Have you ever wanted to tear your hear out in frustration because your kids will not sit still or pose properly for pictures? While I do know that a lot of children like the flash of the camera, I have also had my fair share of frustrating moments when the pictures just don’t come out right. I am pretty sure you know what I mean…you think you’ve got the perfect shot and then the toddler suddenly looks away, distracted by some shiny thing.
Of course, we can’t always have a “set up” shot all the time – after all, sometimes, the best photos are those that are candidly taken. Then again, sometimes, you just want really good photos wherein the kids’ faces are recognizable and not some indistinguishable blur. Over the years, I have learned – through trial and error – some tricks that help me get decent, sometimes perfect, pictures. With only a few days left before Christmas, you might find these tips very useful – I know I will!
1. Get as close as you can. One of my mistakes before was to try and use a “wide angle approach.” The rationale behind this is to get as much of the scenery into the picture. After all, we all work hard to get the decorations in place – they should be in the picture! Then again, what do you really want? At the end of the day, it’s the expression on your child’s face that you want to capture. Once I had realized this, I learned to get as close as I can and take the shot with the kids’ face as the primary subject. You’ll be surprised at just how beautiful close up pictures can be!
2. Get down on your knees. It’s actually a direct corollary of the first tip. In trying to get as close as you can, you would almost always have to drop to your knees to be at the same level as your child. More than the actual shot itself, getting down on your knees seems to have this effect on children – they will focus more on you and you’ll end up with the children looking directly at the camera.
3. Be trigger happy! Digital cameras are a blessing – I don’t know what I would do without mine. Just keep your finger on the trigger and always be ready to take a shot when the opportunity arises. When children are having fun, running around, and interacting with each other, you will certainly get a lot of chances to take photos that will capture the memories of the day.
4. Smile yourself. If you are too uptight about getting nice pictures to preserve memories, then you’ll probably end up with unsatisfying shots. Don’t sweat it – let the kids enjoy themselves and let yourself loosen up as well. Before you know it, you will be snapping picture perfect moments left and right!
Oh, and before I forget, make sure your batteries are fully charged and you have enough memory space all the time!
Photo via nehavish
Originally posted on December 19, 2009 @ 10:15 am
