2 From a Recent Session (1 Year Old)

He wasn't a happy little guy for most of it but... very expressive when he was crying/pouting!

He's either just upset or making a political statement in this one:

#1 would make a fantastic book cover!

I like them both! His expressions are wonderful!

Both of these are awesome!!
Just a word of warning of what is to follow though, I had done a photo with a flag before, and had the book thrown at me, get ready to defend it! (not from me - I love it!)

whiskaz wrote in post #8605974
... making a political statement in this one ...

Amen.
*runs for cover from mods* (adorable pics)

both awesome! no.1 is my fave. feel like you want to express something.

oldvultureface wrote in post #8608396
Amen.
*runs for cover from mods* (adorable pics)

lol... I was only making a joke, but it certainly works either way...

Swimchic - what the heck did you have to defend exactly??

I love the look, some of what it stands for - mostly it was an underused prop around the 4th of July and this kiddo was a little late in getting his 1 years taken - he was born July 1st

The second one is really good.

I think Swimchic found (and was warning you) that a lot of people don't like to see the US flag used as a prop, myself included. As an Eagle scout, I cringe whenever I see a flag improperly displayed, and rule #1 of flag handling is never let it touch the ground. I'm glad to hear it's an underused prop.

I think the picture is great, but the use of the flag in this manner ruins it for me.

I think it's great! Love the first one, his face is priceless.!!

#2 is an awesome shot!

whiskaz wrote in post #8610478
Swimchic - what the heck did you have to defend exactly??

Here's the thread, I'll let you read through it if you want ... I removed the flag image, so you can't see it, but you can still see how I got the book thrown at me lol

https://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthre​ad.php?t=654566

Actually, here's the image on my website

Sorry, don't mean to hijack your thread, or take away from your images at all! They are great - I added you on flickr too - I love your work

bnkrazy wrote in post #8610769
The second one is really good.

I think Swimchic found (and was warning you) that a lot of people don't like to see the US flag used as a prop, myself included. As an Eagle scout, I cringe whenever I see a flag improperly displayed, and rule #1 of flag handling is never let it touch the ground. I'm glad to hear it's an underused prop.

I think the picture is great, but the use of the flag in this manner ruins it for me.

I can respect that and can honestly say that it DID cross my mind. I just didn't see it as all that inappropriate. Would it make a difference if it were not allowed to touch the ground - like say, if the child were on a beanbag or something else? I still don't think it follows the rules of "proper" handling but... I dunno. I really like how it renders in an image

swimchic wrote in post #8612593
Here's the thread, I'll let you read through it if you want ... I removed the flag image, so you can't see it, but you can still see how I got the book thrown at me lol

https://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthre​ad.php?t=654566

Actually, here's the image on my website

Sorry, don't mean to hijack your thread, or take away from your images at all! They are great - I added you on flickr too - I love your work

Well, the context in which you used it was certainly appropriate imo... I don't think you were doing anything offensive there at all - especially considering the father was in the Air Force. Oh well

I can appreciate a patriotic photo. I've also seen far, far worse uses where there was disrespect intended. This is obviously not the case here, and I don't think it's a bad image. I just have been conditioned for several decades to go out of the way to follow the flag code to the letter. According to the code, the 'ground' includes anything under the flag, so the beanbag idea wouldn't be much help for those that would bother to mention it in the first place.

I may try a few shots now that I've thought about it and see if I can come up with ways to incorporate a flag while adhering to the code. Should make for an interesting shoot. Thanks for the idea!

I think your photo is great using the flag! I often use it myself, in the same manner that Swimchic did. My husband serves in the US Air Force thus we live on a military installation and of the clients here the majority of them want the flag and the service members dog tags incorporated into photos. I don't find any disrespect in it as I feel that it is a way to show our love for this land by taking our young babies and proudly displaying the flag with them as if to say this is our land and these are our babies, our future! It goes hand in hand! Keep up the great work, the photos are beautiful!