Welcome to the world, Sophia!
Saturday, April 26, 2014
Hello Baby Sophia!- Chicago Newborn Photographer
Sophia's mom and I had just met 3 days earlier for a mini maternity shoot when she surprised everyone and came much earlier than expected! After a short stay in the hospital, Sophia was ready to come home to her very excited big sister. I love working with newborns and their siblings and Evelyn was the perfect protective and sweet sister. She was so helpful and was more than willing to be my "spotter" when Sophia was snuggled up in the bucket. Here are a few favorite photos from our session (I just love how Evelyn was snuggled up with her baby sister)
Welcome to the world, Sophia!
Welcome to the world, Sophia!
Monday, April 21, 2014
Hello, Baby Kingston!- Chicago Newborn Photographer
The L family reached out to me a week after they welcomed their sweet little baby boy into the world. I was fortunate to have some room in my schedule and was able to photograph baby Kingston when he was two weeks old. This little guy really made me work during the session! He loved being in his Mommy's arms and we were able to take some beautiful lifestyle portraits with him nice and cozy in his favorite spot. His blue and gold nursery was AMAZING and it is obvious his parents have killer style (check out his little bow-tie!)
I really enjoyed spending a morning with this wonderful family and can't wait to see them all again.
Welcome to the world, Kingston!
I really enjoyed spending a morning with this wonderful family and can't wait to see them all again.
Welcome to the world, Kingston!
Saturday, April 5, 2014
Natural Newborn Photography and Un-Posing- Chicago Newborn Photographer
I wanted to write a blog post about how to achieve an "un-posed" newborn portrait for quite some time but didn't have the ideal photos to include. Then came baby Lulu, who was an absolute dream to work with. I don't think I ever saw her eyes in our 3 hours together.
Don't get me wrong, I love posed portraits (like the "bum-up" pose below) and do them in every session, but there is something so beautiful about a photo of a newborn moving freely on their own. The parents probably see their newborn moving this way everyday, and will likely cherish these photographs later as they remember exactly how their tiny baby stretched their leg, or curled their hands.
My favorite types of "un-poses" (not sure that's a word) are on neutral backdrops, mainly black or white. I try to avoid using props that will take any focus away from the newborn and stick with simple wraps, or nothing at all. For the image above, I placed my beanbag at a 90 degree angle, 3 feet from a large sliding glass door. I pushed in the center of the beanbag to form a little well and placed the wrap on top. Then I set baby Lulu on the beanbag at at angle, so her little face would get more light. At first, her ankles were crossed on her belly and I took one corner of the wrap around her bottom and tucked it behind her back and did the same thing with the other side. She wasn't a fan of having both her legs tucked and decided to kick one of them out while she stretched out her little fingers. Lulu kicked out her left foot many times throughout the session and I thought it was something important to document.
This next series is done on a simple piece of black fleece, with a well pushed into the bag to help her curl a bit and feel more cozy. The beanbag is still 90 degrees from the window, but I placed the baby at the same angle to create a bit more shadowing. I placed her on the beanbag with her legs curled and then stood over her (camera strap around neck) and shot these images in succession. You can imagine the baby kicked her poor mother in the womb just like this :-) I like to edit these portraits with a soft and moody, matted black and white to really bring out the shadows.
Don't get me wrong, I love posed portraits (like the "bum-up" pose below) and do them in every session, but there is something so beautiful about a photo of a newborn moving freely on their own. The parents probably see their newborn moving this way everyday, and will likely cherish these photographs later as they remember exactly how their tiny baby stretched their leg, or curled their hands.
Vs.
My favorite types of "un-poses" (not sure that's a word) are on neutral backdrops, mainly black or white. I try to avoid using props that will take any focus away from the newborn and stick with simple wraps, or nothing at all. For the image above, I placed my beanbag at a 90 degree angle, 3 feet from a large sliding glass door. I pushed in the center of the beanbag to form a little well and placed the wrap on top. Then I set baby Lulu on the beanbag at at angle, so her little face would get more light. At first, her ankles were crossed on her belly and I took one corner of the wrap around her bottom and tucked it behind her back and did the same thing with the other side. She wasn't a fan of having both her legs tucked and decided to kick one of them out while she stretched out her little fingers. Lulu kicked out her left foot many times throughout the session and I thought it was something important to document.
This next series is done on a simple piece of black fleece, with a well pushed into the bag to help her curl a bit and feel more cozy. The beanbag is still 90 degrees from the window, but I placed the baby at the same angle to create a bit more shadowing. I placed her on the beanbag with her legs curled and then stood over her (camera strap around neck) and shot these images in succession. You can imagine the baby kicked her poor mother in the womb just like this :-) I like to edit these portraits with a soft and moody, matted black and white to really bring out the shadows.
My goal is to do a mix of posed and un-posed shots in every newborn session, and I hope my clients enjoy both types of photography because I certainly do! What do you prefer? Posed or un-posed?
Tuesday, April 1, 2014
Baby Jaden- Chicago Newborn Photographer
I loved this session with baby Jaden and his "sisters." The dogs were so good during their portion of the newborn photo shoot, and thanks to a dog treat being held above my head, they posed perfectly still :)
Jaden was such a sweetheart and I only saw his eyes for the first couple minutes of the shoot and then he was out like a light.
It is always a nice surprise to arrive at a client's home and find they have awesome wood floors to include in basket shots as well as a large sliding glass door that let in the perfect amount of morning light. I am working toward a more airy and natural look to my portraits and I love the look of babies surrounded by soft light and white fabrics. I also hope to do a little more "un-posing" of newborns in future sessions so check back for a post on how to achieve this organic look.
Welcome to the world, Jaden!
Jaden was such a sweetheart and I only saw his eyes for the first couple minutes of the shoot and then he was out like a light.
It is always a nice surprise to arrive at a client's home and find they have awesome wood floors to include in basket shots as well as a large sliding glass door that let in the perfect amount of morning light. I am working toward a more airy and natural look to my portraits and I love the look of babies surrounded by soft light and white fabrics. I also hope to do a little more "un-posing" of newborns in future sessions so check back for a post on how to achieve this organic look.
Welcome to the world, Jaden!
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