Photographing kids are quite challenging and could be frustrating sometimes. They are active, fast and hard to predict. In the same time, they are fun to photograph too. Here are some tips for you to get a better kids picture.
1. Go down to their eye level
Most of all will be a lot taller than the kid, but if we shoot kids from our eye level, we will got distorted perspective. It is better to get the camera down to their eye level and shoot the picture from there. It will look better especially in portraits. But sometimes, you might want to shoot from above too.. for example when shooting a large group of kids.
2. Be ready
Kids move very fast and a lot of time, their move is unpredictable. You will need to be ready to anticipate a good photo opportunity. It is best to stay in a spot for a while rather than chasing kids around.
3. Camera setting and type
There is no exact camera type which is good for kids, but digital SLR cameras are usually better because they are more responsive and able to shoot three frame per seconds or faster. They are also better in creating sense of depth. When using DSLR camera, it is important to set the camera to Auto focus continuous (consult manual) to track kids movement.
4. Aware of lighting condition and direction
You need to be careful about lighting direction even in bright daylight. If you position your kids in a strong backlight, it is most likely that your kids face will be dark. So you need to change position to 45 degree towards the light or just use flash to illuminate the kids if the light is too strong that cause the kids to squint.
When shooting indoor, aware about what kind of lighting inside. If it is a tungsten light (yellow), don’t forget to turn color balance to tungsten. If you use external flash, you can bounce it to the ceiling, but you might lose the mood. The best will be using a orange/tungsten colored gel so the light output from your flash and the room will be almost same.
5. Get close
If your picture is not good enough, you are not close enough – Robert Capa. Zoom can help, but the perspective will be different than wide angle. The best solution is get close to the kids.
5. Learn about composition, be careful of background or other distraction
Composition makes a picture pleasant to look or not. Try to get a better composition by eliminating distracting objects or background. Try to achieve balance in the frame.
I hope this tips helps. Let me know if you have any questions or comments
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