A big part of getting ready for Picture Day can include practicing your smile. This can be fun but it may result in less than great expressions.
The most difficult children to photograph aren’t the children that are afraid of the camera. The most difficult children are those that stare at the lens with a cheesy, pasted-on smile. A child that has had bad experiences with photography in the past can get past that with a little patience from the photographer. These children usually end up with some great expressions and a very positive feeling about the session. This is often not true for the child that is focused on smiling “just right”.
The best preparation for your child is to come into the session thinking the session and the photographer are going to be fun. If your school has a vetted, trained and experienced photographer it will be a fun experience for your child. If the photographer’s engagement, posing and capture sequence can be summed up as “look at the camera, smile, click” that is the problem of the person who selected the photographer for your school. There is nothing you can do about that at this point. But if your school does have a photographer that will engage your child and get them to look relaxed and natural before capturing the images you will get great pictures if your child is not over coached. The most difficult to photograph child is the one who is obsessed with staring at the lens with a big cheesy grin.
Practicing smiles for picture day can be fun. But remember, the harder someone tries to be natural the less natural they look. Let your child come to the session prepared to have fun, relax and just let it happen. Even top models expect to be engaged by and directed by the photographer.