She stumbled out of the bedroom, her little feet swimming inside mommies dress up shoes. The yellow straw hat on her head was so large that it came down past her little ears. Sensing me standing before her, she looked up at my towering figure, the hat falling to the back of her head. With a twinkle in her eyes she smiled at me. Not just a little smile, but a smile from ear to ear, that look of happiness that always melts your heart. If I could only capture this moment on film!

Well now you can thanks to Douglas Allen Box and his new book "Professional Secrets For Photographing Children". This is not a collection of typical ‘studio portraits’ of children, these are real kids in real situations doing real things. Douglas has developed his own style and shows the reader the inner workings of his technique and psychology, image by image. His pictures range from formal stylish studio shots to the casual candid image outdoors. Each, of the almost 60 pictures, reveal not only an endearing subject but the sensitive and creativity of the photographer as well. Simply stated, Douglas’ photography of children is dazzling!

There is a lot to this book. From ‘how to’ tips on poses, props, backgrounds, lighting and photography. But most useful is that in almost all of the images, Douglas shares his psychology about the setup and working with the subject. This is fascinating and valuable information for any image maker dealing with children. There are many other interesting elements to this book, a section on ‘Children’s Storybooks’, ‘Guidelines On Children’s Portraits’ and a very useful list of suppliers.

Good children pictures can make a good photographer look better and bad children pictures can make a bad photographer look worse. This book is a roadmap to making excellent children pictures. Early on Douglas tells us that ‘Portraits are Memories!’ If you want to improve the quality and content of your special memories of children don’t miss "Professional Secrets for Photographing Children".

Brian Ratty
Photo Seminars.com