5 tricks to create dramatic portraits of kids at home

If you find yourself at home for an extended period — for whatever reason 2020 has to throw at you — it’s easy to fall into a creative funk. Instead, try using this time to learn and grow as a photographer. Portraits of kids at home is one creative outlet to try.

I’m an on-location, natural light photographer so I don’t have a studio at home. Taking simple, powerful portraits of my children around the house, without a studio setup, can be a fun challenge. Here are some tips on how to do just that.

1. Create negative space.

Nothing puts the focus entirely on your subject like a blank background. To achieve that without clearing out a room, simply find a small section of blank wall.

This might be a small corner in your kitchen or that one wall in the hallway. If you don’t have a blank wall (I can relate), use shadows. Place your subject in front of a window during the brightest time of day and expose for their face. The background should stay quite dark and almost disappear, and that can be enhanced with some simple editing during post processing.

You might also like: 5 simple tips to creating minimalist child photography

2. Use furniture to frame your subject.

I’m a sucker for symmetry and clean lines. Place your child on the bed and get low so that the background is empty and the bed looks like a stage. Or shoot your subject wide open through a piece of furniture, like the legs of a chair. Set them under the kitchen table.

If you have a large window, put them in front of it with the light framing them from behind. These lines and shapes can give the image drama.

3. Shoot wide open.

I almost always shoot with a wide open aperture — even with groups, even in tight spaces, even when it’s risky. f/1.6 to f/2.8 is my sweet spot.

I just think it makes the image so much more dynamic, like you could reach out and touch it. Especially when shooting portraits of children at home, I go as wide open as I can. The goal is to isolate, to drown out the noise, to make a statement — and the statement is them! Focus on the eyes, and let the rest fade away.

4. Forget the smiles.

As a family photographer, I spend a decent amount of time trying to get real smiles. I also always try to get a shot of each child not smiling. The portraits without smiles are almost always my favorite.

Put your subject in the desired location and just let them hang. Let them tune you out for a minute. You’ll notice that their eyes look a little bigger, the moment looks more natural and quiet, and the image feels more intimate.

You might also like: How soulful connection will dramatically elevate your photography

5. Get creative on your property.

Maybe you don’t love your house. Maybe it’s dark, cluttered, not your preferred style. Military housing, anyone?

Get creative. I promise there is some spot on your property that will make for an interesting backdrop. This pink flowering bush is alone in a very typical, sort of ugly front yard. I put my daughter in it. Seriously, like pushed her a few inches into the blossoms and shot away. The color, the depth, the simplicity all made for an awesome set of portraits, with the variety coming from her expressions.

Whether you’re indoors because of weather, illness, quarantine or some other reason, portraits of kids at home can be a great way to pass the time, document your family and stretch your creative muscles. Let’s see what you can create within the walls of your home!

Photos by Jessica Orlowicz

This story originally posted on December 16, 2016 and was updated on September 1, 2020. 

More posts to help you create gorgeous portraits of kids at home

Emotive child portraits that will stop you in your tracks

Let them be kids: 5 Tips for authentic portraits of children

Tween Angst: 8 Tips for better portraits of the awkward time in between

6 Ways to create beautiful photos in small spaces or dark apartments

28 Unexpected places to create amazing photos at home