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What If My Kids Don’t Co-operate During the Photoshoot?

I hear this question a LOT when parents book a family photoshoot! As a photographer, I’m rarely bothered by kid’s behaviour, but as a parent during a photoshoot, it’s super STRESSFUL! So I get it. You’ve done all the work, picked everyone’s outfits, booked the photographer, dragged the whole family to the studio. You want the experience to be fun and the photos to turn out amazing.


First of all, I don’t expect your young kids to behave. They won’t. And that is 100% totally okay with me. For older kids, my aim is to make it a fun session for them.


Here are a few pieces of advice to help set the session up for success.

 

·         COMFORTABLE WEAR: Make sure kids are comfortable in what they are wearing. If your child hates what they are wearing, it will definitely show in the photos. That may mean scrapping that cute hair clip or that sweet bow tie that just makes the outfit perfect. Trust me, happy kids make better photos than accessories. Have all the outfits ready before the day of the photo shoot so you are not adding more stress on the day. For Toddlers, if you want them to wear a hat or something they are not familiar with, buy those items a few weeks beforehand and practice wearing them (making it fun). This will help during the photoshoot as they will already be familiar with the new items.

·         ACTIVITIES: I ask parents to think about “activities” we can do in case a small child needs a distraction. Things that I think work well in a studio is singing a favourite song and dancing. Parents playing silly tricks on the photographer behind her back also work very well 😉. Bring music on your phone that we can Bluetooth to the studio speakers.

·         DISCUSS BEFOREHAND: If they are old enough, talk to your kids before the photoshoot, give them a heads up about what the session is about and the expectations on how you would like them to behave during the shoot. You can get them to practice some of their favourite poses in front of their mirror beforehand. Make it a family game for everyone to show off their serious pose, fun pose, Instagram pose, magazine cover pose, movie/music star pose etc… then we can all have some good laughs in the studio and let it be a fun experience for everyone 😊

·         FED AND RESTED: Make sure everyone is fed and rested before the photoshoot, it’s hard to calm down hangry kids! Bring some water and a few extra snacks for long sessions, but make sure they are small, not sticky and not messy. Chips covered in seasoning like Knick-Knacks are not a good idea as young kids are lightning fast at wiping their orange sticky fingers on their new outfits.  

·         BRING A FAVOURITE COMFORT TOY: Bring your child’s favourite toy to help calming them down. Also bring wet-wipes for sticky hands and tissues for runny noses. In the event that your child is feeling under the weather, please reschedule. Sick children will not feel up to a photoshoot and be miserable.

·         ELECTRONICS: This is a big one: I ask parents to turn off TVs and electronics at least 15 minutes prior to arriving at my studio…trying to pry a tablet or a phone from a kid is never fun and will almost always end in tears.

·         SMILE!: Let your child smile naturally! Parents’ resist the urge to say things like “don’t smile like that, give me a real smile”. The best way to get a real smile is to actually make your child laugh or smile. So instead of telling them how they should look, focus on being silly and eliciting genuine emotion from them.

·         BRIBES AND REWARDS! Bribes are an excellent way to have children behave nicely during a photoshoot. Pizza, toys, ice cream, anything that your child will find exciting and can be used as a reward after the shoot is a great way to get them to comply with all the things we ask them to do during the session.

·         CHECK YOUR MOOD: Finally, stay positive and have fun. Your kids will pick up on your mood so try to take some deep breaths, relax and enjoy the experience. Nothing needs to be perfect. I’m capturing your family just as you are at this point in time.

 

That is it! Those are the most common tips that I give parents pre-session. And you know what? They work!

Does this mean that all sessions are smooth and without chaos? Absolutely not. But it DOES mean that we all just laughed our way through it and enjoyed the process.

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