Number of players: 5+
Ages: 6+
Photographer is a GREAT party game for kids and adults. It involves a lot of imagination and improvisation, but at the same time it’s very easy for young children to pick up on. The success of the game is really up to the crowd. It’s a great icebreaker, and can get very funny, very quickly.
To begin, two players take the roles of photographer and guesser. The guesser leaves the room, and the photographer takes a picture of someone in the room. It’s an imaginary picture, which leaves the players free to use whatever object they choose to be the camera. Of course, a very creative photographer will have his subject pose for a few photos, so if the photographer and subject are good actors, they can add their own flourish to the game.
The guesser then returns to the room and tries to guess which player had their picture taken. The guesser gets a cue from the photographer, because the photographer has to mimic every move the subject makes. If the subject gets the hiccups (or pretends to) so does the photographer. If the subject pretends to be a monkey, the photographer follows suit. The more active the subject, the more exciting the game gets.
Here’s where the audience participation comes in. To throw off the guesser, the rest of the players can mimic the actions of the subject as well. The guesser has to watch all the players closely to see which moves first. Instead of having just two players pretending they have hiccups, or pretending they’re monkeys, everybody in the room joins in the action.
The game appeals to young children because of the repetition, and hopefully simple movements they get to perform. It appeals to both adults and children because to get the most out of the game, everyone has to get a little bit crazy.