Northampton Family Portraits: Alice and Archie
Introducing the lovely Alice and Archie from Northamptonshire, who popped along to the studio at the weekend for their family portraits, mum had met us at last summers Northampton Food Festival at Holdenby House.
6 year old Alice was very confident and chatty on arrival at the studio, where as 4 year old Archie had already decided that he didn’t want to have his photographs taken today thank you very much! A pretty common and understandable response from children who’ve never had their portraits professionally taken.
However, thanks to the very relaxed nature of our family photoshoots and his big sister leading the way, little man soon warmed up and joined in the fun.
(Please click on an image to see it bigger)
We all want to see those big wide open eyes and cheeky smiles but my favourite portraits are often the more candid. Images where the children aren’t looking straight at the camera or interacting with me directly is where I believe portrait photography can really shine. Capturing fleeting looks, glances or natural expressions that reveal another layer of a child’s personality is a real joy.
When you do want to capture a bit of childhood exuberance, nothing works better than a big old fan! I also enjoy the fact that it throws hair off children’s faces and reveals their natural form and structure, often making children appear much older than they actually are.
After spending some time with the children individually I always like to get some group family shots of the siblings interacting together. My relaxed approach to portraiture means I always try to avoid posing my subjects too much but instead like to gently direct scenarios where children can interact more naturally. It means that there is a fair amount of wriggling, fidgeting and occasional bickering but ultimately it makes for a much more natural and meaningful family portrait.
Patience and timing is the portrait photographers greatest asset!
A lovely way to spend a Saturday afternoon! Massive thanks to Alice, Archie and of course mum for bringing them along.