they walk they will run in different directions. When you got them on that bench all at the same time. To do it all the parents, at the same time grab a kid and put it on a bench. Then, everyone stands just behind the photographer and starts calling the kids so they will look at the camera. they can make funny poses, faces, clap their hands, do what ever :) This is a matter of a moment, 30 seconds, or one minute. What I personally do is change my camera settings to shoot one photo after another by holding a button so I am sure I will have enough copies to choose from.

The shoot like this took me around 30 minutes, maybe more, as I had to watch my own kid at the same time :D

Everything is down to good organization. Kids hate to wait for something to happen. They want things straight away. You need to be prepared and act quickly. Shooting like this with little ones can be stress-free only if you let the professional do the job or if you are a professional who will organize it well.

WHAT TO AVOID WHEN DOING A SHOOT LIKE THAT?

Under any circumstances don't force children to pose if they don't want to. This is where the drama happens and you just simply don't want to take photos of crying and angry kids.

Have a look at the below gallery so you can get an idea of what I managed to create:)

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