13 year old girl

goldilocksandmy3bears

Hey ya'll I have a "photoshoot" coming up with a 13 year old girl. I have 3 boys of my own and I've never really been around 13 year old girls nowadays.. what are they into what would be a "cool" photoshoot? Would those bright swirly lollipops work? Or is that to kiddish for her? Help!!
Court

craig_d

My daughter just turned 14 a few weeks ago, and if I tried to photograph her with a big swirly lollipop, she'd kill me. (This is no figure of speech; she has a 2nd degree black belt in kung fu.) I strongly doubt she would have put up with such a thing at any point in the last five years.

In my experience, today's 13-year-olds want to be seen as young adults, not big kids. They don't play with dolls anymore and they can't stand Miley Cyrus because she reminds them of the embarrassing fact that they used to like Hannah Montana.

Kidzmom posted a really nice set of pictures of a ten-year-old girl a few weeks ago that might give you a good idea of how young girls like to be seen these days:

http://www.dgrin.com/showthread.php?t=151915

VayCayMom

I find children of almost all ages respond to being asked what they might like to do. Some at first are very shy, but after shooting a bit they begin to get ideas of their own and get animated if nothing else. Even if their "ideas" don't pan out to any good photos, they do come alive and seem to have fun.

divamum

craig_d wrote:

In my experience, today's 13-year-olds want to be seen as young adults, not big kids. They don't play with dolls anymore and they can't stand Miley Cyrus because she reminds them of the embarrassing fact that they used to like Hannah Montana.

(Tangent: does this mean there's hope my daughter may abandon the Miley Cyrus passion soon....?????!!!???!!??? ohpleaseohpleaseohpleaseohplease )

Courtney, treat them like younger versions of a senior portrait shoot and, most importantly, make her feel uebergrown up and pampered. Also, just talk to her and find out what SHE thinks is the height of cool! Fwiw, a lot of them are into Twilight these days, so you could do worse than look at shots from the movies if you're not familiar with the characters and look - could come in handy if she's a fan. Or any other movie/star etc that she might see as her current passion(s).

Oh, one other thing: if she's adamant about wearing lots of makeup but mom wants some "natural" ones, then try to talk her into starting out with a bare(er) face, and then let her add lots towards the end on the grounds that "it's so much easier to add more than have to wash and start over". She'll feel she's being gracious towards mom's choice yet still in control, you'll get some much more natural pictures, and everybody's happy that way - win win!

raingirl

as a 13 year old girl, i actually really agree with what's been said. we're not little girls anymore but we're not adults (sadly). i would suggest finding a nice median between the two. something grownup looking but not inappropriate. oh, as for miley cyrus, she horrible. same as twilight. just saying. oh, i have some self portraits on deviantART.com if you want references. i'm located here http://music-minded-girl.deviantart.com/ they might give you the idea of what a 13 year old wants to be seen as.

sweet caroline

Diva gives some good advice.

My 13 year old isn't exactly typical, so I don't know how much mileage my advice will have. She's looking towards college, so "mini senior" would be a good way to go. Mine is very intellectual and mature, but doesn't take herself too seriously. She's into natural offbeat beauty, quirky clothes and hair, not trendy. The young teens I know enjoy interesting angles, as well as the pretty shots. It's a great idea to include a glimpse of her interests. Musical instrument? Sport? Hobby?

Make her look cool, fun, and sophisticated, but stay away from sexy.

Caroline

P.S. I get the feeling that Raingirl and my daughter could be friends.

raingirl

sweet caroline wrote:

P.S. I get the feeling that Raingirl and my daughter could be friends.

we probably could. i'm looking toward going to college for math in high school. we could be "mini seniors" together!

goldilocksandmy3bears

craig_d wrote:

My daughter just turned 14 a few weeks ago, and if I tried to photograph her with a big swirly lollipop, she'd kill me. (This is no figure of speech; she has a 2nd degree black belt in kung fu.) I strongly doubt she would have put up with such a thing at any point in the last five years.

In my experience, today's 13-year-olds want to be seen as young adults, not big kids. They don't play with dolls anymore and they can't stand Miley Cyrus because she reminds them of the embarrassing fact that they used to like Hannah Montana.

Kidzmom posted a really nice set of pictures of a ten-year-old girl a few weeks ago that might give you a good idea of how young girls like to be seen these days:

http://www.dgrin.com/showthread.php?t=151915

well its a really good thing I asked then because I was gettin' all my swirly lollipops together thanks for your help!!

goldilocksandmy3bears

raingirl wrote:

as a 13 year old girl, i actually really agree with what's been said. we're not little girls anymore but we're not adults (sadly). i would suggest finding a nice median between the two. something grownup looking but not inappropriate. oh, as for miley cyrus, she horrible. same as twilight. just saying. oh, i have some self portraits on deviantART.com if you want references. i'm located here http://music-minded-girl.deviantart.com/ they might give you the idea of what a 13 year old wants to be seen as.

thank you!! I will check those out!

Mitchell

I really marvel at how my 14 year old daughter is able to fluctuate between sophisticated young lady and older child. If asked, she prefers to view herself as a young adult and likes to pose in senior-like poses. If I handed her a lollipop, she would eat it, but would refuse to have her portait taken.

cr8ingwaves

13 year old girls vary so much. Is she a new 13 or an almost 14? Jock, prep, into music, instruments, drama?

My own 13 yr old said she would gladly pose with a giant swirly lolli.....peeking from behind it while talking on her cell phone. then she tortured me and showed me a way too sexy look while tasting a lollipop.
the senior poses would be perfect. my teen and her friends love the unique angles, grungy doors/wood/bricks, grafitti, etc.

this was taken when she was a new 13 and all of her friends wanted to duplicate it.

eL eSs Vee

If you don't know anything about the gal, you won't get the best photos you can with her. To paraphrase cr8ingwaves, they're all different.

The best way to learn what shots will work with her is to talk with her and her parents. Set up a lunch with them and get to know the teen. Mention a few ideas you have and ask her for her ideas.

kidzmom

Hi! You'll have a blast doing her pictures. 13 is a really fun and carefree age. I agree with previous posters that you want to include HER in on the ideas. My daughter loved contributing. ALSO what I think might be fun for her is for her to SEE the pics RIGHT AWAY. I would take a few in a series and then let my daughter see them immediately. She'd give me feedback about how SHE wanted to be captured. I think this is super important at this age. Then they can work better with you on getting the shot that they and their family will love. Thanks Craig for reposting my dd's series. Glad you liked those! Can't wait to see your results Goldilocks.