Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1913-12-21

|'HERE is no picture more charming
than a well taken photograph of
child. and none more distressing
nan a badly taken photograph.
But" says a Photographic, there is
mo excuse for a poor photograph of
child. 1t is always the fault of the fond
and doting parent or guardian and, in
fact, reflects the desire of the parsonage
for fancy picture.
The little girl that dances joyously and
charmingly about the house from one
weeks end to the other-dressed, per-
maps. in plain Bingham frock. with two
awkward braids bobting happily up and
|down-serenely unconscious that she has
any looks. good or bad, is taken to have
her photograph snapped with something
Of the ceremony that marks the crown
ing of a child queen. Her pigtails are
unbraided and allowed to float in unac-
customed and uncomfortable wavness
about her shoulders. Her usual dress is
exchanged for one made up of filmy lace
and stir ribbon bows and starched. rust
ling petticoats. Her tanned little arms
Are banded with bracelets gathered fro"u
miscellaneous bureau drawers. and sol re
defunct great aunts enameled necklace
s hung about her neck.
BY the time this little girl reaches the
photographers office she is quite ready
To assume an unusual and austere ex-
preston of great solemnity. And by the
time she has listened to various fond
admonitions not TO fidget and not TO
scowl and not to giggle and not TO muss
her clothes and not to throw her hair
a bout and not to lose her bracelets and
aot to bite her fingers and not wink so
asst and not to screw her mouth into a
tsnot, she is ready TO bite or to cry, &C
ordins TO the sort of disposition she is
,lessed with.
And the little boy who is fonder of
cot ball than of anything else in the
vide world, or of playing Indians or of
liking with the Boy Scouts, is arrayed
n a suit of horrible immaculateneSS and
MS tousled head is smoothed and brushed
and dampened until IL CLEANS and glis-
tens and his hands are scrubbed until they
ache and his feet are incased in two
fifty uncornforta bic shining black boots
rographer's he feels and looks so foolish
mat he wishes for nothing 50 much as a
eomfortable cave wherein he can hide,
OF bomb with which to blow up all the
caneras In the world-again according to
The disposition.
This says a successful photographer
Of children. is all wrong. The only way
o get good photograph of child Is 10
get the child posed in natural way
Nowadays, there are photographers
who make a business OF photographine
children in their own homes They 90
20 small towns and suburbs for "A fixed
price for every dozen photographs If six
or eight or some other specified number
II orders is guaranteed beforehand. So
alf a dozen mothers can in this way
get the services of specially trained
children's photographer without going &c
he trouble OF making a trip to "A pho
tographer's studio. And these visiting
photographers understand the new
theory OF photographing children
Did you ever see. in any of the maya
Zines, charming photographs of the little
oval children OF Spain playing on the
\ sand? Or n picture OF the richest little
BOY in America with one arm about thu
neck of his pet goat?
These pictures are no careless snap
shots. They are photographs that illus
trate the wisdom of this present-da.
theory of child photography.
IL Is this: Make the child feel at home
whether he Is really at home or in Z
Photographic studio. Dress him natur
ally, surround him with natural sur
roundings and make him feel as muci
at ease as II is possible TO make hin
feel
II the child likes animals. let him hav,
a cat or a dog or a canary to watch a
the studio-not the proverbia1 'tlittl,
hrdie." whose praises have been chantec
oy generations of photographers, bu
who remains mysteriously hidden in tn
somber depths OF the camera If he like
books and pictures, let him have books