Children's Birthday Party Photos CAN Be Mostly Candid | Arbaaz's First Birthday Party
/I had an inquiry about photographing a children’s birthday party, and the little boy’s father asked me if it would be okay to take some family shots as well. The more traditional kind of group photos…
I said, yes of course!
There is nothing wrong with taking group photographs at a family gathering, and a first birthday party is the ideal occasion for that.
The only thing to keep in mind is that sometimes - if you have a large group - the group photos can take the focus away from getting truly candid moments, and capturing everyone’s true spirit and essense.
As long as there is enough time, though, group shots absolutely CAN happen :)
Arbaaz’s First Birthday Photos
When I pulled up on their street, I could already tell from afar which was the birthday party house. There were balloons and a big HAPPY BIRTHDAY sign on the front lawn.
From the very outset, things looked festive.
When I rang the bell, I was greeted by a very smily Preet, who is Arbaaz’s father. He said Arbaaz had just fallen asleep. That’s what happens when you’re only a year old, and it’s the afternoon on your birthday - you need to take a nap!
Arbaaz was sleeping peacefully in the arms of his grandfather, so I took a few quiet photographs of this moment.
Soon enough, family started to arrive - Arbaaz’s uncle and aunt and cousins, and his great uncle and aunts.
Everyone was dressed in bright beautiful colours, which made me smile. I knew the photographs would look super joyful, and I was really happy (and also feeling a little underdressed myself haha).
It didn’t take long for Arbaaz to wake up to all the commotion of hugs and toe tickles by his cousins.
I was expecting him to be surprised and slightly cranky (i’ve had three toddlers who weren’t the happiest waking up abruptly from a nap) but Arbaaz was super sweet and didn’t cry once. He did look surprised for a little while, but it was a quiet and curious surprise. He just took it all in, and then very quickly gave some smiles.
We took photos outside and inside, and downstairs, and then upstairs with his cake.
I loved some of the series with Preet and his son, playing a version of the airplane game. That big sweet smile on Arbaaz’s face is absolutely adorable!
We ended the session with a big family photo of everyone all together. Instead of going outside, where it was really sunny, and everyone would have had to squint, we took the photo of everyone sitting on the couch.
The light wasn’t too bad, and the colours of their clothes and the couch, against the white wall… they worked beautifully!
This was a really cute first birthday party for a little boy. I didn’t stay for the actual cake cutting and presents opening, but the hour that I spent with this family was so much fun, and we got SO many awesome photos - both candid and more traditional, look-toward-the-camera type of family photos.
I hope you enjoy, and consider hiring a photographer to grab a few snaps next time you or someone you love is having a birthday!