Claire has sent me in this lovely photo of her son Bruno. I do like pictures of children that are engrossed in play, where the camera is merely recording a moment rather than spoiling it, as happens when you ask the subject to smile for the camera. Even worse is when the poor child is [...]
Andy has sent me two pics, one of his boys and one of his daughter. I am going to look at the one of his sons and pick out the visual clues that help us ‘read’ a photograph. The mind picks up on these clues, often subconsciously, and helps us create a story that makes [...]
This is a lovely ‘story’ photo. The name tags on Finn and his mum tell you that they have just got home from the hospital and I really like the protective way the baby is being held. Finn’s dad took this under mum’s direction, obviously from a high viewpoint, which gives an original and striking [...]
Hi Ken – I like this photo of my daughter but what could I have done to make it better? Carol. Well Carol, I’m afraid that this photo suffers from some of the problems that affect many family snaps. To start with the first thing that you should do is turn off the date stamp [...]
This is a lovely photo Eilidh, a cute subject in a wonderful setting. I always like pictures of children that look lost in their own little world. Callan taken by Eilidh The composition in this picture is very strong with the contrast between the close up of Callan in the grass and the rolling, heather [...]
This is the first in what I hope will be a long running series of tips on how to help you take better photographs of your children. Post your favourite family pic (or one you feel isn’t quite successful and would like to know why) on my Facebook page and I will pick out the [...]
Once you have a nice image there are still lots of techniques that can be used to enhance the picture or you can just play around with it for fun. A client has sent me some pics that I took of his children on a recent shoot. He has used a programme called ToonIt to [...]
Probably the biggest difference between professional photographs and family snaps is the amount of clutter in the background. It is very common to see lovely pictures of children that are spoiled by the kitchen bin, a bit of the fridge and a sink full of dishes in the background. When we look at people our [...]
Once you have decided on your favourite photographs, you need to decide the best way to view them. Digital photography has greatly expanded the way that we can look at our images and how you choose to display them can affect not only your enjoyment of them but also the meaning they have for your [...]
In my last tip, I advised not to hold back on how many frames you shoot. Once you have done that and downloaded the images to your computer, what should you do with them? Often people show me their pics on their computer and I am always amazed that they seem to keep everything they [...]
Ken Sharp is a family photographer who creates classic, natural family portraits for clients in London and Glasgow. Follow Ken's blog for regular news, competitions and portrait photography tips.
