Do you struggle to get your kids to smile naturally for photos? Well I used to as well. I have tried many different methods and found a few that work well for me.

As a photographer and a mother, I often get asked this question A LOT – How do you get kids to smile naturally? Each child is different so I find the best way to go into a photo session is by being well prepared.

Questionnaire to prep the kids to smile

Prior to any family session, I send the family an online questionnaire. This can be done with google forms which is FREE. Some questions that I ask are:

1. Name + ages of family members
2. Favorite treat
3. Favorite tv show
4. If there are any inside jokes they could tell me to bring up during the session
5. What gets them laughing while they are at home playing?
6. What will you be bribing your children with?

The last one may not jive with every family but if I know that after the session they are going for ice cream, I can play on that a little bit.

A couple things that work for me, depending on the child:

“Hey! Want to go on a top secret mission?? We can’t tell mom and dad though!” (Then I wink at mom and dad) I then sneak the child behind a tree or whatever and get a few photos of just the kid. I say that mom and dad can’t see because it’s going to be a surprise. I usually end that little game with a silly face photo.

The other thing I do if they don’t smile with anything their parents set me up with, is I will say “Oops!! Excuse me!” and then my assistant will pretend I farted and that I stink. This works 99% of the time!

I must say, the pre-teen and early teenagers are the most difficult. If they have younger siblings, I can get them laughing like Cruella Deville with me and then they end up laughing because we all sound ridiculous. BUT, if there are no younger siblings, its difficult.

Please feel free to comment below or send me a message or email if you have any of your own tips and tricks! I would love to share them with others.

If you enjoyed these tips, head over to read all about “Setting Realistic Expectations for Family Photos”.

Are you having your family photos done soon? Grab my FREE family outfit guide here. This one is specific to fall colors but the same principles apply for Spring, Summer, or Winter as well.

Keep snappin’,

Nicole