It’s been almost two years since I lead our homeschool co-op through a series of photography lessons as our term handicraft. As I prepared for it, I thought maybe it was a little nontraditional, but I like to think of each handicraft as a potential hobby. That is not necessarily how Charlotte Mason thought of handicrafts, but it’s a fact that not many of us are making our own socks out of necessity these days. If we knit, it has more to do with a desire to do so. The art of handicraft should not be discounted, however, just because we can buy our socks at a local retail store, cheaper and easier than we can make them. Quite the contrary. Having a skill of some kind (or hobby) is a blessing for a multitude of reasons.

Sometimes when I choose a topic for handicraft, I already know a good deal about the subject, and I feel quite confident instructing the students. But in this case I was a complete amateur. Don’t let your lack of knowledge about a subject hold you back. If we did that, many of us wouldn’t homeschool at all! If you don’t know, then I’ll let you in on a little secret. All these kids need is a little direction, and they will surpass your level of knowledge in no time! Happily we have access to books and the internet with its videos and tutorials, and even happier for me, I had the advice of a dear friend who is a professional photographer.

I came up with an outline which I used to guide my instruction. I always try to do this, so I can make the best possible use of our time. If you click on the image below, it will open a larger image for better viewing, but if you would like to print it out, then you can click here to open it in Google Docs.

Several moms and visitors enjoying the gallery.

During our first lesson I covered how to hold your camera correctly, and the importance of being still. We talked about using your flash, both inside and outside, and we considered what will appear in the background of a picture so that you don’t end up with a telephone pole growing out of someone’s head. Their assignment was to photograph a person, so we talked about the difference between candid pictures and portrait pictures also. When the first set of picture arrived in my inbox I was amazed! Thrilled! Just look at what I mean…

Taken by Allison, age 7

Taken by Britany, age 16

Taken by Isaac, age 10

Are they not just amazing?! You are welcome to look at all of the pictures the kids took on our co-op blog.

During our second lesson I taught them to consider perspective, how to “fill the frame”, the importance of leaving some “leading space” for moving objects, how to “frame” an object you want to capture, and the importance of having patience above all things. Their assignment was to photograph an animal, hence that last item in the list of instructions. It could be a pet, or any other animal they found interesting.

Taken by Gracie, age 8

Taken by Mitchell, age 12

Taken by Lizzie, age 15

Taken by McKenna, age 10

Taken by Morgan, age 10

Taken by Rad, age 7

Beyond these lessons, I also became aware of a Photo Scavenger Hunt Challenge, which I encouraged all of the kids to participate in. The goal was to get outside everyday, and take a picture of an item on the list. The Scavenger Hunt list is still available online if you would like to do it.

In the end it was a huge success! The moms in our group still say it was their children’s favorite handicraft, and I know of several of the kids who still actively practice their photography. One of my sisters has taken so many amazing pictures over the last two years that I almost exclusively use her photos on my blog. Did you notice the turtle picture on a recent post? That was hers! But she’s not the only one who has continued to take pictures as a hobby. In fact, one of the kids in our group entered a nature photography contest recently and won an honorable mention. I’m so proud of him.