Delivery room shots

My wife and I are having our first baby soon and I wanted some advice about what camera gear to take with me. I would prefer to limit the conversation to talking about what equipment to take and not spend time on how much I should or should not be shooting. I probably will shoot only a couple shots during delivery and do a few documentary shots after that (weighing, laying on wife's stomach, etc) but not do much beyond that until later.

I have: 5D MKii, 50 1.4, 24-70 2.8, 17-40, 70-200 2.8 IS, 580EX II, 430EX II, STE-2

I was thinking my primary would be the 5d and 50 1.4. I won't bring the 70-200. The question is whether to bring the 17-40 or the 24-70. For shots later on I was thinking I could mount the STE-2 and set the flashes in a couple corners of the room (bounced to the ceiling) to get some nice shots. Would the 17-40 be best because I would need the wide angle for this or will I want the speed or length of the 24-70, or is it a stupid idea and I should just shoot with the 50? Another point in favor of the 17-40 is that fact that it is half the size and weight of the 24-70.

Wow... only on an internet forum.

smmokan wrote in post #11911630
Wow... only on an internet forum.

And what is that supposed to mean?

I would just use on-camera flash and bounce it off the walls/ceiling. I like the 17-40, but the 24-70 would work too. Why not just bring both?

You want things as simple as possible, while still making great pictures.

congrats on your baby! we just had ours and I brought in my 500D and 1.8. I think you will be fine with your 50mm. I prefer the natural lighting with babies so you can get the "real" experience. You could always tug along the 17-40 for afterwards, but I would leave the flashes at home. good luck and have fun!

Seems cruel to use flash around a person that has been living in a dark cavern for 9 months. I'd just use natural and bring one lens. Either the 50mm or 24-70 will do fine.

I see people stress about baby and hospital pictures and really they are not as hard as people make it sound. The baby doesn't move much and you'll have 2+ days of recovery time at the hospital to take and retake lots of photos. Last time I only brought my Canon Pns and it did fine.

dbraga wrote in post #11923193
I prefer the natural lighting with babies so you can get the "real" experience.

Most likely the shades will be drawn, not sure how much "natural light" you'll get.

Sideways question: Is the missus actually ok with giving birth in a portable studio? Me, I wanted the experience as intimate (non-publicized) as possible. I would not have minded some candid photos, chronicling the time... but the thought of strobes or a bunch of flashes all set up... makes me kind of cringe. Don't get me wrong, some photos are great.

As far as reach... I don't know the particular set up of the room you will use. Ours was probably 20'X30' but I had my kids in a small rural hospital where the delivery rooms served as OR's as well. If it's say, hotel room size, I'm guessing you know what type of focal length you'll want. Chances are you won't be shooting anything from farther than 10' or so... the baby on the scale is probably the farthest you'll be. My second was not crying when she was born and they whisked her away quick, so she would have been a good 16-20' away while they worked on her to make sure she was ok. I then went into shock so whatever gear dear hubby had with him got put away PDQ and other things rapidly became more important. For that reason, I would tend to advise against a larger set-up... IOW as has been said, as simple as possible.

So in short, all depends on the venue and the subject's comfort, IMHO. She gets final say in all matters!

Oh, and GL!!!

I would go as simple as possible...just the 50...Now mind you, this is coming from a mom who has gone through two 20+ hour natural births in me, not the photography lover in me. If my hubby was messing with lenses during labor, well, let's just say that his lenses may not have survived. But in all seriousness, just go simple for the birth. You will want to, and need to, focus on your wife and not worry about too much camera gear. Like another poster said, you will have time during Tue next two days in the hospital to get tons of other shots. Remember, you may want a nurse to snap a few of the brand new family, so unless you happen to snag a nurse that also knows how to work a 5d2, you may want to bring a P&S too.
Best of luck and congratulations!

Gatorboy wrote in post #11924801
Most likely the shades will be drawn, not sure how much "natural light" you'll get.

you will get the lighting from the room and the heating lamp they put the baby under after he/she is born. IMHO and experience, you will enjoy those more.

dbraga wrote in post #11934395
you will get the lighting from the room and the heating lamp they put the baby under after he/she is born. IMHO and experience, you will enjoy those more.

Uh, that's not NATURAL lighting. Sun, Fire, Lightning and Fireflies is about it for natural lighting.

Your best option is on-camera flash, bounced off walls, ceiling. Set your camera on Manual, say ISO 400, f/5.6, 1/60 and your flash on ETTL. Then enjoy the birth and later the images you created as well.

I voted for bring it all, but really I think:

50 1.4, no flash for most of your shots
17-40 plus flash for a few pull back, whole room shots.

bouncing the light isn't too bad on the eyes...that heat lamp they put them under seems a bit cruel on the eyes not to mention the flashlight they shine in them.....has got to be one hell of a experience.

Congrats on the baby.

karobinson wrote in post #11937989
bouncing the light isn't too bad on the eyes...

Plus the fact that is fires at about 1/5000 second. No issues with flash at all.

Also, some hospitals don't let you take photos of the actual birth because of liability reasons. I was thinking 35mm on a full frame for mine, with cramped quarters.