Lily's Newborn Photos

Three weeks ago today, I had a baby!  She came 17 days early, and gave me 45 minuets from when my water broke, to when she was born.  Not enough time for an epidural.  That is something that has never been on my "To-Do" list, but now that it's over, I think it's pretty cool.  But I digress.  After she was born, my parents were so kind to take my other children for the day.  That gave me a chance to play around with taking some photos of Lily.  Now, please note, photography is one area in art I've always been afraid to dabble in.  It seems there too much to learn, and too many competent photographers already out there.  That being said, it is with some hesitation that I share any tips with you.  I am very new to this, and still have a lot to learn.  But in shooting these photos of Lily I did learn a lot, and I want to share.

Here is where I started, I do love a lot of things about them, but I've also included my own critique:

The ground is too flat!

I like this, but after looking at it, it's a little too "diapery" for me.

What's cuter than a baby in a basket?

I like this too, but the lighting is really washed out,
and the pose looks too straight on.

Adorable, yes.  But I felt I could do better.  A few days later, I gave it another go.  This is AFTER I researched newborn photos on pintrest and youtube.  First, I realized that I needed an overly trendy and adorable headband.  I pulled out my vintage lace stash, bits of fabric, beads for bling, feathers, and rhienstones.  Most, if not all, which came from yardsales (I am crazy for yardsales).

And... Wall-la!  Here's what resulted:

 Next, I sought out better lighting, and put pillows under a blanket, for a nice soft feel.  From looking online, I noticed how important hand placement is.  Also, making sure her face wasn't turned down into the blanket at all.  My favorite trick is to take hundreds of photos, and hope for a hand full of usable ones.

Here are the results:

If you wait long enough, they just might smile.
She only smiled a few seconds out of an hour of shooting,
but I was ready, and that's all I needed.

Still loving the "baby in a basket"  but this time
I  made the whole scene more comfortable.
 Also, I covered up her diaper with some bloomers.

I feel like my second round of taking her photos improved so much.  I captured so much better, the adorableness that is a newborn.  So, I'm really happy with how these turned out.

I shoot using a Canon eos Rebel xsi, and process in Adobe Lightroom.  I LOVE that program.  Just look at the before (straight out of the camera), and the after (after using Lightroom).

After

Before

A few tweaks, and it just gives it that extra special feel.

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