5 Ways to Get Authentic Smiles at Photography Sessions

Getting real, authentic smiles can be one of the biggest challenges in a photo session. At Indy Family Photo, I’ve run into my share of kids who’ve only been told to say “Cheeeeeese” in front of the camera.

So for my family photo sessions, I strive to help my clients “relearn” how to act in front of the lens. Don’t get me wrong, a quick smile can sometimes be all a photo needs. But if you really want to capture those truly wonderful, happy moments — especially with the kiddos — then here are five quick tips to capturing authentic smiles at your next family session!

5 Ways to Photograph Authentic Smiles

1. Never Underestimate Funny Faces

For the really little kiddos (like toddlers), have mom or dad stand directly behind, or even crouched over the photographer. We’re talking as close as they can get! Then have them make the silliest faces they can. If all goes to plan, it will look like the kids are looking directly into the camera.

The mistake most people make is standing up higher, or off to the side, and the kids never look like they’re looking at the camera.

2. Grab Yourself a Sound Machine

Sound machines can be a lifesaver! I have one that makes amazing noises — everything from clapping to sad trombone to fart sounds! (You can probably guess which sound is the most popular…)

So grab a good sound machine, hit play and capture all that authentic smiles!

3. Remember the Game of Telephone?

Put your family in a row and have mom or dad start a game of telephone — only make it extra silly. This is a surefire way to get the kids rolling over with laughter.

4. Use “Bubbles”

No, not actual bubbles, though that could be fun. Instead, have the kids in the session say the word bubbles… only have them say it in their angriest voice. Or better yet, have dad say it. This never seems to fail when trying to get those authentic smiles from the kids in the session — even the adults!

5. Faking the Laughs

I love employing this technique because it always works wonders when nothing else will. Tell your subjects — the whole family — to start fake laughing as hard as they can. In a few moments, they’ll actually start laughing because the whole thing sounds so ridiculous and silly!

At Indy Family Photo, we use many of these kinds of techniques and more! We love capturing authentic smiles and laughter from our clients — it’s what we live for! If you’re interested in book a family session, or even a session just for the kids, please don’t hesitate to reach out!

James, Jacob, and Sophia | Kids Adventure Sessions

Childhood should be an adventure. And the beautiful thing about childhood is that every tiny kiddo’s adventures are unique. There’s no “one size fits all” adventures for kids. That’s why I love thinking creatively about my adventure shoots. An Indy Family Photo Adventure Session is built to encourage children’s imaginations to run wild. From princess gowns to forest adventures, my goal is to let kids play in an imaginary dream world, and to capture those memories, smiles and laughs to be enjoyed for years to come. That’s what I did with the three Beeson kids: James, Jacob and Sofia. Each of them had their own adventure, and I had such a blast photographing them.

Adventure Photos Shoots

These adventure sessions took place at Fort Benjamin Harrison State Park, the Indy Family Photo studio, and the area outside and around the studio. Because each of the three kids have very unique personalities, I wanted to make sure that their adventures were as unique as they are! Sophia is a kind, gentle, voracious reader who loves learning. James and Jacob love being silly and fun together. James is an amazing Lego-builder, and Jacob would love to be both a farmer and a surgeon when he grows up.

I pulled together two very special adventure shoots for this family - one for Sophia, and one for the two boys together. For Sophia, we rented several dresses. What little girl doesn’t love to dress up from time to time? I photographed her at home, with the grand piano that is special to her while she was wearing one of the beautiful dresses. The resulting photos were stunning and really capture her love for music! Together, we took more photos outside the studio, and in the studio as well. I made sure to get a few pictures of her with piles of her favorite books.

For the boys, their adventure photo session happened in the studio. They got dressed up for a few photos, and I made sure to get a few photos of James (the master builder) with his Legos. After, I transformed the studio into an epic playground! I dumped out 1000+ ball pit balls for them to all play in! It was soooo fun!! Then we headed over to the state park. That’s one of the huge benefits of the Indy Family Photo studio being nestled in the heart of historic Fort Ben! Together, they played in the creek and fields.

Making Photo Memories

Both shoots were full of sibling moments of jokes, pinches, wrestling, laughs, and more. But what’s more important is that we made memories during these adventure shoots. James and Jacob found crawdads, and Sophia told us about her favorite books and who she wants to be when she grows up. It was an experience for all of us. And, best of all, it’s captured in beautiful photographs to be enjoyed for years to come.

