Photographing Kids; Stacy Bratton Shows You How
Lynne Eodice, March, 2005
All Photos © Stacy Bratton
There’s more to taking kid pictures than meets the eye—just ask
Stacy Bratton. A sought-after photographer from Dallas, Texas, she specializes
in photographing children ranging in age from newborns up to 12-year-olds. “My
goal is to capture the magic of childhood,” she says. Her portraits highlight
children’s expressions and spontaneity, rather than simply posing them
in the studio with a lot of props.
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Stacy
Bratton’s ingenuity in working with different age groups
comes across in her portraits.
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“Where I really shine is with those aged three and under; basically
the ‘pre-verbal’ child,” she states. Bratton sets herself
apart from most family photographers as her success comes from studying her
young subjects emotionally and psychologically. She discovered sensory integration—which
refers to coordination of the senses and how they develop—and has been
incorporating this knowledge into her business. Bratton started her career doing
commercial photography, but began specializing in photographing children after
her first baby was born. Ten years ago, people discouraged her from specializing
in this narrowly defined field, but since then, she’s very much proved
them wrong.
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Knowing Her Subjects
To successfully photograph a baby or child, she asserts, “It’s very
important to know at what stage of development he or she is.” For example,
a 10-month-old will probably enjoy having a toy shaken in front of him, while
an 18-month-old must hold the toy. She’s also a believer in arranging
your shoot around the child’s schedule, rather than your own. “I
generally don’t take pictures after lunch,” she points out. Bratton
has learned from much experience that attention spans fare much better in the
morning. “I don’t expect a two-year-old to want pictures taken in
the afternoon.” In fact, she says, a two-year-old is just becoming his/her
own person. “If you’re taking pictures of three-year-olds, it has
to seem as though it’s their idea. They’re more independent, and
want to exercise the right to say no.” She works quickly when photographing
kids, and always has her studio set up in advance to avoid boredom.
She and her husband have an 11,000-square-foot studio in a warehouse district
of downtown Dallas, and between them, are members of American Society of Media
Photographers (ASMP), Professional Photographers of America (PPA), and the Photo
Marketing Association (PMA). As a portrait photographer who’s very much
in demand, she has many repeat customers over the years.
Off-Camera Props
Although she doesn’t often utilize props in her photos, she’ll sometimes
include an object that represents comfort to the child. For example, an 18-month-old
may not mind having its picture taken with a favorite “blankie,”
as opposed to something strange and new. “Most people like to use props
like a wicker chair or vase of flowers—but to me, that’s not a portrait,”
she observes.
Instead, she says, she utilizes props outside the frame to inspire a reaction
from the children she photographs: “Some of my off-camera propping is
actual food.” A child may give a pleasant or surprised look in reaction
to a unique taste. Food can also provide a good distraction. Again, she says,
children learn through their senses. “But there’s no negotiation
with pre-verbal kids.”
In the studio or on location, Bratton’s assistants assemble various items
for the child to experience, depending on his/her age. She sometimes uses unusual
music or bells (she uses different bell tones to attract babies’ attention),
and sometimes she even sings. One of her most important off-camera props is
a “tickle feather,” which is imperative to her child photography.
A newborn’s eyes may focus on it for the camera, while a three-month-old
might enjoy being tickled on the cheek with this feather. “At three months,
their brains are just wiring themselves,” she comments. At 9–12
months, the feather can become very entertaining. “You can flip-flop it,
and the child usually gets a kick out of it.” From 18 months to three
years, she finds, kids can be very obstinate. Boys like to punch the feather
out of the way and think it’s pretty funny. She likes to play feather
games, but says that approximately after the age of seven, “It’s
no longer interesting to them.” But for the most part, the feather is
so important that Bratton says,“it was devastating once when an assistant
forgot to bring it.”
Making Kids Happy
Although she has a great understanding of what happens at a child’s varying
stages of development, she laughs, “I never say I understand children
fully, because they’ll do something to make a liar out of me.” Nonetheless,
she rarely has to do a reshoot. She schedules about two hours to work with her
little subjects, but shoots perhaps for only 15 minutes. “It takes a while
to see what makes a child tick,” she says.
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