My top tip for parents when bringing children and toddlers to a photoshoot…

Call it a tip, call it a mantra, either way it’s something that you will hear a lot from me … ‘Don’t worry!‘ Little ones always have their own ideas about how a photoshoot is run and quite often it’s not always how their parents thought/hoped things would go!

Not many children will pose for more than a few minutes, and the younger they are, the shorter the attention span.

So it’s okay….

Don’t worry if your little one keeps running off set

Don’t worry if they can’t sit still and spend most of their time trying to stand on their head

Don’t worry if they need to stop and have a drink and snack (maybe not messy snacks though!)

Don’t worry if they pull funny faces

Don’t worry if they decide they need a dummy that they haven’t used for a month

Don’t worry if we spend most of our time singing (my neighbours haven’t complained yet!)

Don’t worry if we all end up on the floor playing sleeping lions

Don’t worry if it feels like we are not running the show

Most children sense when the grown ups want them to behave in a certain manner, and most children will use these moments to see just how much they can get away with. So one more time: Don’t worry, I’ve seen it all before.

Coming to the studio should be fun, this is when the priceless moments happen, even if the fun is seeing just how contrary they can be, it’s okay we can have fun with that too.

I have one rule. No-one should leave the studio grumpy, and that includes me!