Say cheese
for Santa
Fussy children and a strange,
By Stephanie Kendrick
old guy in a red suit are a bad
combo, so prepare, because some
holiday hams are made, not born
Assistant Features EditorIF the college football season let you down, the shopping malls offer a more uplifting spectator sport. It's not about touchdowns. It's all about smiles.
"(Santa photography) is a good spectator sport," said Jon Mainord, who is in his second year of shooting Santa pictures for Pearlridge Center. And it has its share of pathos. Last year, a woman brought her 12-year-old grandson to Pearlridge to have his picture taken. The boy's mother had died eight months earlier and he had not smiled since. He did not want to sit on Santa's lap, never mind smile for the camera.
By Dennis Oda, Star-Bulletin
Photographer Eric Kansako waits for the perfect moment
while Stephanie Ackerman tries to coax a smile out of his
subject, her niece Emma Choy, 1-1/2.
"To do photography of any kind with children you have to be very patient," said Mainord. "You have to build a rapport with them."Mainord worked with the young man, patiently, gently. "I finally got him to get this really great smile," he said. The boy's grandmother, on the other hand, started weeping.
During peak periods, the audience for Santa photo shoots can be nearly as big as the line, said Mainord. Photographers often find themselves with a whole host of volunteers encouraging babies to smile. "Sometimes you will have 30 people behind the photographer trying to make a baby smile," he said. And when the smile finally appears, there'll be a whole crowd -- people who don't even know the child -- cheering.
Jon's wife Jeanette Mainord manages the Hawaii region for Cherry Hill Photo, which also has the Santa photo concessions at Ala Moana Center and Aloha Tower Marketplace. In three years of shooting Santa photos, Jeanette has seen a little bit of everything. Many children are just downright terrified of the whole ordeal. After all, "here's Santa, who knows whether they've been naughty or nice.
By Dennis Oda, Star-Bulletin
The Sagria family flew in from Molokai to get their picture
taken with Santa. From left, Kohala, 4; Dayshia, 5; Lowen, 6;
Justyn, 4; Olena, 3; and Jaimy, 4.
"There are some (children) who break your heart," she said. Like the child who doesn't want any toys, he just wants grandpa back.And there is the mad pace of the season in general to deal with. Jeanette once locked Santa in a room by mistake and went home. Fortunately, someone from her staff noticed the big guy hadn't come back from his break and rescued the not-so-jolly man.
Pearlridge Center's policy of allowing Santa photos with pets also makes for some interesting situations. Jeanette tells of a woman who came in barely restraining two German Shep-herds, who said, "Whatever you do, don't reach for your squeak toy."
"That was a little scary," said Jeanette. Another Pearlridge offering that lends some warmth to the season is the signing Santa. From 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Dec. 11, Pearlridge will bring in a Santa fluent in sign language. In years past, this event has drawn deaf children from all over the state.
Children with hearing problems are often shy, said Jon Mainord. "It's really neat to see these children open up."
Jeanette Mainord and her staff have learned a little sign language for the event as well.
One key to Santa photography seems to be to ability to quickly develop a relationship with children. One Cherry Hill staff person will start working with children in the line. That way, when they find themselves in front of the camera, there is a familiar face cheering them on.
"You have to be outgoing and be willing to clown around with them," said Jeanette. But some children are so ill-prepared for the experience, nothing can prevent the scream.
Amy Lo is co-owner of Photo Trends, formerly Fromex, in Windward Mall. Photo Trends runs the Santa photo concessions for both Windward and Kahala Mall. She likes to use experienced photographers because she said they develop an eye for which children are going to hop right up on Santa's lap and smile and which ones are going to scream.
As an insurance policy, her photographers always take two shots, one right away, before the screamers know what's going on, and one more slowly, in search of that perfect smile. But while parents put a lot of stock in "the perfect smile," Lo said they do not do enough to prepare children for the trip to see Santa.
By Dennis Oda, Star-Bulletin
Bianca Batten, 3, brings a newspaper ad and shows
Santa exactly what she wants.
She said parents need to consider the situation from the child's point of view. "You're only 13 months old and you've never seen this old man with a red suit and all of a sudden someone is saying 'smile.' "Children from 10 months to 2 years old seem to have the most trouble, according to Lo. All year, they've probably been told not to go to strangers. Then they get tossed on some bearded guy's lap.
But in some cases, the perfect smile is not always the perfect picture, said Lo. She said it is just as worthwhile to have a memento of the fact that your 14-month-old daughter screamed the first time she sat on Santa's lap.
"That type of photo can be more precious," said Lo, who has other tips for parents who still want the perfect smile shot.
In a word, prepare. Show the child images of jolly old Saint Nick. Go to the mall a few times and hang out around Santa until the child seems more comfortable. Lo has watched parents come around with toddlers that were terrified, who gradually became more comfortable.
Finally the day comes when they are placed on Santa's lap. "Then you can't get rid of them," she said.
The Mainords also had some advice: Don't wait until Dec. 23. Toward the end of the season, lines of 150 people are not uncommon, said Jon. With that many people in line, it is hard to give each child the time and attention it takes to get that perfect smile.
Santa's working overtime, sharing his beard, belly and smile at the following locations: He's everywhere!
Ala Moana Center: 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. through Sunday; 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. Monday through Dec. 23; 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Christmas Eve.
Throw-aways
By Ruby Mata-Viti
capture keepers
Star-BulletinYOU can't escape it no matter where you turn, bright colors, dazzling tinsel, glitter and lights. The island is dressed for the holidays, making a perfect backdrop for pictures at any given moment. Except the only time anyone thinks to have a camera handy is Christmas day. Those moments in between are freeze frames in memory, seldom captured on film.
This phenomenon isn't restricted to the holidays. Who thinks of bringing a camera along while shopping, fishing, going to the beach or on a quick hunt for ice cream? It seems hardly worth the trouble to worry about a camera getting banged around or even swiped, just for a trip to the mall.
The new disposable cameras available at your local drug store make it a snap to always have a camera handy. You may never again have to utter the words, "I wish I had a camera."
Disposable cameras are lightweight enough to tote every day in a backpack, purse or briefcase, and they're tough enough to take the beating you'd never subject your "good" and heavier camera to.
Fuji and Kodak make disposable cameras using 35mm film with flash capability. You can buy them in bulk when they go on sale, usually for about $9 each. Or you can try the newer Kodak Advantix or Fuji Smart QuickSnap disposables which let you switch between 4-by-6-inch, 4-by-7-inch or panoramic formats.
The disposable casings are recycled and reused by the film companies. The film costs the same as regular film to develop.
Keep in mind that the camera casing is made of plastic and cardboard, and that if it cracks, the film may be exposed. Another downside is, if you get antsy about viewing your pictures, it may take a few months to use up the film, with two to three shots being taken at a time here and there.
But those who can wait might see the roteness of echoed events in family photo albums disappear. You know: Christmas, birthdays, anniversaries, Christmas, birthdas, anniversaries; same people, different clothes, another year older. Instead, the albums will be sprinkled with events that would otherwise be missed.
So when some thoughtful college chum sends that strait-laced colleague in the next cubicle a birthday peel-o-gram, you'll be ready. As the dancer takes off the second-to-last stitch of clothing to the beat of Village People's "Macho Man," and jumps into her lap, you can reach into your briefcase, whip out the camera, and viola. A perfect memento.
And you might even finagle a free lunch as a bribe for not posting the snapshot on the office bulletin board.
