By : Nikon School Blog | 22 Dec, 2017 |
Children are the most beautiful and fulfilling part of our lives. The sight of a happy child at play is one of the few reliefs that we have in our stressful, modern lives. It’s no wonder then that children are among the most attractive subjects for photographers around the world.
While some photographers specialise in photographing children under controlled environment, it’s another story altogether when you’re trying to take images of children while travelling or on the move. This article is about shooting candid images of children.
It’s very important to photograph children in a way that shows their innocence, enthusiasm, energy, and all other emotions that make them different from adults.
Children do things that most adults will not dream of doing in public, like picking their nose, making faces, or getting messy while having an ice-cream. This makes shooting such childish antics exciting and entertaining to look at.
Though staying hidden and being candid works best, but sometimes, being the friendly photographer guy helps if the child likes you. Playing funny games like peekaboo helps in engaging children and easing them up with your camera pointed towards them.
Children are very enthusiastic about doing crazy things, like jumping, or making faces. Some of the most attractive images of children can be shot when they are at play. So, whenever you see them at play, expect and prepare for some great moments.
However, children are not always playful. Sometimes, they’ll give you expressions that you expect from adults, like being thoughtful, serious, and pensive. These expressions show up usually when the child is sleepy, or has just woke up, or is bored or angry.
It’s also interesting to show children in the presence of adults. This shows their relative size compared to adults, and also how children express themselves in the presence of grown-ups.
Shooting at their eye level works best to show their perspective, but you can always experiment with low or high angles. Be careful to get the vital ‘catchlight’ in their eyes, to make them appear lively.
While programmed mode (P) is good for candid shots of children in good light conditions, Shutter priority mode (S) is better when it comes to shooting them at play. Choose between 1/250 and 1/500 to freeze their motion. Focus should be continuous (AF-C) and choosing a dynamic point will keep the focus on the child as she or he moves around.
Use Aperture priority mode (A) with open apertures like f/2.8 or f/4 to get a shallow depth-of-field. Using Portrait picture control will ensure natural skin tones.