How to Take Better Pictures of your Kids
As we are all stuck at home for an unforeseeable future, spending more times with the kids than ever before, it’s a good time to learn how to really capture some great pictures of your kids. Below are 5 Tips on how to take Better Pictures of Your Kids while at Home.
5 Tips to Better Pictures of your Kids at Home
FACE THE LIGHT
This is probably the most important thing to keep in mind! Your light source! Natural light from a window or a door is ALWAYS going to be your best bet at getting really good pictures of your kids at home. But I’m sure you’ve noticed that when you try to take a picture with your phone, the faces sometimes turn really dark or there is a weird glare from the window. Don’t fret – there’s a solution for that!
Have your kids face the window or door opening instead of standing with their back to it. Or, move around yourself so that you can shoot from the direction the light is coming from. The faces are usually darker when shooting with the window behind because the camera reads the average light in the room. If the window is too bright, then the rest of the image will be dark in order to get an average measure.
By having the light source be behind your camera aimed at your subject, your kids will be lit up properly vs being too dark and grainy.
Open up all the curtains in the room and use natural light. Shoot from the side of your light source for better exposed faces.
TURN OFF YOUR LAMPS
Turn off any overhead or side lamps. These lights can produce ugly, yellow color casts on faces, clothes and rooms. You’re better off opening all the curtains and drapes and use natural light from a window as often as you can.
If you can’t turn off the lamps because the room goes dark, use only one type of lamp coming from the side, instead of multiple different lights or from above. The multiple lights may all have different colors to them which can cause a multitude of color casts. Using a light from the side will give you more flattering shadows than that of a overhead light. If the light comes from above, you usually will have deep shadows under your eyes or nose.
REMOVE CLUTTER – KEEP IT SIMPLE
While we want to capture the everyday life as it happens right now, we want to do it without distractions. The human eye is easily distracted when images are too busy. Removing unnecessary clutter in the background ensures we can focus on what we want to capture: your kids.
If you’ve seen my portfolio you know I think less is more. Simplicity is key when it comes to taking better pictures of your kids at home.
Embrace the natural facial expressions and keep it simple. Remove unnecessary clutter in the background for a more enjoyable image.
FORGET THE CHEESE
The only time cheese and camera should be in the same room is if you’re handing your kids a cheese stick for snacks. Seriously, whoever coined the term “Say Cheese for the Camera” have no idea what they started. Unnaturally forced smiles from kids and adults alike. NO THANK YOU!
Let your kids be who they are. Don’t force them to smile. Instead embrace the intense stares, the ultimate focus on what they’re doing and the genuine smiles. Capture the in-between moments as they’re playing with their toys or are snuggled up on the couch. You will appreciate those pictures way more than those with forced cheesy smiles.
LEARN TO USE YOUR PHONE CAMERA
None of the above matters if you don’t know how to use the phone camera right. While our phones are smart, they’re still not as smart as us. Here are 4 easy tips on how to use your phone camera to take better pictures of your kids.
Tip 1: Click on your kids face to have your camera adjust the exposure properly. Since the camera reads the average light in the room, you may need to tell it where you want the proper exposure to be. You can also increase or decrease the brightness of your image by using the sliding bar on your phone.
Tip 2: Turn the camera / position yourself so that your kids are the brightest point in the image (no large window or light sources behind them). This will ensure that your kids are properly lit and not dark.
Tip 3: Get down on their level and take pictures. Shooting from different angles will give you different perspectives. While it’s easier to just take a picture standing where we are, play around with different angles and see what you can get. Sometimes those high above images are some of my favorites as they show off the kids big, innocent eyes.
Tip 4: Document the day. Take pictures of your kids doing homework at home. Playing in the living room. Decorating cookies. Watching movies & snuggling. Document the everyday things as well as the pretty “look at me and smile” pictures. This is what you’ll want to remember from all this time together and will tell a more interesting story than just a phone full of toothy smiles (although those sure are adorable!)
Take Better Pictures of Your Kids Cheat Sheet
Feel free to screenshot the below images to keep with you as you learn to take better pictures of your kids. Join our Facebook VIP Group and share the pictures you’ve been taking. I can’t wait to see all the fun you’ll have together.
