Matt and Shae have a close spot in my heart as Matt is the youngest brother to my best friend. Seeing him all grown up with this beautiful wife, Shae and adorable boys, Beau and Riley made this family portrait session that much more special for me.
During our Discovery call, Shae emphasized the importance of shooting at the park near their home where they often go to play. She expressed how her oldest Beau loves to ride his bike and how she wants to capture these precious moments of this time of their lives.
This was music to my ears! Not only were they speaking my language of capturing genuine moments but she provided the solution to my biggest challenge when shooting with kids - How do we keep your kiddos engaged during the course of our shoot? A bike!
By incorporating their favorite item or toy it'll help to keep them engaged and happy longer during your photo session.
We all know we can only ask a kiddo to smile and pose for a photo for so long before they either throw a temper tantrum or simply shake and turn their heads the other direction...husbands included.
By incorporating their current favorite toy, item or even an activity, it helps to keep them engaged and happy longer throughout the photo session instead of making them pose and smile for you the whole time.
With the sun making its way down, I tasked Beau with riding to the top of this sidewalk and make his way down to me. Eager to show off his sweet bike riding skills, I was able to create a variety of images each showcasing Beau doing what he loves while keeping him fully engaged over and over again.
The moment he lost interest in me, he took off down the hill. No problem. Insert the perfect distraction for him and a perfect opportunity for me to start capturing photos of his little brother and parents.
Win-win, right?
One of my first photo jobs I ever had was actually inside the PV Mall shooting family photos. Families would pile in and I was there to take 5-15 photos of them, all on the same wall which featured some fabulous backdrops, as you can only imagine. LOL.
But Jennifer, we thought you got your start in motorsports? Well, I did, technically...but before the motorsports, was the Mall Shots! We all gotta start somewhere, right?
Anyway, as awesomely tacky as this was, I learned the best way to photograph a little one, was on their level. Get low or get on the ground with them. Make them the hero of their image. Too often we see photographers or even parents shooting down on a child only to capture the tops of their heads. There's an easy solution. Get low!
Little ones are a wild card. You never know what you're going to get with them - zero cooperation or endless fussiness. Either way being patient and staying positive is key. Don't forget, it you want to capture genuine moments, you have to create an environment and situation for these moments to come through naturally.
