Why bribery is OK during a child's session

Picture day can be a very, very stressful time if you have children. Finding the right outfit and a date that everyone is available on already causes you a headache.  Once you have that down, everything is smooth sailing. You have prepared everything to be perfect, and then your worst nightmare happens – your child won’t cooperate. Even after you’ve coached him or her for the past two weeks and the entire car ride leading up to the session, they still just aren't having it. You’ve tried all of the usual tricks and nothing is working. Sounds terrible, right?

Well, I’m here today to save you from this nightmare, and help you prevent this from even happening. Behold the power of bribery. I know some people frown upon this, however, they probably haven’t tried to get a 4,  8 , and 12 year old to sit in one position together, looking at the camera, and smiling. It’s no easy task! As a photographer, I’m going to give you the green light and tell you that it’s OK to bribe your kids for the sake of good photos.

We have a very limited amount of time to get all of the photos that you need, and I don’t want you to be stressed out or feel that we are  crunched for time because little Timmy is having a meltdown, or is hiding behind his hands the entire session, or sticking his tongue out at me. So, I welcome bribery with arms wide open!

Every child is different when it comes to bribery. They all have different personalities and like different time

• Fruit snack, candy, or ice cream
• A sleepover with a friend
• Staying up later than usual
• Extended play time, TV time, or tablet time
• They don’t have to eat their vegetables that night at dinner
• They don’t have to do chores the next day
• Give them back a privilege that’s been taken away the last time they were in trouble

While these aren’t the only options, I  thought I'd give you a starting point to brainstorm your own ideas to help get your child to cooperate. Jennifer Butler Photography -32