I don't think I'm an expert, by any means. But I've found that if I can get a toddler to talk about the things they like, they tend to become more animated. Sometimes it's just waiting for them to warm up to you. For Mariel, she loved talking about princesses. When I took pictures of my nephew, I had to be silly. And I wore a Hulk mask so the Hulk could take the pictures. With Mason at the time, he LOVED Peek a boo. So I'd snap right once he took his hands away from his face.
Pay attention to how words end when the child says them. For example, words that end in 'Y' draw the mouth outwards. Like Candy, Silly, Mommy. Now say it in a funny voice and have them try to do it too. My nephew would say "Aaarrrrr" like a pirate, yet you'd have no idea from looking at the picture. (words may differ from with how each child talks, so watch their mouths as they talk).
Ryan's my analytical one. So I have to ask him how things work. That or tell him that "Charlie's hungry". If you ever saw the movie "Liar Liar", it's equivalent to "The Claw."
Really ANYTHING but asking them to "Smile." When I've done that, I get a forced expression that looks more like it's feeling pain than it is happiness.
Other times I think it's a GOOD thing when kids don't smile in photos. Childhood doesn't consist of a frozen smile on their face. There are frowns, furrowed bros, tongues sticking out, thoughts, sick days, and tears.
While I know those shouldn't dominate photo books, I still think they're important to record. Especially with how you can see that Lifestyle Photography is trending more and more (Something I'm very interested in developing more... like this picture of Aunt Susan with Mason)
So it might take more of an effort, but it will be worth it. Capture the moment. Capture their childhood. THEN capture the smile.
