Mom to Mom: Eight Tips for Photographing Kids Like a Pro

Ask any mother what her most cherished Mother's Day gift is and inevitably it will be what made her a mom in the first place — her children.

Most moms are the family photographer.  Andrea Topalian is not only a mom of three but also one of three Certified Professional Photographers in lower Fairfield County. She shared her tips for taking your pictures to the next level with Patch.

Topalian has run Family Photo Day events for the town's elementary schools, the Newcomer's Club, the  and, including her private clients, has photographed more than 350 New Canaan families in the past five years.

 "I like to create images that truly capture children's personalities and family bonds that my clients can proudly display as canvas prints or framed wall art," Topalian told About Town. "I refer to my work as 'children as art.'" 

Topalian offered eight tips for taking professional quality pictures of your children: 

1. Look for the light. Ideal times of day are early morning or late afternoon before the sun goes down. If you have to shoot mid-day look for shade and position your children on the edge where it is still bright but there is no light overhead causing harsh shadows on their face. Try under a tree, on a covered porch or sitting in an open doorway. If you have to shoot with overhead sun then turn on the flash and it will fill in the harsh shadows.
2. Go for natural smiles. Gone are the days of saying “cheese” and getting those overdone fake smiles. Tell a joke or say something that you know will make them laugh. For little ones, tell them something they know is wrong. For example, “Tommy, want to hear me bark like a dog? Here it goes… “meeoow!”  Have fun and you will get those natural smiles. 
3. Get down on their level and enter their world. We are always looking down at our children and while that can be good for close up shots of those big eyes looking up at you, the rest of the time images taken at their level will be more emotional and natural looking. 
4. Get in close. Zoom in and capture the details of their expression and those cute little faces. This way you don’t have to worry about clutter in the background taking away from that face you adore.
5. Be patient. Photographing your own children can be a challenge but we are blessed to be in the digital world. We aren’t limited to a roll of 24 or 36 images so just keep shooting until you get those expressions that make you say “that’s so him/her.” 
6. Have you read your camera’s manual? You would be surprised at what your camera can do. Take an afternoon to read the manual and play around with the settings. Really love photography? Take a lesson. Every community offers photography courses and so do some photographers. 
7. Keep the images safe. We don’t print as many pictures as we used to. Some of my clients admit to never printing any of their pictures. Be sure to back them up on DVD and upload them to a lab that lets you store unlimited images.  I have been uploading my images to Shutterfly monthly since my oldest daughter was born in 2003.  At the end of each month I pick my favorites to print. At the end of the year I pick a handful from each month to create an annual calendar. The family looks forward to the calendar every year.
8. Be sure to hand the camera to someone else so the children will have images of you together. Too many moms say they are waiting to lose weight or to have their hair and makeup done...don’t! You never know what tomorrow will bring and you are perfect in their eyes already.

Patch Moms, share your favorite photos of your own kids....Happy Mother’s Day!