Photographing a firends 2 year old, any tips would be great.

[Crabs]

Hello Everyone,

I have been asked by a friend to photograph their 2 year old boy.
He is a real trooper so I imagine he is going to be fun to shoot.

I have asked the parents what sort of shots they would like and have decided on a playground setting.
I will be heading down to the playground this afternoon to scope it out for things like back grounds and lighting (time of day etc)

But I thought I would ask if anyone has done similar shoots and might be able to give me one of those "wish I had taken this with me it would have made it soo much better" tidbits of info. Things like props or even angles that have worked for you in the past would be cool too.

Thanks

[Xposurepro]

Anytime you are dealing with parents your primary goal is awesome closeups ..headshots sell !!!! They like to see big eyes .. big eyes often end up in a more expensive wall portraits. #1 angle is looking slightly up at the camera. It connects with the emotions of your child looking up at you. That angle is normally one of the first to sell from the session and usually in multiple sizes from wallet to wall in just 1 shot.
Avoid cluttered backgrounds .. background distractions .. etc .. focus on the kid not the environment because although a location can add to composition and experience the focus on the subject is what matters in the sale room. Oh and even if sales wont be involved it doesnt matter .. the psychology is still the same.

[kristenh]

wow, xposurepro, that is an interesting post. did not know those things.

crabs, my advice is strictly from an amateur perspective, but i've got a 3 year old and a nearly 3 year old that i shoot all the time, and here are my thoughts:

you don't say where you are geographically speaking, but consider bringing bubble soap and wands. bubbles are fascinating and you get great expressions plus he might hold still for a couple seconds while you take your shot. and they look cool in the photos, too.

unless you are superb at quick focus changes, don't shoot wide open b/c your dof will be so incredibly small with a moving subject that you will have trouble getting great focus on his eyes. i've also experimented with the auto-servo focus so that the camera will follow the kids. if you have plenty of light, consider using shutter priority mode- set to 1/250 or so- esp if he's active (mine are).

encourage him to look up once in a while to try and get some catchlights. i can often fool my kids into looking for planes or birdies.

i've been pleased with some shots of mine that were taken: at the foot of the slide- as they have just reached it and look over at me while still in action, one the swing (for me, that's a spray and pray, maybe you're better at it than i am!), at the top of the monkey bars looking down at me (i use a fill flash for that b/c the sky is so bright), and on those rocker thingies on springs. you can probably get a little better sharp head shots if he's trapped- in the swing before you start to push- or sitting in some other apparatus like that.

if they have a seesaw and he holds on pretty well, you can sit on the other side and do silly things, bounce him a bit, etc. and snap away.

if its cold, bring a cute hat or get his parents to bring one. i personally don't really like photos of the kids in winter coats, if there's any way to bundle him up under a big sweater or something it'll look cuter (to me, that is!)

you probably already know about the pitfalls of shooting in broad sunlight or dappled shade.

good luck! sounds fun.

[kristenh]

just looked at xposurepro's website, great stuff! and had one more idea for you based on what he has up- i have taken mine out with sidewalk chalk and had them lie down with their drawings. that can be cool, too

[Crabs]

Hi Guys, thanks for the posts.

Some really good advice there, I will try and focus on getting some really good head shots, esspecially with the little guy looking up, I had not really thought about that and the connection (seems obvious now)
I also love the bubble machine idea, we will be outside so hopefully it will be a still day. Also hoping for a nice bright overcast day as well but see how we go.
I have really told the parents to think about being involved even though they will be out of shot, just to try and get more of his emotions towards them in the shots.

This could be a really important shoot, not only are they planning on paying me more than I would really ask from friends, but they also have a number of friends that are waiting to see how the shots turn out, they have seen a bit of my other work and depending on these shots have said they would be keen to hire me as well.

Anyway fingers crossed, I'll post back here with an update.

[~AJ~]

As well as a bubble machine, a simple old fashioned bubble blower is great too. You can get some lovely shots of mum or dad blowing bubbles for him, or even him trying to blow the bubbles himself.

I'm a sucker for hands & feet too - even with toddlers. If there's a sandpit around, you could always take some buckets & spades, trucks, and even a tea set for him to play with. Basically I just love getting shots of my son (who's 2.5yrs) actually engaging in an activity, rather than having him look at me & the camera all the time.

If you have a good zoom lens, take that with you - that way, you can get those nice close up shots, but not be invading his space or be close enough for him to try & touch your camera (as my son likes to do )

If there are any trees around, get him to play peek-a-boo from behind a tree - these make GREAT shots!

Good luck with it!!

[Crabs]

Hey Guys,

well once again thanks for the tips and advice. The shoot is done and I am really happy with how the pics turned out. One tip you could have suggested would be bring a rope... to tie the little guy down, dam he was on the run the whole time.
My advice for anyone looking to do a similar shoot, get ready to just roll with the punches, provide them with an environment that will make a good back drop and then throw out any preplanned poses or layouts... little kids do not roll like that.

I spent the whole time running around after him, and just when I would get in position for a great shot he would turn and run the other way.

Biggest challange was the sun light, it was very bright and there was not much shade, made it hard to capture shots without strong shaddows across his face. (you cant always say to parents bring you little one out at 7:30pm)
It did however force me to get out my brand bew speed lite, which I had not used more than once before, and try to learn to set it up on the run to fill some shaddows, I must have jagged it because it did the job very well.

Here are acouple of my favorite shots from the day, I would be very happy to hear comments. (Cannon 500D EOS with 18-55mm f4 kit lens)

[~AJ~]

Hahaha!!!!!! Woops - sorry..... I should have said to just go with it & not have anything planned and to also bring a rope LOL!!!!!!!

Those shots are really good! I just love the 2nd one - shows the cheeky personality of a 2yr old

[Crabs]

Even a lasso would have been a benefit. Thanks for the positive feed back.
I think I have about 25 really good shots to give them.

[~AJ~]

LOL - yeah, I could really do with a lassoo with my 2.5yr old. Actually, come to think of it even for the 18mth old hehehe.......

25 is a really good amount - well done!