Moms, first of all, you rule. I know you have been prepping and planning for your photo session since before you booked it, and you are so awesome for making it happen! Now, here are my tips and tricks for how to prepare children for a photo session. Check out Jas and her gorgeous family as our example!
Dress everyone comfortably in “feel-good” clothing!
If you have read my latest outfit inspiration post or have clicked through my blog sessions, you may notice there isn’t much in there that says, “black tie” photoshoot. It is really hard to look natural in front of the camera if you feel uncomfortable! Try your little ones outfits on before you come to make sure they feel comfortable and confident in what they are wearing! The same goes for adults, too! Make sure everyone can stand up and sit-down in their photo digs. Fuss-free clothing that makes you feel like a million bucks is the way to go! An entire blog post about outfit tips is here, and my most recent outfit inspiration post is here! I loved how effortless and comfortable Jasmine and her family looked for their session. Their positive attitudes and love for one another ooze out of every photo. They were relaxed the entire session and listened to their daughter’s signals. It was awesome to be a part of!
Speak candidly
I suggest speaking candidly about your photo session with your children. Show your kiddos a photograph of your photographer from an about page. Explain to them what you are going to do a few days ahead of time, and share your excitement about it! If you are excited about it, they just might be, too. Show them family photos from the past and tell them how special it is to have those memories and what you love about the photographs.
Bring something your child loves
I wrote a whole blog post about this, which you can read here. I think it is great to allow children to bring items that comfort them to a photo session. Like I mentioned above, they may not be familiar with the idea of a photographer or a big fancy camera in their face, so the more comfortable they feel the better! Plus, if it’s a toy they truly love and cherish, don’t you want to remember that in your photos later anyways?
Bribery
I want to emphasize that bribery is different than an ultimatum. We are talking positive reinforcement here, people. The trouble with, “if you don’t smile then XYZ consequence is going to happen” is that it will probably kill the mood. Let’s keep things light-hearted and fun. If you want to promise a bag of jelly beans as a reward for listening ears, I fully support you. Just don’t make an empty promise, pull the trigger on the bribery too early, or try to withhold it as motivation to do better. Use it lightly and only when you really need to. Something like, “I am so grateful to have you in photos with our family. I can’t wait to share a treat with you to celebrate after this!” is what I’m thinking! Jas and Julian positively reinforced their daughter throughout our whole session, and it worked!
Have fun
My final tip for preparing your child (and you) for your photo session is just to relax and have fun! Please don’t worry about prompting your child how to pose or smile during the session. I have a specific workflow that I use to capture natural moments so all you have to do is worry about having a good time! If you spend the session looking at Timmy saying, “say cheese, Timmy, smile, look here, look over there!” then chances are we will have a bunch of photos of Timmy looking at you, and you with your mouth contorted giving instructions. Also, if you actually say “cheeeeese” it really lends itself to a forced-looking smile. My goal during your session is capture photographs that speak to your family and how you interact with one another on a daily basis. If there is a game your child likes to play (peek-a-boo, tickling, I-Spy, duck duck goose, etc) let’s bust it out! These are great things to tell your photographer in the client questionnaire you receive when booking, by the way!