The question was posed: What's your favorite kids pose?

It may
not be a pose as much as an angle or approach that reveals
a childs personality and creates a portrait parents cant resist.
Whats your best seller?
Photographers reveal the childrens poses parents flip over
e asked a group of child
portrait photographers to tell
us how they get the shots parents
cant resist. It seems kids portraits
now are about letting the tykes
express themselves. The photographer will
place the child in a photogenic environ-
ment, adjust the lighting and make the
camera settings, then let the kids be kids.
Often the photographer is in motion
alongside the pint-sized subject, ready
to capture that certain expression that
says it all.
Seven portrait artists from around the
country discuss how they get the great shot. W
POSING
CONNIE GROAH
Barefoot Photography, Annapolis, Md., barefoot-photo.com
My clients love close-ups of their childrentight head crops with the child
looking into the cameraand they always buy at least one. The expression
might be a natural smile, a laugh or a pensive, soulful look. With babies,
many clients go for full-body shots, but I sell more close-ups, head and
shoulders shots, and three-quarter images as the children get older. The
more the image looks as though were playing, which we usually are, the
more likely the parents are to recall the moment as fun. When they see that
projected in the image, they want to buy it. When I look through my images,
I can see which factors prompt parents to buy. While I do set up my shots
and sometimes even loosely pose children, I interact with them so much
that Im getting real expressions, and we can push past the fake smiles.
CYNTHIA GRAHAM
Cynthia Graham Photography, Orlando, Fla., cynthiagraham.com
Im not a photographer who poses children too much. I believe the
things they do naturally make the most beautiful portraitsprovided
theyre in good light and Im patient enough to wait for the magical
moments. What Im selling is something genuine, something with
feeling. Those are the elements my clients respond to, even if they
cant put it into words. There is, though, a particular look I strive to
capture because parents find it irresistible. I get very close and focus on
the childs large, soulful eyes. Often the eyes are slightly upturned for
drama. The shot usually has a landscape orientation. Its a simple
portrait, but it sells every time. When it comes to child portraits for
my clients, its all about the eyes.
84 www.ppmag.com
Connie Groah Cynthia Graham

86 www.ppmag.com
ANGELA CRUTCHER
Angela Crutcher Photography, Nashville, Tenn.
angelacrutcherphotography.com
My clients always request a particular pose. They all loveand buythe
shot where the child looks up at me, and Im photographing down at her. It
lights up the childs eyes so beautifully. Theres also a sibling pose my clients
always request. I get the kids to lie down in a patch of lush green grass and
shoot from above. Its a neat perspective and a fresh look.
DENNIS CRAFT, M.PHOTOG.CR., HON.M.PHOTOG., CPP, API
Craft Photography, Marshall, Mich., craftphotography.com
I ask lots of questions during the pre-session consultation. I determine
what parents are looking for, and use that concept as a starting point.
I dont work from a list of poses, but I know parents gravitate toward
certain images. For us, its close-ups of the childs face and eyes, whether
the child is smiling or solemn. Whether it's a 16-year-old or a 6-month-
old baby, I always do those close-up shots.
REBECCA MUDRICK & DENA ROBLES
Darling Art, Chapel Hill, N.C., darling-art.com
My partner and I consider our slam-dunk portraits those that capture
sibling groups having fun together. Put the kids on a bed together. Kids
relax in this setting, and we often have them lie on their backs and
photograph them from above. We play games and get completely silly.
Things can get a little wildespecially with boysbut we can rein it in
if we need to. R.M.
GINA MAXINE
Gina Maxine Photography, Central Coast, Calif.
ginamaxinephotography.com
For my signature look, I get the child to look off to one side. I say, Look
over there. Look at the sky. Look at the ground. Look at that flower. Look
anywhere except at me. People connect with this pose because the child
seems to be in his or her own world. The camera, the photographer, are
not part of the equation. Its about the innocence of the child.
Angela Crutcher Dennis Craft
Rebecca Mudrick Gina Maxine