Shooting Kids......With a Camera

I did the feature image of a little two and a half year old boy for the 2010 Christmas Campaign for the Conestoga Mall http://conestoga.shopping.ca/, in Kitchener, Ontario.

As a commercial photographer working in Victoria, B.C. I can use the one local talent agency to look for models and actors, or look at one of the various agencies in Vancouver, which is not too distant, or even Seattle. But often I find great talent with friends, working associates and sometimes....on the street. That has its challenges, but can also result in some wonderful surprises.

Kids can be both a challenge and lots of fun to work with. It's probably a bit easier for me, as I'm a Dad and have been well trained...by my kids...to get a bit of insight as to what makes little ones tick.

I know many photographers don't like to shoot kids, and some have even told me they have a policy to not shoot them. I'm pretty sure that's because photographers like to have control and need to direct their 'talent' to do as they wish, and when they want it to happen. And kids don't always work that way. Actually, they don't work that way very often.

What happens with adult talent is that the photographer can give them mental pictures to assist them in imagining the mood or attitude or emotion that the photographer is trying to portray for his clients. And adults have the experiences to draw on to create the expressions needed. Children don't usually have enough experience to be able to call up those feelings and expressions on command.

That can cause a photographer's schedule and 'cool' to be thrown out pretty quickly. We're not a uniformly patient group.

With kids you've got to design the shoot around their comfort levels. At a time of day when they are well rested, have been fed and are not looking for their basic demands to be met. I usually give them lots of time to explore the studio and see what all the wierd things are that I work with. Let them 'POP' the flash a few times. Show them how they look on the computer monitor.

Often it's the 'stage parent' that can cause them to not relax and fit in to the rhythm that I'm looking for, and I have to find a diplomatic way to 'invite' the parent to sit out of sight, but within earshot of what's happening.

Kids also reach a saturation point with the repetition of shooting something over & over. When I get there, the shoot is done. I don't try to squeeze a few more frames out of the kid. They don't want to play any more and pushing them only results in the 'crankies' happening.

It can be really rewarding to get a good shot from a little one,and when it works it always draws a reaction. But photographers have to give up control with kids and be sympathetic to their needs.
Both the samples in this posting are from projects designed and created by http://www.suburbiaadvertising.com/  . Suburbia is an agency that specializes in retail branding and advertising, especially for malls and shopping centers and they know very well how to 'speak' to their markets....including parents.