Photographing Children

Happy New Year! Enter Our New Contest!

2010-01-04T12:52:00.001-08:00

Photograph by Mary Monaghan Schannen.

We have started a new contest on the Facebook Group, Photographing Children! The first prize is Adobe Lightroom! Secondary prizes will be awarded as well, including a year's membership to NAPP/Photoshopuser and textures/actions from JESSICA DROSSIN, NICOLE VAN, and SARAH CORNISH. Guess what else? A signed copy of my book, Photographing Children (see Amazon link to right)!

All you need to do is join the FACEBOOK GROUP and click on the first EVENT. You will be directed to the contest. In this group, we share our love and inspiration and learn to better our photography.

Ends January 31st.

Here is to a very peaceful, successful and inspired twenty-ten!

Holiday Gift - Photographing Children

2009-12-08T23:04:00.000-08:00

Word has it that my book, Photographing Children, has been a great gift for new and expectant parents. It is also a wonderful accompaniment to the gift of a camera!

As time has passed since the book came out last year, and our Facebook Group on Photographing Children has reached almost 800 members, I've been thinking about how time will effect the popularity of the book. I have noticed that throughout all the fads and popular photography trends for photographing children, you've got to know the basics: seeing the light, learning to make beautiful compositions, and evoke striking expressions. Once you have the basics down (and I'm not necessarily talking about the technical elements,) you can freely start to develop your own style: photojournalistic, mystical, retro, modern, stark, romantic, classic - whatever suits your tastes and temperament!

I think you will find the book extremely friendly and helpful from all points of view, whether a beginner, intermediate or pro.

Feel free to join the Facebook Group, Photographing Children, to join in on the discussion, and perhaps join our next contest.

Happy Holidays!

Ginny

Facebook Group Photographing Children 2nd Place

2009-10-07T12:54:00.000-07:00

Soon we will be announcing the first place winner of the contest on composition. In the meantime I wanted to introduce the second place winner of our last contest on Pictorial Photography of Children.

Lori Hannon-Ladouceur

"The photo was taken when we were out looking for foxes for me to shoot(with my camera of course)! We found some dens, and my daughter was staring into the woods trying to see if the foxes were coming home. "

I think you will agree that the style and composition and story here give it great strength as a contemporary pictorial photograph. It has a magical, ethereal look to it, which seems to convey just the story Lori tells.

Congratulations, Lori!

(Lori received a signed copy of Photographing Children Photoworkshop, by Ginny Felch) To see more about this book, click on the Amazon button on your right.

Online Mentoring Photographing Children

2009-09-02T15:16:00.000-07:00

I have just begun to offer online mentoring and critiquing for those of you who are interested.

I have been offering mentoring out of my studio in person for years, and it is really a friendly and efficient way to hone in on exactly what YOU want to learn - be it composition, Photoshop tips, seeing light, getting better exposures or expressions. It allows you to cut to the chase rather than spending money on classes where many students try to have their needs met and you have to go through too much information that is not relevant to you.

We will use email,iChat or Skype, so that screen-sharing will be involved. See the Paypal icon on the upper right-hand side of the blog here. Email me at Ginny@silverliningimages to set up a date. Start thinking about what you want to learn, what photographs you want to show me (your worst or your best - the ones that will help you improve!) Also line up some questions, challenges or snags you are running into and we will cross them off your list one by one. If you aren't clear about exactly what you want, we can discuss it and hone in on what you need.

In the meantime, don't forget the contest on the Facebook Group Photographing Children - first prize is Adobe Lightroom!
Contest ends at the end of September, but in the mean time there is a lot of learning and inspiration going on there right now.

Photographing Children Contest Winner

2009-08-20T15:08:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to Jane Adlem, of London, who won first prize in our Facebook Photographing Children Contest. The assignment was "Pictorial," and this image beautifully typifies my vision of the assignment. We are always busy om our group inspiring one another and improving our photographs of children. Jane is a new member and we welcome and honor her!

