Pointers on newborn shoot

[iadubber]

Hello all,
I have been reading quite a bit on here the past couple of weeks. Going to be getting my first DSLR Friday, a 350D with 18-55 IS kit lens. I am ordering a nifty fifty Friday also. My question is, what do people use for the backdrops? I really like this idea here with the black background, thanks In2Photos for the example...

http://www.pbase.com/madawson/image/106671598/original.jpg


Is this just black fabric? Or does it need to be some sort of special material? What kind of lighting is used? I have a month or so left. My wife is due June 11th and thought I would move up from my Canon S3IS to a DSLR before the baby comes. I would really like to get some nice portraits of her. Thanks for any tips!

[blondine]

I use a black fleece backdrop (hides flash & shadows well and its not all wrinkly), I also have a roll of savage paper in grey, white and black but find the fleece easier to use and to travel with.

I prefer natural window light with a little bounced flash if needed.

CONGRATS on your upcoming new addition.... enjoy him/her they grow so fast!

AND don't forget to post a few shots!

[iadubber]

I'm short on funds, so, say I got some black fleece from hobby lobby and hung it on a makeshift PVC frame and draped it down to the floor. Stacked the towels up and put her on top of the towels. Then maybe use one of my mini tripods to shoot. Would that work ok you think? I guess I'm mostly worried about the natural light at my place since I have no flash yet.

But, I am watching a few auctions with umbrellas, stands, and Vivitar 283 flashes.

[In2Photos]

Normally you should change the image to a link since it is not yours, but I will grant you permission to use it just this once. ;)

Now for the photo, this was actually done on my king size bed and we used the headboard for the background (dark wood). I was able to just clone out some areas that you could see the wood grain. We bought some black fabric at Hobby Lobby that was pretty cheap. We doubled it up to make it thicker and that worked out well for some other photos like this one.

http://www.pbase.com/madawson/image/106671599/original.jpg

I still had some cloning to do for small pieces of fuzz, but for the most part it worked quite well. Try to find fabric that is thick and without any sheen, like fleece mentioned above. The one problem with fleece is that it is fuzzy so you may lose some definition around the newborn.

[blondine]

Your plan sounds good, it's not a must to have a flash (although pop up flash works ok as well for the fill light just a little if required)

If you feel up to it you can check out the two links I'm posting, these newborn shots where taken with very small window for natural light and just a large black fleece blankie... play around a little and I'm sure you will get some great shots. The maternity and baby shots with black background where taken in my livingroom with larger window and the blankie taped to the wall...lol...

http://www.beautifulmemoriesphotography.ca/page5.html
http://www.beautifulmemoriesphotography.ca/page4.html

[iadubber]

Thanks Blondine! Looks like it will work out just great. I can't wait for my Nifty 50 to get here!

[BBrat]

for a black back ground you can use many things. I'll try to keep it inexpensive...:D

Walmart has bed sheets they sell, they come in various colors, I think I bought a king size for 14.00, for newborns you wont need a king size, go smaller and save a few bucks or get the bigger and fold it over a few times.

You could also use foam core from arts and craft stores, they too come in various sizes and colors. they work great for flags, and reflectors too.

Blankets or throws, work well too.

Even furniture such as couches and love seats work great as backgrounds, providing where you are shooting has the color you want to use?

Try fabric stores too, they have different colors and textures, and you can cut to size.

If you already have a big reflector (with black on one side) you could use that too as a back ground.

[meganparkerphoto]

You can use fleece, felt, crushed velvet....a lot of different things. As long as it burns easily you can "clean it up" with the burn tool set to shadows and 100%

[LuckyStar]

i had a velvet-y burgundy blanket that i used when my daughter was that age.
i wish i had some pics to share on my laptop.
but i draped it over the couch, or sometimes my fold-up drying rack... depending on where the sun was.

[iadubber]

I'm thinking of getting a nice plush blanket and draping it in her little bathtub. That should suffice.

Less than a week and she will be here for sure! I have my flash and a new 60mm Macro on the way.

[Captain Mantastic]

i just used a black sheet

http://lh5.ggpht.com/__BR-F3-HXcQ/SetWs5Z-2mI/AAAAAAAAA4M/cd3wwvSqQno/s800/IMG_6243%20%28Large%29.jpg

http://lh5.ggpht.com/__BR-F3-HXcQ/SetWrOXN1NI/AAAAAAAAA3s/5iTIXXr3uI4/s800/1%20%28Large%29.jpg

[KenVP]

I think this type of work is great, no better time to catch a great shot. I have always been somewhat scared to shoot newborns, not sure why but just a fear i need to get over..........

[Captain Mantastic]

it is a lot of fun, especially when it is your own kid and you can see all the different things they do. i could have my camera out all the time, but i am usually too busy laughing at him an dplaying with him to bother with a camera. which is disappointing, i have missed a lot of fun shots