Daily press. [volume] (Newport News, Va.) 1896-current, 1907-05-05
GH|LDREN'S PICTURES
Camera Speciality That Calls
for Much Skill on the Part
of the Photographer

Photographers specialize nowadays,
Just as every other kind of profess
sional does, and 1t is common enough
in large cities to see such signs as
photographers of Men," "Photogra.
piers of Children" and "Photograph
ers Of Women The first aof the
specialists took to making pictures
of men, and then there came along
the others. Few of them are as OK.
elusive In their work as those who
take mems and children's pictures
because they find 1t impossible to be.
They are compelled for business rea.
sons to take pictures which may not
interest them.
I'VE all have to go through the Gle.
mentary training of our prufession.'
one of them tolu Il reporter the other
day, "and It rarely happens that at
the end OF that time we have not
developed some preference or some
especial ability If we are Interested
In our work Having my general
training back of me, soon found out
that took more interest In children
than In any other subjects. never
made success of my pictures of
men. Why that was | could never
understand, but could never satisfy
my sitters. With women | was more
fortunate, but 1t was only with chill
dren that | found my real SUCCESS
There are always twelve plates at
hand In this photographers studio.
and they may be changed In sec
ond's time; thus, II one plate is
failure there Is no time needed to
take another picture Immediately, and
In this way the most fleeing express
sion may be caught. This Is espec.
ialy valuable In the case of children
who change In expression so rapidly
and are not so often at their best
when they are before Il camera.
ut very often happens that they
DO not know that their picture Is be.
Ing taken" this photographer told the
reporter, although it is not as a, rule
Il good thing to conceal the fact from
them when Il mother has been SO fool
ish as TO tell her child that 1t is 20.
Ing to have its picture made. Then
the child Is dissatisfied and uneasy
until something has been done. In
such cases usually pretend to take
tho picture at the outset, so as to get
this apprehension off their minds and
put them at ease That shows al
once In their expressions. Then | go
to work and get the best picture
possible. II they were always wait
ing until the picture had been taken
that feeling would show very plainly
In their faces.
The great difference between the
children and older sitters is in theiI
lack of self.consciousness An adult
Will look self.conscious, as a matter
of course, before the camera, and It
takes an effort for him to appear un.
conscious. A child, on the other
hand. is naturally free from self-con-
seriousness and shows any feeling of
the kind only In the interest he feels
In the operation of being photograph
ed. Once that is removed the child
Is absolutely simple"
Some artists try to portray children
exactly as they are. with no effort at
making the photograph anything more
than likeness. Then there are those
with the more commercial purpose of
giving the sitter what he wants-or
rather giving the parents what they
want. This is, of course, to make
the child the central idea of some
decorative plan and they pose their
sitters Just as they would model
to get the besh artistic result They
do not trouble themselves especially
about the likeness or the character
of the child. They are looking for
the artistic picture. The result of
this kind of work is often very
beautiful picture. although It Is not
true that they always serve the pur
poses of photograph to the sense
that Is used to be desired.
More satisfactory to some persons
and somewhat more like a photograph
of the older kind Is the work of the
so-called interpretative takers of pic.
lures, who look for the character o,
the child and are going to bring that
out above anything else. They may
even attempt to put his soul on the
carbon and they go at the sitter in
Just the same spirit that the painter
OF portraits does. Every sitter pre.
sents a problem which 1t is the duty
Of the photographer to solve, and he
means by That solution transfer to
the picture of the nature of the sub
ject. az he sees 1t through the camera
which is quite a different way of
seeing the features Of child than
they appear in ordinary relations.
The interpretative photographer. It
may easily be understood, is much
better liked for his work with men
and children than with women. Tho
KIND of photographs they desire are
not interpretative. The average
woman sitter would be delighted at
photograph which interpreted the soul
or her husband or her child Eo, -,