What I love about this image is the beautiful and somewhat dramatic background, with soft light that eliminates distracting hot spots. Even though there is a pictorial or painterly look, I consider it a timeless, contemporary photograph due to the clothing. I would not ordinarily recommend centering the subject as Jane chose to do in this photograph, but it is the perfect example of "breaking the rules" and going for boldness. The natural and unfettered expression of the child is timeless and spontaneous. Her body language is so fluid and carefree.

Jane describes her photograph:"This is a photograph of my niece I took for a project which was part of a photography course I recently started. I found this beautiful, quiet country lane not far from her house and just followed her around with my camera whilst she was having fun running and hiding from me. I was so pleased to have captured a sense of her movement and love the way her face looks so lost in thought!

Thank you so much for choosing my photograph, I feel very privileged!"

Today we are starting a new contest. The first prize is Nik Color-Effex Pro 3.0. I LOVE that software and use it almost every day. I will announce the subject of the contest on the Facebook Group Photographing Children page. Don't hesitate to join our group by clicking HERE

If you want to go to the contest page it is HERE

Contest on Pictorial Photography of Children

2009-07-29T12:00:00.001-07:00

My Facebook Group Photographing Children is growing by leaps and bounds with many enthusiastic members just inspiring and being inspired! We are in the middle of a contest right now with ADOBE LIGHTROOM as first prize! Second prize is a signed (if you live in US) copy of my book, Photographing Children (see link to the right)

Join in by going to Facebook, joining up with the group Photographing Children. Then go to the EVENTS on that page and sign up for the Pictorial Contest and you will be able to enter and LEARN.

Pictorial photography is about a sense of place utilizing all the compositional elements we learned about in the book, adding to it the essence of beautiful, natural light. It is NOT about close-up photography.

There are links on the group page to learn more. Join in on the fun!

Ephotozine Interview Photographing Children by Ginny Felch

2009-05-26T10:51:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago, Nikita from ephotozine.com emailed and asked me if she could talk with me about photographing children. Wiley sent her the book and today they published a nice interview which follows. Thank you, Nikita! I love to share my enthusiasm about photographing children and then get involved with the photographers and parents who share it. The Facebook Group, Photographing Children (by invitation) has grown to over 400 members who ask for help, share their successes, and participate in discussions and contests. The subject of our contest ending June 6th is about depth of field (bokeh) or keeping the background out of focus while the subject remains in focus. Sometimes this really enhances a portrait and it is fun to experiment with. The winner will receive Photoshop Elements from Adobe!

One of our newest members just had a baby a week or so ago and is sharing her first portraits, complete with her own hand-knitted hats and outfits.

Enjoy the interview, read the book (!) and join in on the fun! Best, Ginny

Interview

Radio Interview with Ginny Felch on Photographing Children

2009-03-05T12:07:00.000-08:00

What a great way to celebrate finishing my taxes! Today I was interviewed about photographing children and my book by West Marin's Adrienne Pfeiffer on KWMR radio, which was live on radio and online. I was a little nervous about it, so I didn't make a big announcement, but after hearing it today, I decided to share it with you. It's about twenty minutes. If you join the group Photographing Children on Facebook, you can ask further questions.

Here it is: Enjoy!

Interview

The Three Biggest Mistakes in Photographing Children

2009-01-24T14:13:00.000-08:00

This is not an example of a mistake! I think this is an example of a photograph with a great subject matter and soft lighting and a simple background.

Over the years I have seen so many potentially wonderful photographs of children. Parents often have the opportunity to capture the best expressions of children, but render "merely" snapshots unless they have either some kind of organic intuition about composition or have picked up a tip or two along the way. What I have noticed are the following common mistakes.

1. Too much information! Pay attention to where your eye roams when you are looking at a photograph. Track it. If they don't first go right to your subject, ask yourself WHY. Most often it is because there is too much clutter in the background. When you make the CHOICE to click the shutter, really look first. Is there something that takes your eye that you can move out of the way?
Can you walk around the child and find a better, simpler background? Your focal point should be the child, particularly the face and more particularly the eyes. Now go and look at some of your favorite photographs and see if you can see what I mean. Another thing that effects the background is the depth of field, or what is or is not in focus or blurred. Generally speaking the less depth of field the better in a portrait. When you set your camera on portrait mode if you have one, that is what will happen - the background will be thrown out of focus more. If you have any idea of how to make that happen on your camera (without being too technical here), just do it. For those of you who are real beginners, I will throw out the word, "aperture." That is the size of the hole in the lens and it is not fixed. Aperture controls what is or is not in focus. Later, later later.

