We have been experiencing record high temperatures in our neck of the woods. Last week we were back in the 80s—-that’s 20 degrees warmer than normal for this time of year. Naturally, this led to all kinds of excitement around our home. My daughter and I spent the majority of the week outdoors. We grabbed our kites and headed to the park where I was able to capture more “summertime” magic on film.
I love taking shot of my daughter at play, especially when she’s outdoors. Believe me; it’s much easier trying to get candid shots of 3-year-olds when they are running like the wind and could careless if you’re carrying a camera than when they are cooped up inside and you and your camera have few places to hide.
If you are looking to capture candid moments of your children at play it’s a good idea to engage them in an activity first. For example:
Turn on the Sprinkler. Or give them a ball or place them in a sandbox with several toys. Then sit back and zoom in. Using your zoom is less intrusive, but at some point I would suggest that you get up to shoot at different angles. Be sure to vary your shots—get some close-ups of their faces as well as wider shots to show where they were.
Add a Friend. Some of the cutest shots I have of my daughter are the ones where she is interacting with a friend or family member. If you have a four-legged friend throw him into the mix as well. Capturing the bond between a child and his pet more often than not leads to frame worthy shots. Also, a pet will keep your child engaged, which gives you more time to get great candid shots.
Create Your Own Photo-Op. My daughter loves to play dress up. One afternoon throw an impromptu dress up party for your child and her friends (they can be of the stuffed variety). Bring out some costumes and cookies and your child will do the rest. You can just stand back and shoot away—the results will be priceless. In fact, I used a picture of my daughter dressed in her princess tutu, pink high heels and tiara for our Christmas card last year. She had just gotten up from having “tea” with her friends and I shot her standing next to her toy shelf picking out more dishes decked out in her pinky best. To this day it remains one of my favorite shots.
Sporting Events. What parent wants to miss the opportunity to capture an image of his or her child partaking in a sporting event? Whether it’s baseball, soccer, football, or basketball, kids really show their true character when they are playing sports. If your child is too young to be in organized sports consider taking him or her to a local park and shooting him or her on a swing or going down the slide. Our 6-year-old neighbor isn’t a competitive swimmer by any means, but that didn’t stop his mom from taking a great shot of him this summer sitting on the end of the diving board. She positioned herself on the ladder behind the board and shot down at him. The color contrast of the pool’s blue water created an amazing shot.
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