I have photographed Super Rugby and International Rugby, it’s hectic, it’s fast and it’s furious. It’s nothing on Violet and Ruby. We ran through the spectrum of human behavior, often all within 5 minutes. Moments of calm serenity spin rampantly into roaring bedlam. As a photographer who loves to shoot people and action, this was just awesome.
Horses and Backlight
Shonet and Andre asked me to photograph their family. They are avid horse riders, and this being the year of the horse, it just seemed right to include them horses. Shonet wanted scenes with beautiful natural backlight, nature, children, warmth, sun and horses. To say we got lucky on the day is an understatement. Nature and its elements pulled together and gave us great shooting conditions. Children however are a law unto themselves. Especially crazies (crazy fun) like Violet and Ruby. They do not respond to the usual photographer commands like “sit here…look that way…tilt your chin up”. You need some tricks up your sleeve.
Image may be NSFW.
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Alliance
Forming an alliance of bribery and corruption with the parents is a good idea. Promises of ice cream and sweets often do work. But this is to be used sparingly and at critical moments such as when you really need the child to refocus and get back on track. Do not start the shoot with these promises or they will try rush you to get to their rewards. Pick your moments. The overall strategy should be switching between being a portrait photographer and a documentary photographer. Pay attention to the elements that you can control such as the light, the background and the parents. Let the action happen, children have their own particular way of playing and interacting. Look for their behavioral patterns or mannerisms, these are defining moments, but they can be fleeting! So be ready.
Image may be NSFW.
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Connections
Although using dramatic backlighting, horses and nature as my foundations for the shoot, and this is a big tip that I would like to pass on here, looking for personal connections is what makes it. That spectrum of human behavior that I mentioned at the beginning would not be there without the connections and relationships between the family members. And particularly between Ruby and Violet. To make a shot work, especially with siblings, look for moments when they connect. At this age their connections are unrestrained and primal in their emotion. When they look back at these photos later in their life their connections with each other will be at another level. And these photos will be a reminder of their early days and the base level of their relationship.
The light, the horses, the trees and the wind just add the gloss to what is already there.
