by Steve Terlizzi
Click on photos to enlarge and book image to go to Amazon
An interesting phenomenon occurs when someone finds out you have an expertise in photography. The first question you get is "Which camera should I buy?" That simple question leads to a cascade of follow-up questions about budget, convenience, interest level and type of photography. More often than not, the type of photography question leads to the answer, "I want to take better photos of my children". This has happened with the last four first-time DSLR buyers that I assisted.
Truth be told, it was also a major factor on why I bought my first DSLR. Also truth be told, initially it didn't improve my photography much at all. However, "Photographing Children" by Ginny Felch did. The book is well organized for someone to learn how to make photographs of their children, rather than simply take pictures.
Let's be frank - family members will drool over photos of your children regardless of the quality; however, if you want strangers to be impressed, then you'll need to take your photography to another level. For example, a copy of the above photograph proudly sits attached on the wall by my aunt's desk in the School District in Holmdel NJ. Every day parents stop and ask who is that beautiful girl?But there is another reward for you as the photographer; as Ginny says in her book, "Parent or professional, being successful at children's portraiture requires you to get seriously in touch with your inner child, and to reach deep and find out what really inspires you both visually and emotionally."
Children are interesting subjects and documenting their exploration of the world can make for some interesting stories. "Photographing Children" contains all the necessary information in very easy concise nuggets and exercises to help you learn how to capture those incredible but fleeting decisive moments.
What's Your Style?
So what separates an ordinary snapshot from an outstanding picture? Well, let's look at two of my photographs - one from before reading the book and one from after. Both photos were taken in a park using a photojournalist style. In the book, Ginny discusses multiple styles towards children's photography. It’s one of the most valuable chapters in the entire book.
Before Reading After Reading
As defined in the book, the photojournalistic style "requires you to get out of the way and let kids be kids." So why is the right image so much better? It tells a story of intensity as Ayumi tries to climb up the slide. You can see the determination on her face and the balancing with her hands. All that is missing from the photograph on the left. There is also an entire chapter on how to evoke and express children's emotions through photographs.
Seeing the Light
Another lesson from the book differentiates these two photos...the importance of "seeing the light". In a chapter entitled just that “Seeing the Light”, Ginny quotes Ruth Bernhard who said, "Light is my inspiration, my paint, and brush. It is as vital as the model herself." This quote caused a major shift in this photographer's perspective; no longer was I taking a picture but rather making a photograph. Look at our previous example...it becomes apparent that the available light in the left picture detracts from the model and adds nothing to the photograph while the light in the right photograph makes the picture by emphasizing the child's face. Also, the light reflects off the metallic slide and provides depth to the photograph.
Within the book, there are a tremendous number of high quality pictures that illustrate various points about lighting and composition. All the photos come with a description as well as their shutter, aperture and ISO settings. But make no mistake this is not a picture book, but rather a well-crafted educational tool. Moreover, the book has a very active Facebook Fan page and a Web site, http://www.photographingchildren.com/.
Four-Part Series on WeArePhotographers
So you can experience the book firsthand, we have arranged with Ginny Felch and Wiley Publishing, Inc to have a four-part series within our Learn Photography section where we will excerpt some most interesting sections of the book with the original photography. Look for the first excerpt next Monday and the book is available in our online Amazon store.
FTC Notice: Ginny Felch and WeArePhotographers have an existing business relationship where she has and will contribute content to our site free-of-charge and, by using the WeArePhotographers bookstore to purchase her book, WeArePhotographers will receive some consideration through an explicit business relationship with Amazon.
