Lauren Jones Photography Feature - Better Pictures Magazine

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Family affair Photographing kids at play is all in a day’s work for Lauren Jones. 1 of 10 FEATURE FAMILY PHOTOGRAPHER

Transcript of Lauren Jones Photography Feature - Better Pictures Magazine

Familyaffair

Photographing kids at play is all in a day’s work for Lauren Jones.

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While photography may not

have played much of a

role in her life growing up,

these days Lauren Jones rarely goes

anywhere without her camera. The

sought after family photographer has

turned her snap happy hobby into a

profession that sees her capturing

everything from baby’s first steps to a

family’s special occasion.

Jones tells Better Pictures she first

started taking her hobby seriously

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around six years ago when friends

began to encourage her to do more

with her photography.

“I had been to a friend’s wedding and

taken lots of pictures on my average

pocket digital camera,” Jones says.

“After receiving their professional

photos back, my friends were more

impressed by many of the photos I had

given them. That left me wondering,

what could I create if I actually had a

good quality digital camera?”

Soon after, Jones bought her first

digital SLR: a Canon 500D. After

assisting a photographer friend

on a few wedding shoots, and

finding herself more taken with the

expressions of the pageboys and

flower girls than the bride and groom,

she realised her interests really lay in

capturing children on camera.

“Young children really captured

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my imagination, their big inquisitive

eyes and their innocence really shone

through,” Jones says.

“Then not long into my photography

journey, I stumbled across some

newborn photographs of a friend’s

baby, which were so well done they

instantly grabbed my eye. I couldn’t

stop thinking about these photos, and

how they were set up and achieved;

they were not just your ordinary ‘put

baby on a couch and take a photo’

pictures,” she explains. “I sought out

mentoring with a Melbourne newborn

photographer, and from there I was

hooked on mastering the art of

newborn photography.”

Several years later and Jones is an

expert at snapping newborns. Her

images deliver a mixture of the candid,

cute and posed.

She suggests her success lies with

her ability to create a rapport with her

subjects. Being the mother of twin

toddlers, she’s also something of a

master when it comes to swaddling a

baby and getting it to calm down for

the camera.

“I find it easy to connect with my

clients given that I have experienced so

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much of what they are dealing with as

a new parent. Having such a big thing

in common with my new mums I find

automatically puts them at ease, making

the whole experience enjoyable and

stress-free for them. Sharing stories

throughout the session is a really nice

way of getting to know each other.”

Nonetheless, studio sessions are

not without their challenges. Children

by their very nature are unpredictable

creatures, but Jones says she has a

few tricks up her sleeve to ensure she

gets the ‘money shot’.

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“Every single child I work with is an

individual. What works with one child,

generally won’t work with the next. The

biggest challenge I face is that most

of my young clients are only meeting

me for the first time at the shoot.

Given that I often have a very short

timeframe to work with them before

they get tired, we often get started

shooting straight away, but I do try to

make the start as playful as possible to

gain the child’s trust.

“The challenges of children’s

photography can make some days

very difficult for photographers.

Knowing how to interact with children

can make the job much easier. I like to

get down to the child’s level to shoot,

and to be prepared to move a lot to

get the best shots. Being able to work

with the child’s natural inclinations

can make for a much more enjoyable

shoot for everyone involved. Children’s

photography can be challenging, but

the rewards – getting that perfect

shot – are huge. Being a mum of twin

toddlers is definitely an advantage.”

Being a mother also lends Jones an

abundance of patience, which comes

in handy when her tiny subjects fail to

comply with directions or lose focus.

“Knowing the things that get my kids

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co-operating the most, I am armed

with at least a few tricks up my sleeve

to get me through some challenging

situations. Being a mum also gives me

a different perspective on the kind of

photos that matter most to parents,”

she says.

Jones suggests that no matter how

great the photographer is, you can’t

fake a connection on camera.

“A great family photo honestly comes

down to the connection the family has,

and the ability for them to relax and

enjoy what they are there for. Other

factors include the location, lighting

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and the photographer’s ability to

position the family well so that their

connections shine through.”

When it comes to shooting newborns,

Jones has plenty of props on hand to

assist in setting the tone, whether it’s a

flowered headband, an old apple crate

or the typical white fur throw.

“My studio is equipped with hundreds

of props: outfits and girly accessories,

wraps, woodland style nests, baskets

and beautiful backdrops. After the

shoot comes many hours of selecting

the best images for edit, and the edit

process itself using Lightroom 5 and

Photoshop CS5. I like to keep my edit

style crisp and clean. [I prefer] soft skin

tones, sharp details and vivid colour.”

“I like to keep my edit style crisp and clean. [I prefer] soft skin tones, sharp details and vivid colour”

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If she’s shooting outdoors, Jones

says she likes to recce a location prior

to the shoot.

“I like to be familiar with the best

areas within that location before

the day, have all of my equipment

primed and ready to go, and more

importantly, have my clients armed

with all the tips they need to make

the shoot a success. This can include

what to wear, advice on preparing

the kids, styling and location advice,”

she says.

The end result: a beautiful family

portrait that captures a family’s

precious memories.

To see more of Lauren Jones’ work visit laurenjonesphotography.com.au

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