I take a lot of photos of kids and families. When you have milestones and events to celebrate, you’ll likely want an experienced professional photographer to document the event. That’s what Vision Photos is for. But what about daily life? Everyone still loves to take snapshots of the cool stuff kids get into; they grow up so fast, you practically need photographs to remember last week!
I field a lot of questions from people always wanting to know how they can get better photos with their point-and-shoot cameras in everyday situations. Here are three things I’ve found myself telling people over and over. To illustrate, I’ve included some recent images from our portrait sessions in Charlotte, NC.
(All images are © Kilby/VisionPhotos.com)
1. Use your flash.
Modern cameras are capable of adjusting flash output to keep from overexposing your image. I’ve found that using fill flash in snapshots is crucial… even in daylight situations. Fill flash eliminates harsh shadows, and underexposed faces that you’ll often get when taking pictures outside. Set the flash on your camera to “On”, not “Auto”. Then experiment with a combination of photographs with and without flash and in frontlit and backlit situations. It won’t take long to figure out how your camera interprets scenes, and how you can take better pictures.
2. Fill frame with subject.
Most of the time the reason you’re shooting photos of your kids is to see your kids. So fill the camera’s viewfinder with an adorable face or two, and your snapshots will become dynamic, emotional images. Take a look at the “Pink Hoodie” photo below, and imagine how much LESS of an impact those beautiful eyes would have if they were far away.
3. Don’t force pose.
Take photos while kids are playing or doing something they love. On shoots that we book, we love to let kids be kids. We try to incorporate toys, hobbies and playgrounds so that kids won’t feel like they’re being forced into something lame. Take advantage of the energy and excitement that naturally buzzes around children to create meaningful images. You’ll find photos of pure joy much more enjoyable to look at than pictures of sad and stiff little tikes being forced to sit still.
