Dear friends,
To promote our brand new book, “My First Photography Book” (the first children’s book on photography!) I wanted to share some tips, thoughts, and practical philosophy on teaching your child (or the kids in your life) how to make better photos:
First of all, encourage your kids to get very close to whatever they’re photographing. The closer, the better.
Encourage them to look at the details, like the veins in the leaves of the plant, or the wrinkles in the forehead of their grandparents.
Second tip: have them look at what direction the sun is coming from. Have them shoot with the light, not against the light.
That means, before they take a photo, ask your kid:
“What direction is the sun coming from?”
Then have your kid look up, and point out the sun.
For example, give your kid the phone or camera, and have them take two photos: one photo with the sun in your face, and one photo with the sun on your back. Then ask your kid which photo they prefer more.
Third tip: have your kid shoot with your phone, and then process the photos with VSCO afterwards
Just give your kid your phone, and have them run around and shoot photos. Then sit down with them, and review the photos with them, and ask them which of the photos are their favorites.
Then select and open the photos in the VSCO app, and then preview some different presets and filters with them. Ask them which they prefer, then save the photos!
With the saved photos, send it to your friends and family via email or messenger, to show them the beautiful art your little one is making!
Fourth tip, encourage your kid to shoot diagonal compositions by tilting the camera/phone. Have them experiment with shooting trees, and create diagonals!
Fifth tip, have your kid simplify the background. Start off by just having them clear the table before photographing something on top of it, or have them make portraits of your family members standing against a simple white, grey, black, or blank wall.
For inspiration, study the work of Richard Avedon.
Lastly, have fun! Don’t take it too seriously. To be honest, your kid can probably teach you more about photography than vice versa.
Also last fun tip, buy your kid a Fujifilm Instax Mini Camera, and have them experiment with it! In today’s digital world, empowering your kid to make tangible photos will be super exciting and fun for them!
For more inspiration, pick up a copy of our new book, “My First Photography Book” >
Smile and have fun!
ERIC