Family Fall pics.

I headed out to Langley last weekend to meet the winner of the contest I held with yoyobelly.ca in the spring. It was the first time I had been out to Glen Valley Park and it is such a beautiful space.

We had Christmas cards and gifts in mind. The day could not have been more perfect which was lucky as it was the only day we could do the shoot.

The two little ones absolutely adored one another. Big brother was so gentle with his little sister and she could hardly take her eyes off of him. I think those two already have a very good start.

My whole family came with me this day as we do not head out to the Valley very often. While I took photos my husband and the girls walked the ravine path. I have some great pics of the girls that I will post shortly. I am still trying to get caught up on all the work as of late as well as my own personal photos.

I have been given the all clear.

Now, I may have gone a little overboard, but if I could I would post all the birthday party photos. Two parents responded to my request to put a few pics up so here are a few. The above photo is most certainly my favourite.

The above picture so reminds me of my childhood. It is odd actually. I wonder if I had a dress similar to this.

The birthday girl!!

Beautiful baby girl

I met Emily when she was three days old. What a lovely chance to see her again. She is such a little giggler and so strong. Anytime we would put her on her back she would simply roll back over and wait for us to entertain her.

I told her mom that I thought she would be crawling soon. She loves spending time on her belly.

Child Photography 101

Eventually I would like to get to the point of offering general camera tips for SLR cameras as well as general composition tricks, but I want to continue on with the hints to fully engage children when attempting to take their photos.


The first thing to remember when taking portraits of kids is that kids generally expect adults to be, well, on the boring side. Adults can be so serious, but when we can let our silly side out we shall be rewarded with smiles and delights of glee from the little ones.
When I meet a family for the first time I try to create some kind of bond with the children I will be later photographing. I try to make a certain level of contact with them that can sometimes be just between us. Silly faces work great and taking an interest in what the child holds important also creates a greater level of understanding. I try to find out from the parents if the child(ren) is interested in a certain animal or character. It allows a conversation to begin. When I start shooting I do have a few tricks up my sleeve. Some of the techniques that can work are playing peak-a-boo. I may have to be patient with this one, but I can guarantee smiles do emerge and they are some of the most natural. I cannot imagine what the child otherwise thinks of the black box I am holding in front of my face, but if it is a tool that I can hide behind and peak out from with a very silly look on my face who would not smile.
I also keep with me a few little silly finger puppets that also like to play peak-a-boo. As seen in the above photo this little guy is trying to spy where my little felted friend will appear next. I captured some great smiles when he did find it and when the child smiles so freely the parents naturally break out into grins as well.

Dancing, (dare I say it) and jumping up and down also have a remarkable affect on kids. It may feel a little strange, but when everyone is acting a little silly laughter comes naturally. Showing kids that this is not a serious affair allows them to play more and become more involved in the shoot. Bribery works too, but it can often add stress to a situation and in the end will bring out resentment in the child.

One young child I photographed was a whiz at math. Numbers fascinated him. He was not willing to sit with his grandparents and the more they tried to get his cooperation the more he shut us out. I tried to engage his 'assistance' in helping me count out the shots and I promised him that once we reached that number he could do what he wanted. We agreed to ten (10) perfect images and he did his very best. He knew when it would be over and he was in control. I loved what he gave us and even after the ten were finished I was able to capture a few more without any direction as he played and lounged about. He was much more relaxed and a willing participant.

Child photography 101

I will begin with the obvious. Patience is a must in any photographic situation. Waiting for the right moment is key in capturing the casual smile or glint in the eye and I think this is the hardest for parents. Time is of the essence, usually, and trying to get those perfect moments with kids can be very stressful.

One of the greatest challenges with photographing families is the parents, not the kids. I am not saying this is true in every case, but even in capturing my own kids, parents desire cooperation from our children. I believe that children can sense this need and do almost anything to deny their parents a well-composed image.
So, what do we do to channel our kids into good subjects? The first thing we do is to shed our preconceived notions of that perfect family photo and making our children sit still and look just so. I find that the most beautiful of images come when I sit back and let my children be themselves.

When photographing families I will tell the parents that they need not worry about their child. I am there to capture the true moments of beauty which include silliness, thoughtfulness and even moments of frustration. I do capture the images that the parents want, but I also capture those little antics that give a more rounded view of the child.

When I was planning the design for my business I knew the image I wanted that, to me, would convey who I was as an individual as well as a photographer. I needed my daughter's assitance. My darling eldest child cooperated for all of 10 minutes and then grew frustrated with my directions. She is a very independent child and does not appreciate being asked to do anything she would rather not do. I grew frustrated myself... but only for a moment. I stepped back and tried to sink into the background as I could see she was losing herself in the moment of dirt and digging. I remained quiet and unobtrusive and felt almost giddy watching her play. I thanked her profusely at the end as she gave me more than I could have asked for. She also loved viewing the images of herself later.

***Be a fly on the wall with your children. Take photos of the spaces they call their own. Take a photo of that beloved stuffy; the corner where they sit and lose themselves in a book; the structure or village that took hours to build. Capture a moment that defines their childhood, not a stiffly posed image set up for others. It is wonderful to have those images of siblings posing nicely for the grandparents and other relatives, but mix it up a little. I imagine my children looking back at all the photos that I have taken over the years and I hope they see a more complete picture of what was important to them and the spaces within which they existed.

Here are a few photos from the shoot for the images I use in my business:


Eldest daughter put the brakes on early on.


Wait!!! She found a worm and wants to show me.





I love this image. She is lost in a world of her own.


Boredom sets in. She is done.


This is her payoff. I had to take a photo of teddy on her little stick swing. I think it is a good deal.