Think Outside The Box
By now I know most of us have seen that challenge put out by business consultants where they show you a diagram with nine (9) dots arranged in a square shape and they ask you to draw four straight lines which go through the middle of all of the dots without taking the pencil off the paper and each line starts where the last line finishes.
The point of this exercise is that most people will try to accomplish the task within the constraints of the box formed by the nine dots. There are a number of solutions; however, you have to draw your lines outside of the box.
When you are taking photographs of your children you will want to think in the same way – outside the box. By this I mean stop thinking about the word “cheese” and asking your children to stand in those stiff straight side-by-side poses with the rabbit ears behind one of the “victims” and consider other possibilities.
For example, take some time to look through the manual that came with your digital camera and learn how to use some of the functions it comes with. Most digital cameras today give you a lot of options such as zoom, wide angle and image stabilization to take photographs of kids in motion.
Watch your children at play, and see what kind of unique things they do. Some of them, like our grand daughter, have this way of holding their head to one side and giving a look of disbelief as grandpa tells another tall tale, or the son who has this goofy way of throwing a ball as he learns coordination.
You know the looks; they are your children and you are with them all of the time. Take some time to observe your children, and then when you see they are healthy, happy and rested grab your camera and start thinking outside of the box.
Another idea is as you take your children on a day excursion think about some unusual opportunities. For example, here is a photograph of a young boy in a small airplane taken at a local dawn patrol fly in. Notice the bright colors with a red shirt and a great smile as he prepares to launch into his next adventure. 
Consider the clothes your kids wear when you are ready to take their picture. Try to color coordinate the outfit of the day, don’t just let them pick any old random t-shirt and pants, encourage them to wear something special for that day trip.
As a photographer who finds young children fascinating to watch and interesting to photograph I am always looking for unusual and interesting activities for children to engage in as I photograph them. Whether it is climbing on a jungle jim, sitting in an antique airplane or helping build a model T Ford at the Henry Ford Museum, I am always looking for something different.
And you can too. Just remember to “think outside the box” and you will be amazed at the interesting and unique photographs you can get of your children. So quit telling your kids to say “cheese” and get out there and take lots of pictures of your children while they are still young; you will be glad you did!
Betty Muscott, Child Photographer
Oh yes, here is the solution to the nine dot puzzle: 
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