Children's Photography and Family Photography

Children's Photography and Family Photography have been occupying my time, my mind and my passion of late. The last few days while it's been raining, and I have reminisced of times gone by, our unique rural heritage, our southern values, the local flavors that make us distinctive.

Have you ever noticed how your son has your daddy's swagger when he walks? Sweet Susie has your mother's loving smile, or Rancorous Randy has that twinkle of mischief your favorite uncle possessed? Why not, show your kids how things were back then?

The natural beauty found only in the southern gulf along the bayous, beaches, rivers, prairies and forests of Louisiana and Texas is an integral part of life in our area of the world. Remember your momma's description of putting up jelly? Dad talking about fishing, running free with a single shot rifle and a one-eyed dog?

I have worked producing beautiful vintage children photographs. Things that bring me, and you back to our favorite memories;, kids playing with things that stimulate their imagination, running while rolling a tire, crawling under a wheel barrow, smelling the flowers, studying a grasshopper and stretching their imagination and not playing a video game.

The true key in capturing your child in a great photo,put them in a natural setting and just watch!. Don't force them to pose or say cheese. But rather give them something to do that grabs their attention and bring them joy and laughter. Now get down on their level and find the shot. You will be very surprise what you get in the camera when the day is done. The true trick to being a good photographer is being a bit of a storyteller. Just let the events unfold and be ready.

I have enjoyed taking my work to the next level with creating a unique look to images. Using tints, edges, overlaying of textures, we can help your children remember what it was like when granddad and grandma were their age. That freedom of running into the wind, the sensation of mud between your toes. Just imagine the smile on your child's face as he or she relieves that time gone by.

I love the soft ethereal effects its give to children's photos. Being able to catch this time in their young life's the true innocence that is but a feeding moment in today's world. To catch to true joy and the love of a family.

A Southern Rose Images is a Family and children's Photographer. Stunning images to last a life time. Wedding Photography

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Natural Children's Photography - How to Get Good Results

Create a fun time
Firstly, you know your children. Get the camera out when they are in a good mood, not when they're tired or hungry. It helps if you are in the right frame of mind too!

The photos that you'll probably like best are those taken when the children are engaged in an activity, and being themselves, rather than standing stiffly in front of a favourite scene or colourful flowers. Is the photo of the children, or the flowers? Getting a good image of both is twice as hard! Instead, just concentrate on getting a good photo of the most important thing in the picture - your child.

Very young children especially will become bored after a few minutes, so have your camera all ready to go beforehand, and be patient. Have a break, let them wander off, give them your full attention while you take pictures and be ready with more toys.

With older children you can play in the garden, have some fun yourself, and be ready as the moments come. Directing the children and requesting smiles usually results in a grimace, forced grin or hammed-up face. It also helps if the children are used to the camera. If you use it regularly, after a while they won't see it as special and so won't keep pulling those faces.

What to look for through the viewfinder
Try to look at the whole of the viewfinder area and think of the whole picture, before you press the button. You'll probably want the children filling a large part of the picture, not just a small part of it. You can either move in closer yourself or use the zoom on your camera if it has one.

What's in the background? Is it distracting? The washing on the line or a bright red car won't look so good. Maybe move around yourself to get a plainer background. With a baby, perhaps put the baby on a sofa to get a plainer background.

Try turning the camera round so that you take an upright, vertical photo. This way up fits the shape of people better, so there's less likely to be heads or feet cut off. If it feels odd to hold the camera like this, practise so that it feels more natural. It's also important to hold the camera steady, since if the camera jolts slightly when you take the picture, you'll get a blurred photo. Keeping you arms in at the side of your body helps.

Should you use flash?
Flash is safe to use even with babies. However, if flash is the only source of light, as is normally the case indoors, then the photos can capture great expressions but will rarely have nice lighting on the faces. The light from the flash on the camera often produces pasty-looking faces and the dreaded red-eye. It doesn't help to make anyone look their best. If you can, wait until you can go outdoors and use natural light instead.

Do you need a special type of camera?
You don't need an expensive camera but there are a few points to look out for. First is something called shutter lag. On many cameras, especially older digital ones, you press the shutter button and then wait for what seems like an age before the photo is actually taken. This can be a big problem if you're trying to capture fleeting expressions, or the children are on the move. The answer is to try the camera before you buy!

Secondly, a zoom facility will help (optical zoom rather than digital zoom). It will let you get close-ups, and it will let you stand back a little from the children so they don't notice you so much.

Finally, it's not thrilling but reading the camera manual will help you understand what it's doing and is time well spent. You can always practise without the kids and delete those images.

Laurence Jones is the foremost children's photographer in Birmingham, England. He travels throughout the West Midlands, Warwickshire, Cotswolds and South of England. To see examples of his award-winning images, visit the galleries at his website http://www.kidsnaturally.co.uk/galleries/

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