john_baker8 Posted March 4, 2005 Share Posted March 4, 2005 Below is an excerpt from an e-mail from the bride for which I am doing my first wedding in June. Any suggestions on how to handle 12 kids for photos??? "...I already have started the list of photos I want. We can get together sometime and talk about it. You know there will be 8 flower girls and 4 ring bearers, all 5 or under. That should be interesting for you to try to get all of those cute shots. Dillon is supposed to walk me down the aisle wearing his Green Beret uniform. Lots of photos of that please!..." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jason_thomas1 Posted March 4, 2005 Share Posted March 4, 2005 "...That should be interesting for you..." I'm sorry! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john_baker8 Posted March 4, 2005 Author Share Posted March 4, 2005 :-) I know. My wife will be with me plus we know most of the people and parents. Hopefully it won't be too bad. (Gulp!..) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gpdno Posted March 4, 2005 Share Posted March 4, 2005 Have fun, be playful with the kids and get down on their level. Small stuffed aminals as bribes can't hurt :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
todd1664878707 Posted March 4, 2005 Share Posted March 4, 2005 I vote for loading them up with Nyquil about 45 minutes prior to shooting. That way you can pose them easily like little stuffed animals on a shelf. Of course they won't be standing at that point, but they will be very cooperative. On a serious note...I know a photographer that shoots kids frequently. He bribes them with candy. He said it works very well assuming the parents are ok with it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tom_herron Posted March 4, 2005 Share Posted March 4, 2005 You do have a challenge on your hands. I shot a wedding this fall with four three and four year olds as flower girls and ring bearers. I'm glad I shot it digitally and shot lots and lots of pictures, because there were so many formal shots where one or two of the ankle biters were making faces or looking totally unhappy being there. The candids and the shots during the ceremony were no problem at all fortunately. What I figured out that worked best for the formals was to have my camera stationary on a tripod and use a shutter release. That allowed me to interact with the kids and quickly snap shots when everybody looked happy. Good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rich_dutchman1 Posted March 4, 2005 Share Posted March 4, 2005 Shoot from behind glass...See second photos in third and fourth rows: http://www.richdutchman.com/portfolios/johnlisa/index.html Lots of children at this one: http://www.richdutchman.com/portfolios/mikijeanne/index.html About that photo list...if you accept it, you may disappoint the bride if you miss something. I would thank her for the "heads up," but limit the list to family group photos. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bill_clark___minnetonka_mi Posted March 4, 2005 Share Posted March 4, 2005 I will recommend to my client to stage these photo ops and have them as a backup in case it doesn't go as planned during the ceremony. They can be created in a fashion so as people wouldn't know the difference. The staged idea is most always well received by my clients & staff at the ceremony location. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
think27 Posted March 4, 2005 Share Posted March 4, 2005 I think that as soon as kids determine that you want them to do something - they see that as an opportunity to show their power. Which means they get cranky and rebel. <p>My suggestion based on what I do when I go to homes to do kids portraits.... Bring a kids book. Or have one parent bring a favorite of the younger ones. Have someone tell the kids it is storytime (maybe the bride will read the story) and have them sit and gather around a bench, stairs or other setting. Stand behind the reader and shoot. <p>Another idea is to give them all bubbles and tell them to stand together and see who can blow the biggest bubble. The first idea is better because you'll get them with rapt expressions. Good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cliff_henry Posted March 4, 2005 Share Posted March 4, 2005 At my last wedding, two weeks ago, the bride was a child care taker and she invited *all* of her children. There must have been 25+. The best shots I got were of individual children with a long lens ? if they know you are trying to get their pix you just don?t get best expressions. Only good group shots of all kids were: 1) them watching set-up cake cutting. 2) After cake cutting I ask kids to crowd around cake and show me if they wanted any cake. Worked great, got two shots ? (1 they all extended their arms/hands toward cake and (2 then I ask them to turn their heads and look at me. As Mary said, my best group shots were with bride sitting and children crowded around her, standing and sitting. They were use to this setting with her and they became quite and still for a few shots. Bride loved this shot! Good luck with your shoot. Cliff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pazellisphoto Posted March 4, 2005 Share Posted March 4, 2005 The bubbles is a great idea! At a recent wedding (my first!) I just chased them around... got them dancing, looking at flowers and sitting all in a row looking at the bride and groom at their first dance. They were fascinated for some reason & it was a very cute, candid photo. If you can get them outside, and have someone show them a worm or a flower or a rock,,, they will all stand together to see and you will be able to get that impossible kid group photo. The bride at my recent wedding had a 7 year old daughter, whom I "hired" as my 'picture helper'... she was great at getting the other kids to listen and they did not fuss because they were playing with their friend, and not posing. Have fun! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