2. Too much Flash. Try this on for a philosophy. Just say NO. No flash. Unless you really know what you are doing with a flash (and are much more left-brained than I am) it usually blasts too much flat light into the subject. Usually that not only washes out the subject but flattens it out too. In my book I talk about how to find flattering and sculpting light - natural light, from the sky, from windows, doorways, under trees. This philosophy will test you for sure. When you are inside with no light, this is not going to work. However, if start thinking about light, direction of light, etc., instead of setting up the flash as a default, you will learn quickly when you must turn it on. There are ways to finesse the use of flash in a more natural way, but I will talk about that later. By that time, you won't ever want to use flash again, I promise.

3. Overexposure. Something I learned way back in my early years of professional shooting is that good photographs are often more saturated and darker than the "default" of what your camera gives you. Just take one of your photographs that you like but don't love and either bring down the curves in photoshop or just try darkening it in any way that your software provides.
You might have to bump up the contrast a tiny bit, too. That should make all the difference. If not, try another one until you see what I mean.

Photographing Children Suggestion of the Day

2009-01-11T10:37:00.000-08:00

Something pretty wonderful is happening on my Facebook Group Photographing Children! So, click on the Amazon button to the right, GET MY BOOK, and join us in a great discussion and sharing of children's photography and feedback by clicking HERE

Encourage your friends to join us - what I love is that after photographing children for thirty years, I am constantly inspired by seeing the work of other photographers of varying experience. Sometimes even the pros get jaded and stuck in their ways and could well use some "sideways" thinking. With all the tools that are now available, i.e. cameras that give you great exposures without knowing what you are doing and post-production software like Photoshop Elements and Photoshop CS4, you can be as creative and experimental as you wish. Knowing what you are doing, of course, is always an asset!

I think we have finally ARRIVED at a time when the quality of digital photography has matched "analog" photography; then add the digital darkroom and you just can't stop us! Be glad you are able to have these rich resources before you and let's create!!!

My Grandson's Christening Portrait

2008-12-01T17:05:00.000-08:00

During Thanksgiving the entire family created a beautiful naming ceremony for our grandchild, Nico. It was truly lovely. Nico is six months old and of course, the cutest baby I've ever seen! Always the traditionalist, I wanted to celebrate the day with a portrait. In our living room of the house we were renting, there was a perfect wing back chair in nice, brown/gold tones. The light coming in through the window was not sun, but bright fog and a low-broad light source outside - my favorite!

Nico was dressed in his finest for the occasion and was in a lovely, relaxed mood, so all was quite perfect. His mom was sitting beside him, and I turned the chair a bit towards the light and used the inside white shutters on the window to direct the light even more into his face. Some photographs were taken as he faced the other way, leaning over the arm of the chair, but my favorites were when we had him facing the light source so that his beautiful, deep blue eyes would be shown off!

This portrait was made on AV, or aperture priority, set at f/4, so that the background would be softened as much as possible with my lens. This was a point and shoot Canon camera, all proving the point of my book, that it is simple, simple, simple if you understand a few things about light and composition!

Notes from a Master of Photography

2008-09-22T14:32:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I just like to mention that. Master of Photography. What does that mean, you ask? Through Professional Photographers of America, this "degree" is bestowed on photographers who go through the arduous, challenging, and rewarding program to attain status among professional photographers. It involves submitting prints for judging in national competitions and scoring very high in technical and creative points. It also involves teaching workshops and lectures to other professional photographers internationally. I earned this award in my early career, and I am still very proud of this "representation of the oldest and largest professional photography organization’s standards of excellence."

As I worked through the process, the experiences I gained were priceless. I began to seek out judges whose work I greatly admired and asked for critiques which were generously offered. Developing one's own style often involves emulating the work of others, but I found that my own "signature" developed very quickly. I was a single parent at the time and one of my teachers, Linda Lapp, inspired me to create a home studio and photograph out of doors, in client's homes and gardens, and the beach. That really cut down on expenses and I loved working in the soft afternoon light, always challenged creatively by walking into unfamiliar territory.

