Telling a Story

Photographing children (and older ones as well) while they are busy at play is one of the best ways to capture authentic expressions - which makes for extremely endearing and dynamic images.

Like a short feature film, documentary style photography aims to record a specific stage of your child's development in the hopes of documenting memories that warm the heart for a lifetime.  I like to think of story telling images as my visual scrapbook. 

Younger clients especially enjoy this approach to photography as they don't feel under pressure to perform for the camera. While they are busy at play, they are hardly even aware that you are busy at work. Engrossed in their own thing, they forget about the camera, leaving the photogapher free to let their creative juices flow.

Take the following series of images below of this little girl reading in her nursery. What started out as an experiment in window light turned into one of my favorite story-telling sessions ever. I'll always treasure these images as they capture the curiosity of young ones perfectly.

Making sure to take a variety of shots helps to tell the complete story. In the first image I made sure to get the whole scene in the frame in order to set the stage for the story I wanted to tell.

Next, I cropped in closer to focus in on her hands paging through the pile of books scattered around her. Notice her curled up toes almost helping to hold up the book? This detail may have been lost with a wider crop. 

Zooming in on her tiny hands holding the Morning Prayer Book in the next image records her physical development and age. I will always have this record of her tiny toes and dainty fingers. The low f-stop insures the details stand out in significance.

Since the little girl was engrossed in her task at hand, I was free to zoom in for the extreme close up of her face in the next image. Capturing her long, dark lashes (without her even batting an eye) would have been next to impossible had I asked her to pose. 

I end the story with one last full frame image that sums up the experience in a nutshell. Pure joy! Recorded on digital file for all time is a record of this little girl's curiosity, joy, and exploration. Mission accomplished.  

Shouldn't our goal as photographer's be that all our clients have just as much fun during their sessions?  And how much fun will it be for their parents to see a series of images that capture their child so beautifully and perfectly.

Give it a try yourself. Below are some ideas for your own storytelling series:

• Learning to ride a bike.
  
• Writing with chalk or finger painting on the sidewalk.
  
• Baking cookies with mom in the kitchen.
  
• Playing in the sprinkler and throwing water balloons with cousins in the back yard.
  
• Throwing a tea party for their friends and stuffed animals.
  
• Playing dress up in daddy or mommy's clothes.
  
• Playing legos on the kitchen table.
• Talking on the phone with a best friend.
• Shopping at the mall.
• Skateboarding at an extreme park with friends.

You get the idea. Be creative. Start by setting the scene.  Pay attention to the little details that make your story unique.  And, finally, don't be afraid to crop in tight filling the frame with your subject's face.

Every one has a story tell. Now, go, tell yours.