Taking Great Pictures of Kids

This weekend ends the local celebration of World Breastfeeding Week with a seminar on Breastfeeding and Parenting.  Somehow, the Purple Lemon name has started making the rounds here in St. Louis (which I have to say is pretty exciting), and on one of those rounds I ended up being asked to be a speaker to a couple hundred folks (or so I hear) on how to take great pictures of kids.  So on Saturday morning, bright and early (if the sun even rises that early), I'll be setting up shop at the Zoo for my presentation and a booth with Purple Lemon stuff.

I've never been nervous before a crowd, though after singing a solo or acting as a pre-teen, I'd get a few jitters. Would they clap? Did I do an OK job?  It's been a long time since those days, and other than at my dad's church two years ago, I've not done much public speaking in my adult life. I don't think I'd be nervous, except that I'm sick. Will my voice hold out? Will I sneeze uncontrollably all over the stage, leaving phlegm hanging perilously from my nose? I suppose only time will tell.

So what's my best tip for taking great photos of kids?

Well, if I were shooting a wedding, I'd say, my best tip is to grab my assistant Casey, and say, "Can you get some photos of the kids real quick, while I go photograph the shoes?" Then you'd get a cute set of expressive sibling pictures like this:

But if she isn't around, I'd say:

Shhhh! I can't give it away yet, I haven't given my presentation! Maybe next week...