As a result of all the help I received over the years, I feel it is so important to give back that inspiration and guidance to others. I truly hope that my book will help you make better photographs of children - to find your own style, choose which skills you want to hone in on, and MAKE IT HAPPEN! Whether you are a parent, a grand-parent, or an aspiring/accomplished professional, I believe you will find a great deal of helpful information. I hope so.

Warmly,

Ginny

In the Gloaming...

2008-09-19T14:57:00.001-07:00

Days like this make me really appreciate what I do for a living and also as a passion. This little sweetie is 2 1/2 years old and I photographed him on a warm and sunny Sonoma afternoon. I took him, along with his big brother, to the garden at a local winery. The light was a low, broad blue sky, and the overhead portico created good protection from overhead light. The warm glow was thanks to good old California autumn. I love the way the crimson leaves peak through the columns. This portrait demonstrates how lovely an image can be in all its simplicity - both in lighting and composition.

I love the spontaneous, impishness of his expression. What I really love about children this age is that they still have the babyish round, soft cheeks. This usually disappears when they are 3 to 4.

Best of all, his mom said the portrait really captured him! Ahhh. That makes me so happy!

What is YOUR learning style?

2008-08-14T17:37:00.000-07:00

My book, Photographing Children, has two distinct tracks to learn about creating better photographs of your children. My intention was to write a book that is geared to less technically-oriented readers who want to learn to turn an average snapshot into a more fine and dazzling portrait. This journey is about learning to see the light and to use it effectively and sculpturally. It is also about using more dramatic composition and eliciting a wide range of expressions from children, as well as finding more interesting backgrounds.

Most books on photography, and even on photographing children, elaborate about all the camera bells and whistles and digital tricks. Many people pick the books up in the bookstore and start seeing references to f-stops and color temperature, only to feel intimidated and put it right back on the shelf.

Photography needn't be so dreary!

I wanted to inspire the reader to see that it can be fun, relaxing and un-intimidating learning to create better photos of their children! When I teach photography to parents (mainly Moms) I will often have them start off using automatic mode on the camera.

Then I teach them to see, feel and LOVE light...light in the afternoon, light coming in through a window, and so on. Then we look at some of their favorite photographs, noticing how they are composed and why we are drawn to them so that we can incorporate that into their images.

In my experience as a teacher of other professional photographers, I have noticed over the years that many don't see light and make use of it in a creative way. They automatically use a flash and zap away any possibility for a beautifully "sculpted" portrait.

I have attempted in my book to show the value of using natural and available light, and classical composition.

However, if you find that you want to go a step beyond and learn more about your camera, lenses, and settings, you can follow that track through the book as well. I found a contributor, Allison Tyler Jones, who was able to add that information in a simple and friendly manner.

The photographs in the book range from very contemporary and fresh to the more classical and refined, and much in between. Readers can identify with a style that might come close to theirs.

The nice thing is that you can choose your path in reading this book, and continue to use it as a resource and inspiration as you gain confidence in your photography!

Enjoy!

Photographing Children Featured in Real Simple Magazine

2008-06-27T15:02:00.000-07:00

I was thrilled to receive a call from my editor telling me that my book, Photographing Children Photoworkshop by Ginny Felch was featured in the current July issue of Real Simple Magazine. It is on Page 8 in "the simple list," How exciting is that!

It is titled: 3 tips for taking better pictures of your tots.

I love Real Simple Magazine and I know how popular it is with all ages, so I was thrilled to have the book featured there.

I wanted to show you a beautiful image that I delivered yesterday to the sweetest family in the East Bay. Such a beautiful child and it was created on an evening at the beach during twilight hours at low tide. Just a quiet and magical moment with a truly delightful child and her mom and dad. I love the soft light and harmonious colors, right down to her sweater. Her beautiful red/gold locks really vignette her face. Usually I tend to avoid centering the subject in a child's portrait, but it just seemed like the right thing to do in this case. Important to use that intuition sometimes!

Ironically, this image was taken two weeks after a California wildfire, and the evening light was crimson for quite some time. This was one of the images effected by unusually warm light.

