Many of my clients come to me for family portraits after years of not taking professional family pictures. The kids are older, many times they are teens. They feel embarrassed posing to the camera hugging their parents, showing signs of fondness and love. I get it! My kids went through that phase as well. My son refused to do the 'Mother-Son' dance with me during his Bar Mitzvah. Now at 19, he regrets it.
Gathering every family member for a family portrait session is not easy. Having them smile and relax to me as even harder. Yet, these years are precious, especially since they are about to leave for college and having them come together for a picture will just get harder.
Maybe you are waiting for their skin to clear from signs of acne, maybe they don't want to smile with their braces. Maybe you are waiting for your hair to grow or to shed some pounds.
Well, my take on this is that there is never a perfect time. There will always be the extra pound to fight (be honest, how often you promised yourself you will lose it?), or the pimple (that can be easily removed in Photoshop).
So how do you get your teen to cooperate?
- Start with the truth. Explain to them that it is very important to you because they are about to leave the nest.
- Come up with ground rules of what everyone's comfort level is. If they don't want to be affectionate in front of the camera, so be it.
- Tell them that they can have some few individual photos on their own.
- Give them a color guide that matches everyone's clothes but let them choose their outfits. Teens like to express themselves.
- Don't make them cut their hair and brush it the way you want them to.
- Plan a fun outing after the portrait session. It can become a quality time together.
Hope that was helpful for your next session. Let's get together and capture your smiles.
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