Creating a fun energetic scene for kids celebrating the holidays

When it comes to working with young, energetic and excited kids for Christmas photos, it pays to be a little prepared. Work out roughly what you want to achieve ahead of schedule and then be prepared to work on the fly if it all falls apart.

Working with kids and animals can be loads of fun, but you can never really be sure of what to expect. But creating a fun and energetic scene for kids to celebrate the holidays is always a great way to go. Here are some ideas.

Make an action plan

Make an action plan or a shot list, so you are prepared. But also don’t stress if it doesn’t all go to plan. If you are capturing Christmas family photos, talk to the parents, get a feel for the kids. Discuss wardrobe ahead of time, and try to get families to match in with your backdrop, like I arranged with this gorgeous Christmas backdrop from Kate Backdrop. Prepare your shooting area, make sure everything is safe and secure and there is nothing breakable.

My backdrop stand hangs from the ceiling so it is nice and secure, but if you are using something free-standing use sandbags to secure.

The great thing about Kate Backdrops is they have a rod pocket you can easily slide onto free-standing backdrops. They are super easy to care for as well — wash and tumble dry removes 90% of any wrinkles and a quick steam removes the rest. The fabric is so beautiful there aren’t too many wrinkles to start with. They’re beautifully printed as well.

Working with props

As gorgeous as the Christmas backdrop from Kate Backdrop is, I also wanted to add props that could be interacted with. Large colorful presents (just cardboard boxes wrapped with Christmas paper), a large comfy chair and stools, oversized Christmas ornaments.

What you add in can really make your scene. What about a large fur rug, some storybooks and cookies for Santa? I used a large open box and filled it with Bubble Wrap and placed my AD200 speedlight in it and told the boys to look in the box (I gave it a test flash so they knew what to expect).

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Make it fun

Mum and Dad are probably a little stressed out anyway, so make the whole thing fun, and an experience. Don’t just aim for boring sit on Santa’s lap and a quick fake smile, shopping center pics.

But don’t expect perfection either. Set up a few fun scenarios and just be there to capture the action. I had three energetic boys for this photoshoot, so we thought we would go the for Naughty or Nice theme. We did shots of the kids, shots with Mum and Dad and, of course, shots with the whole family. Demonstrate how they can sit or stand and pose, but let them be natural as well.

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Work with the kids

I got the kids involved, stealing Santa’s cookies, tying Mum and Dad up with Christmas Lights, fighting over presents. Then I take individual shots of the kids explaining why they SHOULD get a present or at least explaining what went wrong this year — “Santa, I can explain.”

Get the kids to ‘steal’ Santa’s Cookies. Get the kids to get involved, capture the fun and the giggles. Don’t forget Santa hats or even a Santa costume.

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Lighting your scene

Just as important as staging your scene is to light it. I used a three-light setup. I had a 36″ Octobox on a Godox AD400Pro, then a Strip Box 9×35″ Strip Box (also on a Godox AD400Pro), then lit the actual Backdrop itself with a Godox AD200 and a diffuser.

Test with a stand-in before the kids arrive. Another fourth light would have been beneficial at the front as well, for when the kids passed the front light.

Camera & lighting settings

I was shooting with my Sony a7R III and the Tamron 28-75mm G2 lens. I also had my 5.5″ 4K LED Mini Monitor setup. So that it was well lit and everyone was in focus I shot at f/9. The rest of the camera settings were ISO 200 and a shutter speed of 1/125s. My lights were on full power (strip box), 1/8 (octobox) and the speedlight on 1/32.

My best advice

Enjoy the crazy madness, have fun, don’t stress. If you have done all your work behind the scenes, then hopefully the shoot will go smoothly. Reset, charge batteries and bring in the next family …

Backdrops from Kate Backdrop and Clot Studio provide some really creative options to get your set headed in the right direction.