New baby in the house? Well I guess it’s time to take some pics to send to friends and relatives…and maybe you need a good picture for a birth announcement too? Well there is no absolute need to go to a studio and spend a fortune on portraits…they are nice, but you can take great pics of your newborn at home too! Here are a few basic do’s and don’ts for photographing your newborn baby.
DO place the baby on a plain background
DON’T place the baby on patterned fabrics that will distract from the baby!
DO Make sure that the blanket or background is big enough to fill the whole background
DON’T let parts of the baby overlap on something other than the background, like carpet, or upholstery
DO turn OFF the time/date stamp
DON’T let your precious baby’s picture be ruined by glaring red numbers!
Get the picture in sharp focus. Don’t settle…if the picture isn’t in focus, take another picture instead. Get close…fill the frame with your baby, don’t let distracting objects sneak into the background. A changing table (with the baby safe and secured of course!) can make a great studio, but remove things like wipes and powder from the background! We know you use wipes and diapers, we don’t need to see them! Get above the baby, and shoot straight down. Another cute angle is to set the baby on the floor, perhaps in front of the couch, with a sheet under and behind the baby. Then get down ON the floor…lay on your belly, and shoot pictures of the baby from his or her level.
Take pictures of your baby’s little parts. Feet…feet are great. Isolate the feet on the background…try having someone take a picture of mommy and daddy’s hands holding the feet, while clasped together. Take a picture with a very shallow depth of field, looking at the bottom of the baby’s feet. Set your camera to its highest resolution. Take LOTS and LOTS of pictures. DON’T give up! If you don’t get the shot, try again. It’s not uncommon to only get a few pictures you really love out of a whole memory card full!