Shooting 201: Lifestyle Photography with Kids {Clickin Moms Workshop}

When it comes to photography, I am a sponge.  I am constantly reading photography magazines to learn about all the newest products and equipment out there. I spend (waaaay more) time (than I should) on photography forums, chatting with other people who share my passion and sharing ideas.  My favorite thing to do, however, is to take workshops – some to further my knowledge of my business, and some to further my knowledge of my craft.  I am always on the hunt for something interesting and fun (traveling to an awesome location is a definite PLUS), and am currently taking a course from Clickin Moms with Ashley Spaulding called Shooting 201: Lifestyle Photography with Kids.

I chose this one specifically because 1) well, I HAVE kids, and 2) I’d like to take better photographs of them doing their thing.  Much of what I photograph is centered around my clients and their experience with me.  This course, however, was purely selfish.  Well, okay, hopefully some of these skills will spill over into my professional photography, but what I really wanted to accomplish with this course was to be able to capture OUR life at home, beautifully.

Last week was the first lesson, which I didn’t get a chance to practice in depth, so I’m combining my homework images with lesson two. Ashley discusses the definition of lifestyle photography itself, which is its own genre of photography that falls between snapshots and journalistic photography.  In essence, lifestyle photography is thoughtfully composed-yet-unposed capturing of people doing what they do.  The goal is to tell a whole story in one image, incorporating all the critical elements of the story without any distracting elements.  Let me tell you – it’s harder than it looks!  In her lesson, one of the main points Ashley makes is that these are not randomly snapped photographs – it is important to declutter your surroundings and use some creative perspectives in order to have your subjects shine.

A lot of what she covered in this week’s lesson speaks to the psychology of photographing children in their element and rules of photographic composition.  Most of this lesson was stuff I already knew intuitively, but had yet to practice on my own family.

So, what do you think – do you know the stories I am trying to tell?  Are there distractions you wish weren’t in the frame?  How do you think the girls are feeling?  I’m curious to have some feedback, so leave your thoughts and comments below!