What photographer WANTS kids to misbehave?
You think I’m crazy, right?
But hear me out... I want your children to misbehave during their photo session with me! I want them to feel comfortable enough to show their individual personalities and to have fun... Comfortable enough to show genuine smiles and true emotion. If your children were searching for family photographers in Santa Barbara, California, they would probably choose me because I allow them to BE THEMSELVES! This post is all about letting your kids be kids.
Freedom helps personalities shine!
As a parent, it can be nerve-wracking to worry about how your young children will behave during your family photo session, but children shouldn’t be expected to act like adults. Manage your expectations and have fun with it! And the good news is that I am a lifestyle photographer, so my style allows for play, movement, and less of everyone looking at the camera.
Speaking of movement... Let your children do what they want and move around!
Children need to move their bodies to stay engaged and happy. They can get a bit rowdy, if that is how they are, and I will capture their wild spirit. I am going to give you and your children plenty of direction. Your children don’t need you AND me telling them what to do, so let me run the show, just for an hour or so.
Embrace the chaos (and the farting jokes...)
It’s totally fine with me if your children want to talk about gross things or be a little naughty during their session because that’s what children think is funny. I want to see their genuine smiles and laughter. I’m not going to get a real laugh out of them by saying “show me your pretty smile!” BUT what if I say “who in your family snores?” Most likely everyone will look at one family member and laugh.
Children are cute no matter what face they make, parents not so much.
Children’s faces look cute when they’re energetic, being tickled, and even cute when they’re running away from you. But parents looking annoyed, frustrated, or angry can ruin an otherwise great photograph.
The takeaway is this-
I don’t necessarily want your children to be hyped up on candy and totally out of control. But I want to give them space to be themselves. So that means that when they do get a bit hyper, say something disrespectful or gross, or have ideas other than what we are trying to get them to do, you just let it go for this one hour. And let me be the parent to guide and direct your children.