picturesque Posted March 4, 2005 Share Posted March 4, 2005 Depends on what photo session you're asking about. If the pre-ceremony shots, girls with the bride, boys with the groom and maybe the kids together, the key things are to get several activities planned (like Mary suggested) and allow enough time for those activities. Another activity would be to use the time for the bride to give each kid their flower basket or present for participating, as many brides do. Same with the groom/boys. During formals, there isn't much you can do with activities since you won't have much time to spend on getting the kids looking good. For formals, I just try to focus on keeping their faces turned toward the camera. I have a plastic frog flashlight on a key chain that lights up and "ribets". Seems hokey but it works most of the time in getting kids to focus on me--even smile, if you tell them the frog wants to inspect their tooth brushing habits or something like that. It really, really helps to have an assistant who can soften kids up. I might even pay an assistant more money if they are talented at that. I also make sure the bride understands that I won't try to get perfect posed shots of the kids, especially together. I like the funny things they do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pazellisphoto Posted March 4, 2005 Share Posted March 4, 2005 Oh, one more trick... If i get all the kids together, I point up and tell them I see a plane or star or whatever! And they all look up and then look at me with perfect inquisitive stares. Yve Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john_baker8 Posted March 4, 2005 Author Share Posted March 4, 2005 Thanks everybody! There are a LOT of great ideas here. I really appreciate it. The wedding is going to be in the evening outside in a park. It should be fun. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
holly mikel Posted March 4, 2005 Share Posted March 4, 2005 I second Nadine on the candid shots - showing true personality rather than a zombie stare or cheshire cat grin that mimics their school drive-through mass photography session. Children are precious just being themselves. (coming from a mother, of course) :) Good luck with the posed shots - with that many kids it sounds next to impossible!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grant g Posted March 4, 2005 Share Posted March 4, 2005 I've bribed kids with taking "fun" shots of them in-between the serious ones. If I don't want to waste the card space all the time, I just hit the test button on the flash. They'll never wonder where those shots went. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nstock Posted March 4, 2005 Share Posted March 4, 2005 Oh boy... My experience is to get the kids early because they get tired/cranky/scared pretty early on. While I personally am NOT in favor of small children at adult parties (like wedding receptions)(go ahead and flame me for now wanting kids at adult parties.. but that is what I think), sometimes a little kid will get out on the dance floor and steal ths show. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
todd frederick Posted March 4, 2005 Share Posted March 4, 2005 I'm a stalker! Whenever I find a youngster who resists and rebels, I go after him/her all day until I get at least one good photo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david_duffy1 Posted March 6, 2005 Share Posted March 6, 2005 I would suggest getting this group done as soon as possible so they can run play afterwards. One trick I use all the time with little kids is to ask them what sound a lion makes, then a monkey, etc. Then how about a giraffe? That usually stops them in their tracks, when I tell them it says "moo" I almost always get a laugh. When they say "no it doesn't" I ask them if they have ever heard a giraffe? Sometimes I get to the point where most animals not on Old MacDonald's farm say "moo" (giraffes, bald eagles, hippos, rhinos, starfish, etc.). It may not work for that many kids at once but it has definitely has worked for me with smaller groups of kids. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
think27 Posted March 7, 2005 Share Posted March 7, 2005 Nice David... I'm going to use that. ;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kapaniris Posted March 9, 2005 Share Posted March 9, 2005 I carry a "light wand" in my kit. It's about 6" in length, a plastic wand with specs in it that flashes brightly red, green, blue. Great for getting their attention and having them look in the right direction. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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