Faith Curriculum Library: Tapestry of Faith: Families: A Jr. High School Youth Program that Explores the Diversity, Commonality, and Meaning of Families

Activity 1: Photography As Interaction

Part of Families

Activity time: 10 minutes

Materials for Activity

  • Poster board
  • Markers
  • Masking tape

Description of Activity

Invite participants to create two collaborative posters with the topics "How NOT to make people at ease when photographing them" and "How to BEST make people at ease when photographing them." Encourage humor (especially in the first poster) and/or diagrams. Provide colored markers, and encourage words, cartooning, and so on. Ask participants to think about photography sessions that have worked - or not worked - well for them. Give the group five minutes to work on the posters.

Review the posters together and ask the following questions:

  • What additional ideas do participants have about making people comfortable when photographing them?
  • Are there common themes emerging from the two lists?
  • How will this information be useful as we photograph families?
  • Why does this matter to us as Unitarian Universalists?

Close this activity by sharing the words of photographer Gigi Kaeser. She says, "When people pose for family pictures, they usually feel self-conscious and they try to look good. They often smile unconvincingly or look serious. When I succeed as a photographer, I have interrupted these reactions."