The ups and downs of Different age groups

So I have been asked by many people, who my favorite age group is to have sessions with? My honest answer is all of them. They are all fun and all have challenges in different ways. The parents that come in with there children and are having a few "fits or hyper moments" always ask me if their child is the only one that does this. No you're not the only one.

I have had many children with many different personalities. I never get worked up or upset with a child for running in circles around the studio. We eventually get some great shots. You have to remember that the child is in a new place and needs to figure out boundaries and basically they are just curious. Once they get used to were they are they usually cooperate. Patience is definitely a virtue in this career. One of the comments parents say to me after the sessions is, " Thank you for your patience." I have rarely been bothered by any child that has entered my studio but my attitude about it is if I'm not calm then the parents won't be and the child definitely wont be. My saving grace is how much I love my job. How can you get frustrated with something you love.

Ok let's start with each age group and see what challenges and fun times I encounter with each.

Newborns:
They are always so much fun. You definitely have to take your time with them. I usually schedule between 2-3 hours for newborns. We are on their time. Sometimes they will need to be fed or changed or just need some cuddles from mommy to calm down and feel comfortable enough to do the session. One of the things that is a must have in the studio while a newborn is in a session is a space heater. I have one that I put close enough to the baby is feel a warm air but far enough away that it isn't to hot and isn't on the picture. A warm baby is a happy baby and when I am doing the naked shots that can sometimes be a challenge. There has been many accidents in the studio. I always tell the parents at the beginning of the session that everything in the studio is washable and I keep Lysol wipes and cleaning clothes very close by. The studio floor has met many pee's, that infamous baby explosive diarrhea and projectile vomit. There is no nice way of putting it. It's gross but it happens in almost every session. Sometimes the parents get peed on, sometimes I get peed on but in the end we will get great shots. I just wipe the studio down and get back to work. Newborns are just so sweet you can't be mad at them.



One Year Old:
This age group is so fun. They are always so happy and ready to go when it comes to the session. They don't like it to much when they just have to sit in front of the camera and smile they do much better when they have a fun prop. I usually use things like letters, baskets, chairs, a little ladder, things like that. They like to be able to touch something. Also always have mom or dad standing behind you to call out his/her name and get their attention. They always know how to be just silly enough to make the cutie smile. A challenge for this age group is their attention span is a little short and they won't want to be in front of the camera for long so be fast fast fast.



Two - Four Years Old:
This age group is very mobile. They like to be anywhere except in front of the camera. With this age group it takes a lot of patience. They are very playful and have fun once they get into it. They start to listen to instruction at this age so they can pose for you which makes it a bit easier. Sometimes the children get shy but just make silly jokes and that will fade. They key is to keep talking to them. A big hit is playing peek-a-boo from behind the camera, it gets them giggling and looking at the camera every time.



Any age group after that is pretty easy because the children have the ability to listen and figure out what to do on there own. You still have to be silly when shooting a younger child because they tend to have a "fake" or "Cheesy" smile. I always make sure to be talking to them and ask them questions. You have conversations about the weirdest things to make kids smile. I have had conversations like who's feet are stinkier yours or your brothers and purple nail polish.



Let's just say all of the age group have their ups and downs but they are all a blast to work with.


To book a session or if you have any questions:
Call: 905-541-7346
Email: seyahphotography@hotmail.com
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A Year of Seyah Photography

From day one and on:

We moved to our new home in the country a year ago this past October my studio was one of the first rooms that we started fixing up. We just finished renovating it in the summer. We finished the entrance, sitting area/office and we added a bathroom. Now that I have all of this extra space I have no idea how I used to shoot, have my props and have my office all in the same room. But it didn't all start this way. Starting up my own business s a lot of work, a lot of learning and a lot of patience and continues to be a challenge but worth every minute.

Here is how I started out:

I started my business about three years ago but business didn't pick up until this past year. I was still in school working on my two year Photography diploma in Creative Photography at Humber college when I started it and didn't have the time to dedicate to it. So this past year I was in full force with advertising and getting the word out that I have arrived in the Professional Photography world. When I first started we had a small house in Hamilton and I set my equipment up in our basement, which was horrible. It didn't last long before I begged to move my equipment up to a small spare bedroom. That lasted about 3 months and then we moved our living room to the basement and the old living room turned into my new studio. That was a great spot. It was a big room with lots of light. That was my Studio until we moved to this home in October of 2010.

I enjoy having a home business. Even though I have just started it feels amazing to be able to do dishes in the kitchen and then five minutes later be in my studio and editing a session. I think it is the perfect way to save money also. If you have the room why not put your studio in the house. This way I can use the money that I would be using to pay rent on a store front for purchasing equipment I need and props for the studio.

It's crazy how fast things can change. I went from one customer a month to one customer a week to 4 customers a week in some months. Some months are still pretty slow. But it is a big change from when I started. Maybe by this time next year I will have as many customers as I have been dreaming of these past few years.

This definitely requires a lot of patience. You really have to be dedicated to do it. I honestly love Photography. After a session I can't wait to load my photos onto my computer and check out what I got. It is so much fun to edit the photos and to see which ones the Family chooses. The best part of it all is seeing their reactions when they see the prints.

It is so much fun! Bring on 2012 and many more fun and fabulous families to photograph.

Here are a few shots of my finished studio:






Here are a few shots I have taken in the studio:



Thanks for reading My blog.

To book a session or with any questions or requests for blog posting subjects please email seyahphotography@htmail.com.

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