Photographing Teens

It's no huge secret that many teens and tweens don't like to have their photos taken. If you're the lucky parent of a high school student, chances are they put up a fight just as soon as you take out the camera. Every. Single. Time. Christa Paustenbaugh is here today to give you some tips on slipping your difficult teenagers into your memory keeping, even though they may not want you to ;) 

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Hello, everybody! I’m Christa, teacher of Captured | Tweens & Teens here at Big Picture Classes. This class focuses on – well, the title says it all. It’s all about photographing your older children!

Snapping photos of those elusive tweens and teens never gets easier, but I have stumbled across a few tried and true methods for capturing their genuine personalities in our daily life.

One tip from my class is making your older children aware – and maybe even getting their approval ;) – before you start clicking away on the camera. When we go out as a family and I know I want to capture some photos of my girls, I let them know ahead of time that I’ll be bringing the camera. Then they’re more likely to accept it with minimal complaints!

We recently moved to a new area and have spent a lot of time exploring and getting to know our new country and neighborhoods. There are some amazing playgrounds here, and there are rarely arguments against finding new ones and letting me capture them along the way. This is one way I can get genuine reactions from my teens, since it’s a new experience for all of us.

Photos displaying unadulterated fun from a tween or teen can be difficult to capture – unless you randomly install a zip line. Then the real smiles and fun begin!

Excursions and family outings with older children don’t need to be elaborate, expensive or lengthy. Heading to a family-favorite location or exploring new areas for an afternoon or evening can result in some of the best photos of your older child(ren).

Check out Captured | Tweens & Teens for more ideas on capturing great photos of your older children!

Christa

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Be sure to check out Christa's full class here for more tips and tricks on capturing your tweens and teens!