Adventure Session Vendors:

Sophia’s red dress - by Dollcake

Sophia’s blue dress - Rent the Runway

If you love this adventure session, you might also enjoy Jodie, Trent & Drake’s Fmaily Adventure Portraits and Lola and Lillian’s Colorful Adventure Session!

Lola & Lillian Adventure Shoot

Just last month, I was lucky enough to get to hang out with Lola and Lillian here in the Indy Family Photo Studio where I photographed their Adventure Shoot! I had so much fun with these two beautiful girls. I think this adventure session really captured the magic of childhood!

A Magical Adventure Photography Shoot

Mom reached out to me to arrange for something special for Lillian’s first birthday. She wanted to do something unique and very different from a run-of-the-mill portrait experience. I made sure to create a really fun adventure shoot for the girls, focusing on activities they would both enjoy. Adventure shoots are meant to create real smiles, real expressions, and real laughter. They are meant to celebrate childhood and all its magic, and I think we did just that.

Lola is full of energy and very doting toward her younger sister. She LOVES princesses, so I made sure to rent the biggest princess dress I could find! As soon as Lola put on the dress, she just glowed. She loved twirling around and telling me what her life as a princess would be like. We pulled out some gold confetti, and both Lola and Lillian loved it!

Lillian's favorite part of the shoot was painting. She kept eating the paint, getting disgusted at how it tasted… and then eating it again. She kept making the funniest little faces about it! Lola enjoyed the squishiness and slippery feeling of the paint between her toes. Lillian loved using her fingers to play with the paint.

Lola has SUPER strawberry hair, and those red highlights are the exact same color as her dad! Little sister Lillian is currently bright blonde, but it'll be exciting to see how her hair color changes as she gets older.

I was so happy to photograph these two amazing little girls. I’m thrilled that mom reached out to me for this special way to commemorate Lillian’s birthday! If you are interested in customizing your own Adventure Shoot, please reach out to me! I would love to document the lives of your kiddos.

Featured Adventure Shoot Vendors:

Lola's huge purple dress: Anna Triant Couture

Lola's black dress: Tutu de Monde, purchased from Darling Loves

Lillian's purple dress, & Lillian's black dress: Tutu de Monde, rented from Rainey's Closet

Family Adventure Portraits: Jodie, Trent & Drake

I recently had the chance to meet up with Jodi and her two sons, Trent and Drake for an energetic photo session at our studio in the Nickel Plate District in Fishers, Indiana. These boys were sweet, energetic, fun and had a great sense of humor. Mom won this photoshoot at a fundraising gala, and I was so glad she won! I loved being able to photograph this family session!

Family Adventure Portrait Session

Jodi, Trent and Drake joined me for an Adventure Shoot! This type of family photo session includes two to three activities to enjoy while we take amazing, unique portraits with real fun, real smiles, and real laughter. For this session, we started with the balls in the studio. I loved how Drake and Trent had so much fun rolling around through the ball pit. There were about 1300 balls and the boys got to choose the color. Then, we had some fun with silly string. Jodi was a good sport and the boys had a blast. They loved to goof off and getting mom with that silly string was hilarious.

After the studio portraits, we made our way to nearby Handel’s Homemade Ice Cream. We made sure to get some family photographs in there! The cones they got were only single scoops! I can’t even imagine how huge a double scoop cone would be. Trent and Drake loved to cuddle with their mom, play, run and have fun. They kept throwing their hats high up into the air and tried to catch them on their heads. By the end of our photo session… they got pretty good at it!

I’m so happy that I got to meet this sweet family. There’s something so special about the love between a mother and her sons, and it was such a treat to photograph this family together. Jodi, thank you so much for bringing your boys to the studio for this fun adventure shoot. This was such a fun photo session! My favorite times to photograph children are when they are having a blast and it was clear that the boys had fun.

Indianapolis Family photography

If you would like to have an adventure shoot with your children, I would love to hear from you! The Indy Family Photo Studio is open by appointment, but you can always feel free to stop by to see if we are in. Our photo studio is located just above Porter Books & Bread and I would love to get a chance to photograph your children’s unique personalities!