Newborn pics

[Lonnie]

I've enjoyed looking at CheetahPita's work, and after trying to photography my newborn yesterday, have a newfound respect for the work she does. Hardest shoot I've done so far - Molly can't sit up, won't make eye contact, will lose patience and start crying, etc.

Please c/c these for me. I'm planning on photographing her once per week for the next year and I'd like to get better.

1.

http://nofilm.org/potn/molly/infant_1.jpg

2.

http://nofilm.org/potn/molly/infant_2.jpg

3.

http://nofilm.org/potn/molly/infant_3.jpg

4.

http://nofilm.org/potn/molly/infant_4.jpg

5.

http://nofilm.org/potn/molly/infant_5.jpg

6.

http://nofilm.org/potn/molly/infant_6.jpg


Thanks for taking the time look!

[ArvThePie]

A little over exposed in B&W maybe.
Good effort though.

[sancho1983]

I'm no expert, but the first few look a bit blown out. The last one is great. My wife is due in July so I will be researching this sort of thing in preparation!!

[mayerk]

I dont really mind the B&W's that seem overexposed. In #2 it really helps bring out the eyes.

[samoan_ridah]

My humble advice would be to watch how you position/prop your baby. If you look at CheetaPita's work, you'll never see the babies look crouched or in an awkward position. They may be wrapped in odd things or put in places that may be out of the ordinary but the actual baby always looks peaceful and natural in whatever setup she puts them in.

I think that is one of the hardest things to do as a photographer with newborns (aside from EVERYTHING else of course :).

[howaboutnow]

CONGRATULATIONS on the arrival of your daughter Molly!!!!

Hope I didn't miss any pics, as these are the first ones I'm seeing :)

I enjoyed your last photograph, so peaceful. So pink. So cute.

[TheHoff]

Your light is hard for a baby -- you need something to soften it like an umbrella or even bouncing it from a white wall/ceiling.

I'm sure you will get a ton of practice!

[Lonnie]

Your light is hard for a baby -- you need something to soften it like an umbrella or even bouncing it from a white wall/ceiling.

Agreed. I had two flashes off camera with no umbrella. I'll use them next time.

CONGRATULATIONS on the arrival of your daughter Molly!!!!

Hope I didn't miss any pics, as these are the first ones I'm seeing :smile:

I enjoyed your last photograph, so peaceful. So pink. So cute.

Thanks so much! We've really enjoyed her. I've posted just about all the baby pics in my zenfolio, link in my sig.

I like the last one best also, although I think I will like the first one best once I shoot it right.

My humble advice would be to watch how you position/prop your baby. If you look at CheetaPita's work, you'll never see the babies look crouched or in an awkward position. They may be wrapped in odd things or put in places that may be out of the ordinary but the actual baby always looks peaceful and natural in whatever setup she puts them in.

I think that is one of the hardest things to do as a photographer with newborns (aside from EVERYTHING else of course

Good advice. I think the mistake I made was trying to do most of the shots with her laying by herself. This is bad because she doesn't have enough strength to pose, and she also gets pissed off a lot quicker if no one is holding her and then the shoot is over.

In all of these pictures she is either laying on or wrapped in a "green screen" background, which I changed the color of in PS. For the next few shoots I am going to have someone hold her and have them covered with the background cloth.

I dont really mind the B&W's that seem overexposed. In #2 it really helps bring out the eyes.

I'm no expert, but the first few look a bit blown out. The last one is great. My wife is due in July so I will be researching this sort of thing in preparation!!
A little over exposed in B&W maybe.
Good effort though.

These shots were a tad overexposed as shot, but then I made the mistake of using an action that has a diffused glow. I may post edits of the originals later. I also need to get my light meter out (believe it or not I have one :) ) and learn how to use the thing. Using an umbrella will also help, as I don't think the entire image is overexposed, just a few areas.

Thanks for your comments everyone, these comments are very helpful. I'll post some more shots next Tuesday with these c/c's in mind.