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Mother’s Day isn’t only a day to thank our mothers for everything they do for us (which we ought to do much more than once a year, anyway!).
It’s also a celebration of the bond between mother and child. And what better way to document just how special that bond is than with some beautiful mother and child photos?
Whether the “child” in that pairing is a newborn baby or an adult her- or himself, here are some great tips for taking beautiful mother and child photos.
Focus on the small, everyday moments.
So much of mothering happens in the small, seemingly insignificant moments: making school lunches, wiping a tear, reading a book before bed. With an older child or adult, it might be taking the time to share dessert together, or having a fun or silly conversation.
And yet, as any mother knows, these are the moments that make parenting such a precious journey. These moments also, therefore, make beautiful pictures.
Try capturing mom and child when they’re doing the things they do every day. There’s no need to get too ambitious with your setting or activities. Especially with younger children, you’ll likely get the best results if everyone is in a familiar place where they feel comfortable.
Go for the close-up.
Close-ups can be wonderful for mother-child portraits, because it’s in a close-up that you can often catch a similarity of expression, or see the family resemblance.
These can work just as well for posed portraits as candid ones. You don’t always need to focus on faces, either – close-ups of a mother’s and her child’s hands, or feet, or even the backs of their heads can be very moving.
Get multi-generational.
Source: Shutterstock
Multi-generational portraits can be a wonderful way to show the bond between multiple mothers and children – from grandmothers or great-grandmothers right down to babes in arms.
To get a good photo, you’ll want to do some solid planning. It can be difficult to get everyone in one spot, especially if grandparents or adult children live in different cities. If you have a baby or young child, you’ll have to plan for a good time of day, too.
These can make beautiful gifts for all the mothers in your family.
Let the children be children
Source: Rock Steady Original Photography
Mothers of young children know that expecting children to be portrait-ready at any given moment is a recipe for disappointment. So instead of having a very specific idea of what you want, it may be better to come up with a range of ideas, and focus on staying flexible throughout the portrait session.
This is why candid photos can be so effective with younger kids. This setup allows mothers and children to simply enjoy being together – which is what you want to capture in a portrait, anyway.
After you’ve snapped those lovely images, make sure you display them – don’t keep them locked up in a file on your computer or stashed in a drawer!
Whether that means adding them to a special Mother’s Day playlist on your Nixplay Iris, or decorating your family room wall with a few framed prints, getting those photos off your email and into the light of day will allow you to enjoy those moments much, much more.
For more tips on taking great family portraits, read our post “5 Inspiring Tips to Capture Family Portraits.”
Bea is Nixplay’s Social Media Manager. She enjoys drinking coffee, reading about wars, and writing stories. Send her a message at beatrice.bisais@nixplay.com.
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