I had just completed a round of glittery sparkly girly mini sessions and wanted to be sure to offer something to my clients of boy moms or for little girls that weren’t quite as princess-y. I started racking my brain for something out of the ordinary that kids love. Of course one thing led to another and I stumbled onto a birthday party website and saw a camping themed birthday party! I instantly knew I wanted to offer something along these lines and the BYOT (bring your own tent) campfire minis were born!
Here are tips for shooting an elaborate setup like my BYOT minis:
Safety first
With this set up I was concerned with the use of real fire and had a backup option of a homemade prop with tissue paper fire on hand as a last resort. However to cover my bases I set minimum age requirement, and had a liability release drafted specifically for these sessions and the campfire. I also made sure to speak with each client that booked about the fact that I planned on using real fire to roast the smore’s so that I could ensure they spoke with their children about safety at the session. The sessions were not centered around the fire, in fact each client brought their own personal tent which added another back up plan of just shooting in their tent if necessary.
Tell the story
The most important part of shooting an elaborate set it to make sure to capture the entire story. This can be done but remembering to focus on the details of the set as well as the entire big picture.
Four hands are better than two
I hired an assistant to attend the shoot with me, not only for set up and breakdown but also to have a second set of hands. For example, while I was shooting the children in front of the fire and pretending to roast marshmallows, she was actually roasting marshmallows and building the smore’s. I really wanted to use real sticks in the shoot to give a very rustic outdoorsy feel to the images, but I did not want to risk anyone catching a stick on fire in their hands, so we only allowed the children to hold the smore’s near the smoke and having that extra set of hands allowed the session to progress more efficiently.
Let them be kids and think fast
There is nothing that can make the magic of childhood disappear more quickly than “restrictions”. Rules for safety are one thing but telling a kid to “stand here” or “hold this there” is definitely a fun and magic zapper! Make sure that you are ready to shoot before you bring them over to the set up. Once you are ready, let them explore! This allows you to capture the unique way each child interacts with the set up you have created and allows you to capture who that child really is rather than telling each child to do the same things. Wait it out, watch them and shoot, shoot, shoot! You will both leave much happier “campers” in the end if you just let them have fun!
Shalonda Chaddock is the face and camera behind chubby cheek photography. She is a nationally published child photographer, based out of Houston Texas, where she is drowning in glitter and princess dresses with her two daughters, affectionately referred to as the cheeks girls, and the love of her life, daddy cheeks. Her shooting style focuses on the magic of childhood and finding the unique sparkle that each child shines with. She allows REAL life to inspire her and shape her journey as a photographer, always recognizing that the little moments do mean the most, even when it means stepping on a Barbie shoe before she has had her coffee.
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