Take better photos of children

Dear Stay Focussed reader, Welcome to the latest newsletter. As you know, we've recently made the move to Australia again. The shipping container has arrived with all our worldly goods, the boxes (well, most of them) have been unpacked, and our house is starting to feel just a little more homely. And best of all, we can get rid of the air-bed and sleep on a proper mattress again! Anyway this month's theme ... Better Photos of Children Children will always be the subject of lots of photos. But getting good photos of them, and sometimes even getting good photos of grown ups, can feel like getting blood from a stone! Here are a few phrases that you might have heard: Smile, please, just a little one ... no? What's that over there, look ... snap! ... don't spoil it, do this instead ... and the list goes on and on! There's one simple solution - but first of all ... Consider things from the child's perspective Because if you're a child, what you want to do is run around a bit, have a few laughs with your friends, explore something new ... What you're less interested in is sitting still while someone, likely to be a doting relative, positions you just right so that they can get a photo of you to put in the family album. As a doting relative, however, you do want that picture for the family album, and you don't understand why they don't want to just sit still for a moment. Kids eh! Here's a simple solution Let them run around. Let them play. Let them investigate. And watch them ... After watching them for a while you'll understand the game they're playing, which is important because it lets you anticipate where the best shots are. Running in and out of the sea? Wait for them to run in, you know they'll be running out, and you know where they'll be, get ready with the camera, and then snap! The end result is... Better photos, because the children will be more natural. Happier children, because they aren't made to stop playing so that they can have their photo taken. Happier parents, because they get photos of children to treasure! Hope this helps in your attempts at photographing children. I've got to go and unpack more boxes now, so, see you next month, and in between on Facebook, Darrell. PS: If you know of anyone else that you think would find these newsletters and the site useful, please pass this email along - let's help everyone take better photos! Dragonfly in monsoon Good use of depth of field in Ravi's contribution. 5 Cell Phone Photography Tips Find out how to improve your cell phone photography. Wedding Photos - editing tips Been to a wedding this year? Have a go at editing those photos with this cross processing tutorial. Trick photography Always a popular part of the site - trick photography! Back to Back Issues Page You are subscribed to Stay Focussed. The back issues are at the following URL... http://www.digital-photography-tips.net/Stay_Focussed-backissues.html If you wish to remove yourself from this mailing, please click on the following URL... http://digital-photography-tips.net/cgi-bin/mailout/mailmgr.cgi?us=LQ.21184411.24795536.3a1001bb0b8bb7a741c829d13dc68928 (If the above URL is not a link, copy-and-paste the URL into your Web browser. That will confirm your removal.) To change your e-mail address, please click on the following URL... http://digital-photography-tips.net/cgi-bin/mailout/mailmgr.cgi?ca=LQ.21184411.24795536.3a1001bb0b8bb7a741c829d13dc68928 (If the above URL is not a link, copy-and-paste the URL into your Web browser. That will confirm your change.)