How to Make Your Child Smile Genuinely in Photos
When you ask a young child to smile on command for a photo, you usually end up with something that resembles a frightened prairie dog, someone who just smelled a fart, or the Joker. There is nothing wrong with awkward children’s smiles – for parents, they are fun, and for children, they will make great #ThrowbackThursday posts in about ten years. But it is also nice to capture these genuine grin – you know, the ones that appear on their faces at almost any time, except when you remove the camera.
My sister Karissa is a photographer whose job is to make sure that even children who don’t like taking pictures feel comfortable taking their best pictures. She told me some of her tricks to make young children smile less awkwardly. None of them contain the words ” chuuuuu “.
- Let them chase you. “When you stop, they will be in a good mood and you can take pictures of them,” says Karissa.
- Ask them to tell you a joke without smiling or laughing. This is usually an impossible task for the child, and he will laugh.
- If you are photographing two children, tell them to compete with each other for looks. Same concept as above – they ca n’t help but smile.
- With young children, have someone toss them in the air, hang them upside down, or fly them like Superman. “These are great fighting shots,” says Karissa.
- Make fart sounds. I know. In essence, this is a deception. Alternatively, you can whisper something stupid in their ear, such as “boo-boo-ass”.
- Ask them to talk about something happy. Their new puppy, their trip to Disney, the fun thing their brother did, their favorite flavor of ice cream.
- Let them make a fake laugh with you. Fake laughter usually turns into real laughter.
- Have children’s jokes on hand. Several classics: “What musical instrument is there in the bathroom?” “Toothpaste tube”. “Why don’t you let the bear control the remote?” “He will keep pressing the paw button.” “Why was Tigger dirty?” “Because he played with Pooh.”
- Say something completely random on the count of three, right before you take the picture. Maybe “Donkey with a blue shoe!” or “Bazuinki!” They will be disoriented for a second and then smile.
If the tricks work with your kids, great, but if they just don’t like taking pictures, take your time. The last thing you want is for your child to develop camera anxiety, a laChandler Bing . Let it go and remember that even bad photos can be great for their wedding slideshow.