Photographing Kids: Basic Tips Sharing from a Dad’s Perspective

Photographing Kids: Basic Tips Sharing from a Dad’s Perspective

Rating:
      You rate: [Please login to rate]

Photographing Kids: Basic Tips Sharing from a Dad’s Perspective

September is a challenging and memorable month to kids new to school and parents alike, as there are so many precious first moments to remember. Photography can capture all the priceless, never-again moments of your kids’ growth journey which are to be cherished for a lifetime. Since the birth of his daughter in 2011, Calvin has never failed to capture the intimate, happy and special moments of his daughter with his camera. The 6-year photography journey is both interesting and challenging. Let’s check out the tips and skills shared by Calvin which are practical and useful for new dads and moms!
Photo by Calvin Tai
EOS 5D Mark III • EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM • 1/320s • f/3.2 • ISO 200

Age 0-2: Capture Static Photos with the Help of Props

Calvin’s daughter is 6 years old now. According to Calvin, kids photography can be roughly divided into 2 phases based on age range: Age 0-2 and Age 2-6. “As children at age 0-2 years do not walk or run quickly, the photos taken are mostly static ones. To capture their natural expressions, we can use things like toys, stuffed toys or candies to draw their attention. Parents can hold the toy with their left hand and camera with their right hand. We can also put the toy on the camera to make them look directly to the lens. These little tips make it easy to capture the smiling faces of your kids.”
Photo by Calvin Tai
EOS 5D Mark III • EF 50mm f/1.2L USM • 1/250s • f/2.2 • ISO 640
Calvin’s lens choices for photographing children at age 0-2 years are 24mm or 35mm prime lenses, as they offer a wider angle of view and shorter minimum focusing distance which are more flexible and can cover a wide range of topics spanning from portrait with landscape, food to snapshots. Calvin adds, “We try not to use flashlight when photographing newborns and infants. Therefore, a prime lens with large aperture is your perfect shooting companion especially in dim indoor environment. Just make sure you use a shutter speed that is faster than the safe shutter speed. Without the need to adjust to a high ISO setting, you can always take a sharp and natural shot.”
Photo by Calvin Tai

Age 2-6: Capture the Natural Expressions and Actions with Snapshots

Kids are more active when they turn two. To sharply capture their actions when they run, jump or play, set your camera’s AF mode to AI SERVO and shoot with AF tracking function to ensure accurate focusing at all times even when the kids suddenly run towards the camera. Calvin continues, “It’s suggested that you have the right camera settings in advance. For example, use Auto ISO and a shutter speed of 1/250s or above to ensure sharp capture of the actions. Besides, go to places where your kids have more space to run. And when mom plays with the kid, dad who takes the pictures can keep some distance with them. The snapshots taken this way are most natural without the need to ask them look at the camera.”
Photo by Calvin Tai
EOS 5D Mark III • EF 85mm f/1.2L II USM • 1/400s • f/2.2 • ISO 50
Photo by Calvin Tai
EOS 5D Mark IV • EF 35mm f/1.4L II USM • 1/8000s • f/1.4 • ISO 200
To take photos of running kids in an outdoor environment, a zoom lens with high mobility can make your shooting much easier. “Lenses like EF 24-70mm f/2.8L II USM and EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM covering the commonly used focal range are very useful. We can capture the interaction of the kids with the environment with the wide-end, while the tele-end can zoom in to take a close-up shot of their funny expressions. Besides, a telephoto lens provides enough space for the kids to play. Thanks to the lens’ swift focusing performance and the camera’s continuous shooting mode, we can quietly stay aside, track the kids’ actions and capture the most candid moments with ease.”
Photo by Calvin Tai
EOS-1D X • EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM • 1/800s • f/2.8 • ISO 100
Photo by Calvin Tai
EOS-1D X • EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM • 1/1000s • f/2.8 • ISO 400
In addition to zoom lenses, prime lenses like EF 50mm f/1.2L USM and EF 85mm f/1.2L II USM are also good choices for portraits. These lenses keep you at a suitable distance with the kids so you can talk to them while not being too close. Besides, large aperture lenses can provide stunning shallow depth of field to make your subject stand out from the busy background. In circumstances where the ambient light is insufficient, Calvin would use a flash for fill lighting. “Off-camera flashes are preferred. I would either hold the flash with my left hand or ask my wife to assist. Try not to apply the flashlight straight on the subject to avoid a harsh shadow.” Calvin points out that the most important thing in kids photography is to enjoy the intimate moments. Just capture what the environment has to offer and worry less about the camera settings.
Photo by Calvin Tai
EOS 5D Mark III • EF 85mm f/1.2L II USM • 1/100s • f/2.2 • ISO 250
The floral arrangement on the foreground blurred by the use of a large aperture lens adds a nice touch to complement the curious expression of Calvin’s daughter
Photo by Calvin Tai
EOS 5D Mark III • EF 50mm f/1.2L USM • 1/640s • f/1.8 • ISO 200

Photograph Kids from Their Eye Level

Most parents stand when taking photos of their kids, but this shooting angle from above would end up with photos having the ground as background. “Don’t forget that kids are much shorter than us. Therefore, when framing and shooting, always kneel down and photograph them from their eye level. Photos taken this way will have more interesting background, and can record the kids and their interaction with the environment. Cameras built with vari-angle monitor are particularly useful for framing and shooting from the kid’s perspective for a long time.”
Shooting from above with the ground takes up most of the background
Adjust the shooting angle to the kids’ eye level for a richer background
Ambient light is preferred when photographing kids. When the light is right in front of your subject, Calvin suggests to set the camera’s metering mode to Spot Metering so as to lock on to the kid’s face for metering and you can then take a few shots to see the results. “One thing to bear in mind is that we have to check if the shutter speed is still fast enough to freeze the kid’s action after adjusting the exposure compensation or aperture value. If your kid is facing the sun, make sure that it’s not too shiny that they can hardly open their eyes or have an odd face. You can also try shooting with back lighting. If the light source from the back makes a huge lighting contrast with the face, we can consider using a flash or reflector to provide some fill lighting.”
Highlights will appear on the kid’s hairs in a back-lit shot, adding depth to the photo
Photo by Calvin Tai
EOS 5D Mark III • EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM • 1/250s • f/6.3 • ISO 200

Plan Your Shooting According to the Kid’s Work-Rest Schedule

To capture photos in natural and soft color tones, Calvin suggests to shoot at time slots 9am-11am and 3pm-5pm. “Theoretically there should be no time limit as to when is the best time to capture a moment because parenting is a 24-hour job and every moment is precious. However, to capture the kids in play, we should have a better time planning based on their work-rest schedule. It would be a waste if we arrive at a nice shooting location but only to find that the kids are too tired due to traffic.” A few outdoor shooting locations recommended by Calvin include Inspiration Lake, Tai Po Waterfront Park, Ma On Shan Park, Sha Tin Central Park, Penfold Park and Ma Wan. “Sometimes the malls with nice decoration are also good places to shoot. However, it may not be easy to take photos due to the crowds. I would search for walls with characteristic pattern or drawing as theses make nice photo background as well.”
A cute photo with the interesting feature wall as background coupled with Calvin’s daughter’s funny face
Photo by Calvin Tai
EOS 5D Mark III • EF 85mm f/1.2L II USM • 1/320s • f/4 • ISO 400
Photo taken at Inspiration Lake
Photo by Calvin Tai
EOS 5D Mark IV • EF 50mm f/1.2L USM • 1/3200s • f/1.8 • ISO 100
Random Articles
Japan Autumn Festival - Red Leaves Photography and Kimono Culture  
Yakult Depot Tour