Getting kids to cooperate

[RJBlake]

I will be doing a family photo shoot for some friends this weekend in which I know I will have difficulty getting their kids to cooperate. The children are 10,8, and 5 and do not get along most of the time. They constanly bicker, pick on eachother, and refuse to sit near or dare I say touch eachother!
Any tips or advice on how to get kids to cooperate even for a short time. I thought about offering them money, ha! But would like to know if anyone has dealt with this or has any ideas. The only thing these kids have in common is a love for soccer, and I intend to take some candid shots of them kicking the ball around just to make sure i get some smiles. But mom is wanting a family picture in which "everyone looks like they really love eachother". Help!

[lputman]

If it's ok with the parents, you can offer candy. Although they are all old enough to be able to understand that this is not a time for play and to behave accordingly.

[Penary]

One tip that worked for me as I photographed my grandkids two week ago, age 5 and 1, was a little game, I would let my grandson age 5 choose a pose, it may be silly, ugly, just any pose he wanted to do. I would take a couple shots of each, then I would choose a pose, he would cooperate then. Of course this want work for a 1 year old. But may help with the older kids.

Larry

[Forever Lulu]

I have ran into this situation a handful of times. What I do is bring some loose change with me and depending on the pose, I would have the kids step or sit on the quarter. If they don't move they get to keep it.....they become focused on their little 'job'. You can tell them it's going to float away and by doing that you may get them all looking at you in surprise and get some really cute candid moments.

Maybe also to get them to cooperate is let them tickle their parents. Since there's 3 kids put mom and dad in the middle and a kid on the left, middle and right of the parents. A cute family tickle or hug can bring out some real joy in a family. You can also use this idea for a family hug.

Hope that helps.

Heather

[Xposurepro]

It's always nice when the parents are able to control their children in public. Unfortunately, a lot of parents fail miserably in this area. That's why I don't specialize in children LOL. Your personality can be a huge factor in control them. Be the fun photographer .. they normally respond better to that and give you a sense of respect that they don't give their parents. Then again they could be total brats and make you wish they order their pictures and never come back.