Children's Photography Projects

Photography Ideas for Children

Dec 3, 2008 Lisa Koning

Children love getting creative with a camera and taking lots of photos. Sometimes it can help to give them a little photography project to give them inspiration!

Children don't need a lot of direction when it comes to taking photos. Just put a camera in their hands and see what happens! Sometimes though, a little direction can be helpful so here are some ideas for getting your young photographers snapping away!

  1. Take photos which say the season: whether it's summer, autumn, winter or spring there's lots to photography, just outside in the garden or at the local park.
  2. Tell a story: whether's it's the story of a holiday or just the day a friend came over, capturing all the fun in photos is great.
  3. Get candid! Forget poses, just let them snap away taking photos of their friends and family.
  4. Pets. What's so great about your pet? What does your pet do that makes them so special?
  5. I like my town because... This can turn a mundane shopping trip into an adventure. It encourages children to look around and decide what they really live about the place where they live.
  6. My toys! Figures, such as playmobile and lego make great photographs, and it's also a good way of remembering how to put them back together again.
  7. What I like doing best!
  8. My birthday: a birthday is a special occasion for any child, so being able to capture all those memories makes it one they won't forget! And remember, when they take the photos it's from their perspective not yours!
  9. My friends: what do you enjoy doing most with your friends? Perhaps it's sitting up in your treehouse – okay, maybe it's playing computer games together – whatever it is, take some photos of you and your friends messing about!
  10. Let's get silly! Photos don't have to make sense. Encourage children to get silly photographing anything they like; it doesn't have to be logical, it doesn't have to be a masterpiece, but it might just work!

The fun with taking photos doesn't stop once the shots have been taken. There's so many things that a child can do with photos! There is plenty of software around, such as Comic Life, which allows children (or even adults) to turn their photos into a comic style storyboard. Other photo management software, such as IPhoto, allows even the most basic of computer novice, to create photo albums and cards. There is a wide variety of software available that allows for photo distortion and manipulation; very appealing to chldren of all ages.

So next time the kids start complaining their bored, put a camera in their hands and set them a photography project. It could keep them busy for their entire holiday; the only downside is that you may not get to your computer!

For tips on getting children interested in photography see: Young Photographer

The copyright of the article Children's Photography Projects in Photography is owned by Lisa Koning. Permission to republish Children's Photography Projects in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
young photographer, jdurham young photographer
   
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