Wonderful Email Received about Photographing Children by Ginny Felch

2008-03-28T10:46:00.000-07:00

I received this email last week which brought tears to my eyes because Angela really GOT the message. Seeing the light! I have attached one of her beautiful photographs which she created BEFORE she read the book, and so I can't wait to see what she will come up with now. This photograph really demonstrates how the sculptural quality of light can enhance an image. Angela was taking advantage of using light behind her nephew, which created "rim" light around his face. Angela Stubb's has two websites, one with her photography, and one with her children's shop.

Dear Ginny

I am sure you will receive many emails like mine, but I just wanted to thank you for writing your book. I only bought it yesterday, and am not even half way through, but it is wonderful.

I have only been a 'beginner professional' for six months and whilst I am proud of my work, I have soooo much to learn and I am finding your work truly inspirational. I like to only work with natural light but even through I try , I have sometimes struggled to 'find the light' so-to-speak and yet I am already looking at the world around me with new eyes having read your first four chapters last night.

Like many photographers, I have dipped in and out of many books but your's is beautifully written, enhanced by wonderfully inspiring images and a joy to consume. I am looking forward to soaking up all that remains in the rest of the book this evening!

Sorry to gush, but you have made a real impact on me. Thank you.

Kindest regards,
Angela.

PS... I hope one day you may come to England where I can hear you speak.

First Amazon Review!

2008-02-22T16:18:00.001-08:00

Maine children's photographer, Patrisha McLean, whose beautiful portraits are included in the book, wrote the following raving review:

"Get this book if you have any interest at all in children's photography. The photos are wonderful and inspiring-- none of those cheesy, high-flash, heavy-filter shots so depressingly common in this genre. I am very proud to have a few of my photos included in this superbly-written and illustrated book. I've looked through others of its type and the advice is usually really obvious. Not so here. Even professional children photographers will learn from this book - I've been making my living at this for 10 years and still picked up a few things myself."

Seen above is one of her fine portraits. Check out more of her work on patrishamclean

Photographing Children - The book is released!

2008-02-22T09:59:00.000-08:00

I just received an email from my niece saying that she received a copy of the book! (She is the mom of several of my "models," so I requested that she receive a complimentary copy from the publisher). She is a young mom of three boys and her first glance was very positive. I will ask her to write something soon because as a mom with camera, she will have very helpful feedback for us all. Stay tuned!

The actual release date on Amazon is March 10!

Ten Tips on Photographing Children

2007-09-12T18:47:00.001-07:00

Amazon and Wiley have created a great little "boutique" on Amazon.com for Robert Farber's Photoworkshop books, including mine!

Check it out at Amazon .Scroll down to Ginny Felch and "10 tips"...

Scroll down to Ginny Felch and click on the Ten Tips for Photographing Children. We are getting closer to the publishing date.

Announcing....Photographing Children

2007-07-10T15:59:00.003-07:00

Announcing......a new blog in development to correspond with the release my book, Photographing Children Photoworkshop by Ginny Felch (Wiley Publications) .You can pre-order on Amazon.com by doing a search for Ginny Felch. It is expected to be released by February, 2008 or earlier.

The book and the website will focus on the creative and inspirational approach to photographing children, with the emphasis on photographing from the heart. At the same time, you will find a friendly and unintimidating approach to the technical aspects of children's photography.

I was asked to write this book by Robert Farber, a well-known and admired photographer, and the developer of Photoworkshop.com. It will be one book in a series of books that will be featured on that website, which will display images posted for the workshop assignments at the end of each chapter of the books.

I have been been photographing children professionally for their parents for thirty years, and I am a Master of Photography through Professional Photographers of America. This degree has afforded me the opportunity to speak for and teach professional photographers, nationally and internationally. My inspiration was photographing my son, Zach, throughout his childhood.

As I continue with portrait commissions, I am also very excited about inspiring parents to create more sensitive, dynamic and stunning photographs of their children, in a very friendly and non-technical way. The material in this book has evolved through years of one-on-one coaching.

Stay tuned. In the meantime, you can see some of my work on my website, www.silverliningimages.com. Email me directly at ginny@silverliningimages.com for questions or feedback.