Capturing Everyday Magic

I have always loved taking pictures.  I got serious about photography when the gorgeous girl pictured above made me a mommy.  Even though I am a professional photographer, my kids still do not like having their picture taken any more than yours do!  People say to me all the time, “Your kids are more cooperative then mine about pictures.”  I honestly do not think that is true.  If anything, they get sick of me always busting out the camera.  So how do you get nice pictures of your kids with natural smiles?  I have written about this topic before from the perspective of getting an uncooperative toddler to smile.  Please click on this link to be directed to this topic.  This blog post here is more about getting older kids to smile.

1. Wait for the right mood!  We all know kids, just like adults, can be moody.  Telling a kid to put down their Nintendo Switch to take a nice photo is never going to get the results you want.  I like to catch them when we are sitting around the living room talking and laughing.
2. Ask permission with a purpose.  I rarely take photos of my kids without asking them first.  When I ask, I always give a reason. “Can you help me take pictures for a blog post for my job?”  “I do not have a single picture of the two of us together this year.  We need to capture these moments.  Can we take a picture.”  “Can we take some nice photos at the park for Mother’s Day.  It would mean so much to me?”  Now you have given them some say, but framed it in a way to get the yes.
3. If you keep getting told NO, get to the underlying cause.  Tweens and teens can be very self-conscious about their appearance.  I can not tell you the number of times a kid has refused to smile for me because of braces before we chat about it.  If they are self-conscious, talk about it.  Sometimes getting it out there diminishes the feelings.  Reassure them that you will not share a photo on social media without their approval.  Also, talk about what you see when you look at them.  Most kids will smile when their mom is gushing over their baby.
4. Try deploying an interest or novelty to get them to take pictures.  Capture a few great shots before they start playing baseball.  Grab the family cat and say you want a picture of them together.  In the first smiling photo above of my daughter, she is looking down at our cat.  I also put a white sheet over both our heads making a kind of tent to take these photos.  She thought it was fun.  This novelty helped elicit her real smile, not the “no more pictures Mom” face.  

I hope these ideas inspire you to capture some every day magic with your kids.  As we all know, time is just going by too fast!  I am also happy to help you capture these moments.  Please reach out to setup your appointment today at [email protected].