Life can get quite busy and rush by most of the time, which makes it difficult for you to get things done such as portraits of your family. Life can become even busier and more rushed if you have a child with special needs, like cerebral palsy. Many parents find that they do not have much time or energy to get portraits done, and many feel too embarrassed to since their child will not act like other children. The good news is, it is possible to photograph children with special needs and it is something I love to do. Capturing families together is one of the most precious things to me. In this blog, I am going to explore three tips to use when seeking to photograph children with cerebral palsy or any other special need, or indeed any child.
1. Find A Place That Is Easy To Access
One of my clients was worried to get photos of her daughter because the wheelchair prevented them from being able to access some of the more popular photography locations. We sat down and talked about ideas and realised that there was a small, gorgeous park with a stunning grove filled with old trees. We decided to take the photographs there and carried the girl to the bottom of a tree and organised her family around her. It was easy to access, yet also gave the family some gorgeous, unique photographs. This sort of location can be used for infants and toddlers to hold them up and pen them in if they want to run away. There are various areas I know of that will work perfectly.
2. Have Your Child Wear Comfortable Clothing
This is important for children, whether they have special needs or not. Choose clothing that you know your child likes and is comfortable in, because this will help the portrait process go smoothly and give you some of the most gorgeous photographs of you, your child, and family. A relaxed child means the photos will look relaxed and beautiful. If you put them in white, you will be stressed about dirt marks. For children in nappy’s be sure to have a ‘onesie’ under what they wear so it doesn’t show when they play, fall down and as they run around.
3. Talk With The Photographer About Your Child
Before you settle on a photographer, you should always chat with him or her about your child. I love chatting with my clients and learning about them and their family. It also helps to learn more about the children so that I can arrange a perfect portrait session with you and your child. When it comes time to photograph children, it is always important to understand the individual child as each is a gorgeous, unique being.
It Is Possible To Photograph Children With Cerebral Palsy and other special needs
If you are still hesitant about getting photographs done of your child, I want to encourage you that it is possible to photograph children with cerebral palsy. Give me a call, and we can chat about your child, the photographs you would like, and I can suggest some excellent locations for you to get unique, wonderful family portraits.
Meeting Maddie
I recently had the pleasure of photographing a lovely young lady called Maddie who has cerebral palsy. We met at a local park with her whole family including grandparents. 3 generations. We set Maddie up on some cushions under a big tree and got some wonderful portraits on a sunny afternoon. I learnt a lot about Maddie and discovered she has her own website about her life. I encourage you to go and have a look and support her in her future. You’ll find it at http://maddiesmates.com/
You can support Maddie and have lots of fun by coming along to a Trivia night on August 23rd.
Talk soon,
Margherita :)
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Related Posts:
Photographing Children with Special Needs – Part One
Getting Beautiful Photographs Featuring Children with Cerebral Palsy