Jillian Bickle Photography |Cobourg and Northumberland Area Photographer | illustrating your life story

I’ve heard that said a few times when the parents begin to pack up their children after a session. Their hair a little out of place, cheeks red from running around and jumping and dancing and singing, about ready to rip apart my singing duck……oh wait, that’s me! Some children come in ready to sit and smile, but that’s not usually the case. I mean, you can only expect so much from little kids. They are not really wired to be calm and sit when they are introduced into a new surrounding, especially one that has a motorcycle just calling to boys, or a blue couch that might as well be saying, “come jump and climb on me” or tickle sticks and teddybears strewn around. So when I do get the odd one that sits and smiles and laughs at my funny faces, I say a little thankyou. But when I get the usual child, I just get ready to sweat! 

For the angel session, I decided to bring my three youngest in early to do a couple shots of them. My mother in law was meeting me there so she could take them afterwards while I stayed and worked.  So she was the wing holder, (and Kaleb holder) and also helped with getting smiles. We had flowers falling, wings in the wrong spot, the girls looking every way but at me, Gracie talking constantly instead of smiling, me running around crazy (while constantly telling myself, don’t yell at them, they will just cry) and Kaleb making so many silly faces. My children have got a bit better with photos, because before it was not a pretty scene. I would yell, they would cry, I would threaten, they would cry more….it’s so much harder when it’s your own, I do admit to that. So when my mother in law was watching all of this she said “You don’t really realize what it’s really like. You just see these pretty photos with wings and everything looks nice….you don’t think of what it took to get that”.  Exactly.

Then I had these boys in, and being boys, they were ready to move, and ride my motorcycle and not look at me, and run around….you know, boys being boys. But when they were leaving, their mom said, “you work magic with them! I don’t know how you do it”. Some days, I don’t know either. Some days I keep my fingers crossed until my camera card goes into my computer and I start looking through. Most of the time I know the parents are leaving thinking “She did not get anything good. My child didn’t smile or co-operate at all”  But magically, there are some amazing shots. Sometimes it’s caught right in camera, sometimes I have to take one or two shots and make one.  Through years of teaching myself and different courses, I’ve learned these techniques….but you know, I’m sure if you went to the photo place in that big brand store that starts with a W, they could do the same as what I did on the photo below….

(SOOC means Straight Out Of Camera)

I just had Holly in here for her viewing….she is one of my favorites, she knows how important photos are, and how important it is to display them (wait til you see the one we’re doing up in a special frame for her!). She walks in today and the first thing out of her mouth “I’m not sure what to do for the canvas….” and I say “Hey Holly, how are you?”  Keith just smiles. (see, he knows she’s crazy! )  They are actually moving soon to a new house, so I will be going and helping to plan her masterpiece wall, which I am very excited about!  As I was doing up her bill, I asked her how many gift certificates she had (she loves when I have my gift card sales, and she got some for Christmas) so she said, “you should see the photo I had Keith take”. So I made Keith show me then told him he had to send it to me so that I could blog her. (Don’t you love how she’s having to help support the hand holding the gift cards?)  And I smiled because of the canvas on the wall behind her….when I mentioned that it was in the photo she says “I don’t know what I’m going to do. That one was ordered specifically for that spot….when we move I don’t know where it’s going to go!”  Don’t worry Holly, we will find a new home for all of your beautiful canvas’ and prints, and make sure there is still room for more (keep smiling Keith). So remember, gift certificates make awesome gifts!