Children’s photography is a business model that pays quite well. Parents and grandparents want to have a record of their children from those first cute baby pictures, all the way through their growing up years. Special occasions such as birthdays, Christmas and Thanksgiving are favorite times for a new portrait of the little ones. All these photo opportunities can create a good residual income for a photographer, especially one with plenty of regular clients.
There are ways to increase the number of sales, that you may not have considered. Would not it be great if you could find a way to have those parents bring their children in more frequently?
This article will give you a choice of different ways that you can make more money with the same clients, ways that will cost you very little to put into practice.
The first idea is to set up and advertise a “When I Grow Up” day. Have the parents ask their kids what they would like to be when they grow up, then bring them to your studio suitably dressed. A would-be cowboy could wear his jeans and a plaid shirt, while a little girl dreaming of being a ballerina could wear a tutu.
Here is how you can do this. You will not need elaborate sets or backdrops. Set up a green screen with the proper lighting and take the children’s portrait in front of this. Have a few props available – a mask and stethoscope for a future doctor or nurse, a cowboy hat, a fireman’s helmet. Any aspiring scientists? You might need a toy microscope! Take the child’s portrait, and then use the simple chroma key software to place them in the proper environment.
Another way to use a green screen for a very different portrait opportunity is something you might call the “brag book” technique. For this type of portrait, have the parents bring in something that their child has completed, that they are quite proud of. It could be a Good Citizenship award from school, a picture that the child has painted or a sports trophy that they have earned. Create a digital background where for instance, their painting or award is displayed on the wall of an art gallery. Then take the child’s portrait as if they are standing proudly looking at their own exhibit. For the sports star, have him or her stand sideways leaning on a wall that is covered with a green screen. In the chroma key software have them leaning against a giant football (or other sports item) or against a huge version of their trophy.
Finally, use the child’s favorite book or character as a theme. If they are into “Harry Potter”, you can use pictures of old narrow streets or craggy castles as a background, using your chroma key software to vary the color and set the creepy mood. Other favorites, the “Narnia” books or “Lord of the Rings” could have suggested with beautiful outdoor backgrounds. Use your imagination, you will find unlimited ways to produce unique children’s portraits using your green screen.