About Me

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Delta, British Columbia, Canada
I took very early retirement from teaching in '06 and did some traveling in Europe and the UK before settling down to do some private tutoring. As a voracious reader, I have many books waiting in line for me to read. Tell me I shouldn't read something, and I will. I'm a happy, optimistic person and I love to travel and through that believe that life can be a continuous learning experience. I'm looking forward to traveling more some day. I enjoy walking, cycling, water aerobics & and sports like tennis, volleyball, and fastpitch/baseball. I'm just getting into photography as a hobby and I'm enjoying learning all the bits and bobs of my digital camera. My family is everything to me and I'm delighted to be the mother of two girls and the Gramma of a boy and a girl. I may be a Gramma, but I'm at heart just a girl who wants to have fun.

Sunday, July 01, 2012

Y is for Photographing YOUTH

First of all, I want to take this opportunity to wish all Canadians a Happy Canada Day (July 1st) and all Americans Happy Independence Day (July 4th). 
Moving on to ABC Wednesday's round for the letter Y, I must say that I absolutely adore taking photographs of my grandchildren!  However, I've learned a major lesson from them - do NOT tell them to smile!  More often than not, they will either put on their "camera" face or run in the opposite direction.  I have found that the more I relax and let them just do their own thing, they will forget that I have my camera in hand and won't mind hearing the odd "click." "The best thing you can do to create beautiful art with a child is simply relax and be yourself. Kids are perceptive. They sense when you’re overdoing it and aren’t acting like yourself, and they’ll respond in kind." Read more: http://digital-photography-school.com/cut-the-cheese-5-tips-for-photographing-kids#ixzz1zD7nucfn

With a great deal of patience, I have been able to capture them as they are, in their own environment enjoying the things that children love to do.  I went through my old and new photos of my grandson and granddaughter and found some that I will share with you.  These particular photos show just what I mean about letting them relax and have fun with whatever is at their disposal.  I've also, in most cases, used the sports mode of my camera because they're always moving!  I didn't include any photos that clearly show their faces because their mom would
kill,
no, be mad at,
no, KILL me. 
Ansel Adams, photographer, said  "You don’t take a photograph, you make it."
Click to play this Smilebox slideshow

21 comments:

Roger Owen Green said...

When my daughter gets photographed by the school, she always seems...off...with a fake smile. With us, she looks so genuine.

ROG, ABC Wednesday team

Powell River Books said...

Happy Canada Day to you too. - Margy

Meryl said...

Great photographs - they do capture 'youth' of all ages! Great bubbles too!!

EG CameraGirl said...

Actually, I think many adults don't respond well to cameras either. :)
I hope you enjoyed a lovely Canada Day!

Carver said...

Happy Canada Day! Great shots of your grandchildren. Looks like they know how to beat the heat. My best shots of children are when they don't know I'm shooting them. I still do that with my daughter even though she's an adult now. Carver, ABC Wed. Team

Penelope Postcards said...

I like the spontaneous animated captures the best for both youth and adults!

photowannabe said...

Happy Canada Day last Sunday, Leslie.
I really like this SmileBox and the precious photos of the Grands.
I can't post face pictures of my grandkids either. I have some humdingers I wish I could share.

Anonymous said...

happy belated canada day. i adore that quote from ansel adams.

Paula Scott Molokai Girl Studio said...

When my son was born, I got a point and shoot knowing that an SLR 9in that day) was not going to cut it-youth are moving targets!

Anonymous said...

best pix of kids are always the candid ones

yoga teacher limerick

Meoww said...

Wonderful pics. Great capture of Youth.

Reader Wil said...

You are right: Why should a child always smile!

Arthur Schenck said...

That's a great tip—and one I can use. Thanks!

Ann said...

On vacation last week, I was able to capture lots of spontaneous photos. I agree those are the best.
Ann

Chubskulit Rose said...

It is always fun to photograph the youth spirit!

Y is for...
Rose, ABC Wednesday Team

nancygrayce said...

Beautiful!!! I still haven't taken any photography classes and so I'm not getting great results from my camera! :(

I hope you're well and things are going great!

ChrisJ said...

Seems I have a lot to learn to get Smilebox to function. Once it got started I couldn't get it to finish. But I do love all the cute little things flitting all over the place -- and I'm not referring to your grandchildren -- but they looked pretty cute too.

Black Jack's Carol said...

Good tips here that I think work well for adults too. Telling them to smile often makes them uncomfortable. You captured some wonderful shots of your grandchildren!

Lisa said...

Patience...FOR SURE! I wondered what you were going to do for this week's photography terms. Nicely done (even though we didn't get to see any grandchildren)!

Chris said...

Dear Leslie,
I think your blog is wonderful I have read back and spent a delightful half an hour or more looking at your photos and how you have put them into smile box. You are so clever, it is a wonderful way to show your talent.
I can’t remember when you said you were visiting UK but I hope we can meet up or you could even stay with us. Thank you for your comments on my blog I think you are probably my most loyal follower.. Happy days Leslie
Blessings Chris xx

Liz Hinds said...

Wonderful subjects for photos: the best!

GrandDaughter has this terrible grimace camera-smile!