Photoshoot for the NY Times: How to Keep a Toddler Happy

There will be more coming shortly about the photographs that I shot for the New York Times, but for now, I need to share a BRILLIANT idea with all of you. I’m sure this has been done before, but I’m just pretty excited (and proud) about it right now. Yesterday at the photoshoot, one of the boys in the family that I was photographing was 3 years old. He didn’t care to cooperate in front of the camera. The parents were great and very patient, but he was usually quite fussy.

When we moved to the second location, the 2 boys (the toddler and his 7 year old brother) started watching The Lion King in the other room. That kept both of the boys very content while my photo assistant and I were setting up the lights, making test shots, etc. I told the parents, "You know, if there was a TV under the camera, I bet we could hold his attention for a LONG time." I was mostly joking, but someone jumped in: "Well, there’s an extra TV in the basement, and I have another VCR somewhere..."

So we made it happen. This is what the family saw when they were sitting on the couch looking into the camera:

Yes, that’s Scar and young Simba on TV

When everyone was set and I was ready to snap the shutter, my photo assistant would shake a jar of Skittles (right next to my ear, unfortunately) in order to get the little guy to glace upward.

*click*

Gotcha. Next shot.