“By nature, children have such positive energy. Their innocence and their acceptance of the beauty of life is heartwarming,” says Singapore-based photographer Mita Kelder, who gave up fulltime modelling to immerse herself in her other passion – photography. She works with the motto: Give positive vibes to receive positive vibes. This has especially helped her in her dealings with children, because all that a child is looking for during a photography session is to be able to trust the people around him. And making that connection, Mita believes, goes a long way in ensuring the child looks back at the session fondly when he sees the finished product.
“Working with children is not challenging, but fun. You need ‘ice breaking’ tactics, but need to bring these in a natural way,” she says. It’s very important to understand the personality of each child – there’s no one-formula-fits-all here. However, dealing with family dynamics can be a challenge sometimes, says Mita, but the most important part is to stay focused on making the child feel at ease.
Mita Kelder’s top tips on photographing children: