My Baby at 4.5 Months....am I doing ANYTHING right in these pics?

I'm very new at this- and haven't posted many pictures on here at all. I can't seem to ever get my photos in focus (perhaps I need glasses? or am just a really really really slow learner) And my photos tend to be either extremely dark or very yellow. After looking these photos over that I'm about to post, I apparently cut off limbs, not just often, but in EVERY shot. Can someone help make suggestions on how to fix some of the problems I've listed- and also any other mistakes I've made. Is there anything that I'm doing right/correctlly in any of the photos?
Thanks so much!

- I think one eye is possibly in focus but the other definitely is not.
- Cut off his left arm
- His head/hair blends into the background too much (how can I fix this?)

From the EXIF data it shows that you have your White Balance set to tungsten. Is that the type of lighting you have in the room? Try some different WB settings or set it to Auto and see how the color changes.
Using a shutter speed of 1/15 is kinda slow for kids, or not so steady hands. May be causing OOF pics.
Dumb question... but... is the lens set to Manual Focus or Auto Focus?
Looks like the focus is hitting on the shirt most of the time. F2 is probably just too narrow.
Try adding more light to the scene so you can use a wider depth of field and a faster shutter speed. And keep playing!

Do you have focus problems with both the kit lens and the 50mm? If not your lens may have a problem. If your shutter speed is 1/15 you'll lose focus due to camera shake and movement of your subject. Also some lenses have soft focus problems when the aperature is wide open which may be part of the problem too.

Your white balance is off, test out different options there and that will help some on the color problems. I shoot in auto white balance and then adjust in post processing (may not be the right way, but it works for me).

Composition will get better with practice, you know what you don't like so keep that in mind and the next time take your time while shooting to frame up the scene that you want and like...and if you look at your lcd screen and don't like then recompose and take another!

As for doing right, your practicing, asking questions and trying to improve!

The #1 problem is not focus. It is camera shake. As mentioned by Melody above, 1/15 is WAY to slow for anything. Try for 1/100 minimum and you will have better results.

Second, these appear to be indoors at night, or at least in poor lighting. Especially with your own kids, you can usually plan shoots around good light which makes a huge difference in the quality of the photo.

Tommorow, try again during mid day. Find a window without direct sunlight. Put the kid on a cute prop, like a nice blanket or pillow facing the window. Use about f2.8 and 1/200 shutter speed. Make sure to use a focus point directly on the baby's leading eye. Watch in amazement at how amazing your photos look compared to shooting under lightbulbs at night.

Need better lights in your house.
Try setting your lens to F1.8 and the rest on auto. That's how I started.

The AC/DC t-shirt is a nice touch!!

I am right there learning with you! I've just read a lot on here about shooting during the day so I always try to do pictures of my daughter when there is light in the windows. I face her towards the window or sliding glass door, fumble around with the white balance settings until I get close enough to what looks natural, and then shoot a ton and hope I can work with it enough PP to get something cool. I am working on camera shake as well and it always seems to be a miracle when I get a good expression, good lighting, and good focus all at the same time!! (Which is why I, too, cut off limbs all the time...). PP always helps me, but I wish I could get a good picture in the camera first.

I like your first picture a lot though, he is a cutie, and think more practice with the white balance and trying during they day would help! (Love the AC/DC shirt too...my husband always points those onesies out at the store and wishes he could make our little girl a rocker). Also, maybe if he was in front of something that wasn't so close to the shade of his hair color would make it pop out a little bit?

I love the last two, too bad about the issues you had with focus and WB. It wasn't mentioned but if you shot in RAW the WB would be easy to correct.

There has been plenty of great advice already regarding shutter speed and white balance.

Regarding crops and backgrounds, I have found that if you just tend to grab your camera to take pictures of whatever the baby is doing, it is often very difficult to compose a shot exactly the way you want it - without something in the background, you not having enough room to move around, etc. Try "setting things up" for a shoot, where you have room to move, decent lighting and a clear background. Take a few test shots with someone else as a model, get your camera settings close to where they should be. Then place the baby there and be ready to shoot. That way, you're mainly thinking about where you need to be and focusing on the eyes.

look in the camera manuel under custom functions and set the focus the the back button me and my XTI used to fight about focus too lol. lots of light faster shutter speeds and I just use auto wb keep trying and posting you will get there!!!! such a cute little guys congrates

Thanks for all the HELPFUL advice everyone! I'll definitely try shooting in natural light. My 85mm came in the mail yesterday so perhaps I'll go to the park and play around with it a bit...

Thanks again!!

Just keep in mind that 85mm can be very long indoors on your camera. Get your shutter speed up and you won't have to worry about camera shake as much, but that won't help with the framing. I always try and shoot a little wider than I need to have a little bit of crop room. You can't recover what's missing.

Also, I'd STRONGLY recommend getting a good flash like the 430ex. It will allow you to bounce the light off of the ceiling and will help you with the shutter speed issues.

1. Set your camera to shoot in RAW or RAW+JPG. With the RAW file you have lots more headway in adjusting temp and exposure among other settings.
2. Set your camera to either manual or aperture mode
3. Set your white balance to auto or cloudy if in doubt.
4. Use your 50mm set to about F/2.8 to F/3.5. Besides giving you a little more depth of field, the "nifty-fifty" is tack-sharp stopped down a notch or two.
5. Keep your shutter speed at a minimum 1/100th due to the 1.6 crop factor of your camera. If you are a beginner, try even higher shutter speeds if the lighting allows.
6. If you know how to use the center focus on your camera, definitely aim for one of the eyes and recompose, if you have time because children are fast.

Good luck and keep posting as there are alot of helpful people here to help.

for the yellow. Try adjusting your white balnce setting.

As for cut off limbs. Only thing I could suggest is take your time a little more and check in the veiw finder if everything in the picture is there you want or shouldnt be there. Then re compose if not.

I am far from an expert so hopefully others have given or will give you some great advice.

If you were using the 50, as for chopped limbs, take a step back. When you think you are ready to press the shutter, take a step backwards, you'll give yourself a bit more room in the frame. Don't frame your shot so tightly.