STARTING A BACK TO SCHOOL CHILD PHOTOGRAPHY TRADITION

Is your toddler heading off to preschool, or your child to kindergarten this year? Why not start a child photography tradition for the first day of school? It might take a bit of planning, but imagine in 12 (or more years) – all the great photos of your child you’ll have! We have a few fun ideas for you to try.

Last Day

Rather than the first day of school (or in addition to), take some photos of your child doing their favorite thing on the last day of summer! Whether the beach, waterslides, park, or simply hanging out at home, you can grab some great photos of your kids before the big day.

Backpack!

Photograph your child getting their backpack ready – or just the backpack on its own with their supplies inside. You can combine this photo with others that include your child for a nice montage of their first day/week/year.

What in the World?

It can be fun to capture what happened the day your child went to school for the very first time. Grab a local/national newspaper and have them pose. It might not seem important now, but 20 years from now they’ll find it interesting.

Food Time

Along with the above, you can get photos of their first back to school lunch and snacks. Better yet, get some photos of your kids making lunch, picking out snacks, and packing their lunch bags.

Fashion Show

Does your child love clothes? You can bet, then, that they’ll love to put on a fashion show before school starts. Grab your camera, set up a catwalk, and grab some candid shots.

Riding the Bus

Is your child taking the bus to school? What a great backdrop! While you wouldn’t want to hold up the driver from his important task, if you can snap a few quick shots in front of the bus, meeting the driver, etc., you’ll have some great photos to share.

Classics

Don’t forget the classic backpack shot, whether on the front porch, walking down the pathway, or standing on the steps of the school! Now is also a great time to arrange a family photo – so grab your tripod!

All Done

Set up your camera so you can capture your child coming home from their first day. If you’re picking up from kindergarten, you can wait outside. For older kids, wait at the bus stop or on the front stoop and get them running up to you to say how much fun they had!

Don’t stress about capturing the “perfect” photo – you’re just looking for great moments that you can look back on when they’re off to university!