Photographing infants can occasionally be time consuming. They generally just lay there with a little cute expression on their face, but sometimes you want laughing, other times simply smiling or a straight face. You have to implement a few tricks to get them to change their expressions for the perfect shots.
Parents absolutely love photos of their baby where we isolate the parts of the baby. Taking photos of just their tiny feet and toes or incredibly delicate hands and fingers. Zooming onto the fine details of can be effectively rewarding. A variation would be to include one or both of the parents’ to contrast the delicateness of the baby. For example the baby holding mom’s finger, or the baby’s hand placed inside of dads hands will show how incredibly tiny your newborn is compared to a grown adult.
What goes in to taking the best baby portraits?
A challenge photographer’s face when trying to take photos of babies is trying to keep the baby entertained while at the same time trying not to make them cry. As the photographer entertains they have to keep the camera ready to capture those incredible expressions you are hoping to create.
Being ready to snap the shot
Babies are not predictable and you are not going to be able to judge when that cute expression will cross their face. A good trick that photographers use is to just keep snapping shots as they can always delete or adjust the photos later. Professional photographers have special camera settings that allow them to automatically snap many shots in succession. This is a strategy used to find the most perfect and cute shots.
We use the perfect lighting
Daytime is the best time to shoot baby photos so we can get the benefit of natural lighting. This lighting provides a soft look to the baby’s skin. Setting up by a window is the best but at the same time avoiding the direct rays of the sun to minimize shadows. If there are any dark spots we can use an external flash.
Hamming it up
To get your sweet little newborn to smile we are going to have to “ham it up” and try to appear funny to the little one so they smile or even giggle. Making funny faces, or a baby’s favorite, hide and seek from behind a cloth or one of our hands to make them smile. Another favorite for babies is making silly sounds like goofy duck noises or something similar. Usually you as the parent knows more than we do about what makes your baby tick and their weaknesses for smiles and giggles.
Keeping it simple
Remember the focus is looking for adorable portraits of your child and we’re not going to be concerned or even want a lot happening in the background. There is no need to clutter the background with unneeded settings. Great backdrops for baby portraits are simple cloths of gray, beige or white gently hung over a couple of chairs or maybe baskets.
Creating lasting memories
Capturing your baby in an activity makes for a memorable baby photo. Capturing them interacting with other family members will be priceless. If there are older siblings try and get them to come to the photo session so that they can interact with your baby. Cuddling your baby is also incredibly endearing.
Keep yourself as part of the background and don’t try to force the interactions, letting them happen naturally so the portrait looks genuine. The only input you should have is trying to steer them towards the photographer to capture great shots.
Use these tips to prepare yourself for your next Las Vegas newborn baby photographer session. Even though Marie Grantham Photography will take care of everything you need for beautiful baby photographs, you can also be adventurous and come up with more of your own ideas to create the perfect, heart-warming baby photographs that will set your name above the rest.
Call Marie at 702-336-1609 to schedule your appointment.
