Babies - C&C please

lovemycamera · March 14, 2012

Hi there, I'm new here.

I'm a stay at home mom who has recently (last November) gotten into portrait photography. I've read tons of books about photography and people and I've even worked with a wedding photographer over the last 2 years. Just now really starting to get out on my own and practice more. I am still in that portfolio building stage. Not quite ready for the full blown business part of it. Hopefully though... one day.

Anyways I'd love some C&C, and please be honest, not rude but honest. I try and not take anything to heart and learn from my mistakes.

I've got a few people I know that are having babies in the next couple of weeks (maybe days) and I'd like to improve. Yes I understand about newborns and how delicate they are, I have 2 children myself. I have watched tons (I think everything I could find on the internet) of tutorials on newborn photography, saftey, and composites.

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lovemycamera · March 14, 2012

Anyone know how to get my photos to appear? They are little red x's on my end. I am new to the forums so I maybe doing something wrong. In the New Post window I clicked "insert images" and copied my link from flickr in there. Is there another way ?

lovemycamera · March 14, 2012

lovemycamera · March 14, 2012

Ok I figured it out I guess..... Though they are way huge... sorry for that.

RyanS · March 14, 2012

Stephanie,

You wanted honest, but not rude, opinions. Please consider these points:
* Several of these images are not exposed properly.
* Several are poorly lit.
* Many of them have basic compositional errors.
* There are several color & skin tone issues.
* So many people do newborn pictures that it takes very well executed concepts to have any lasting emotional impact.
* Only showing your best work will ensure you have a solid brand as you improve.
* I like the last image best, but still don't have an emotional response to the image.
* The story of a stay at home mother with a camera is incredibly common in the industry right now. If you want this to ever be a business for you, know your competition.

Hope that helps.

lovemycamera · March 14, 2012

Thank you. I like constructive criticism.

Any tips. I still consider my self a noob to all of this. I'm learning lots, or at least trying to.

I'm still struggling with lighting and exposure. Currently reading "Understanding Exposure" at the moment and reading tutorials and such online. Just read the post about "Sunny 16 rule" under the tutorials in the forums.

What compostitional errors do you think I have? I thought I was following the rule of thirds pretty good. Maybe I'm not understanding the rule.

I don't think I am anywhere near being a professional yet and I don't think my photos are that good or have that "emotional impact" as you said.

I'd really like some tips if you or anyone has any on where I can improve. Oh and the story of the stay at home mom... I realize that. But it's the truth. This is more of a hobby than anything at this point. Maybe someday (I'm thinking a few years) with lots of practice and a good business model, then maybe I can be a great photographer.... heck it may take longer than that.

Quincy T · March 14, 2012

lovemycamera wrote: »

Thank you. I like constructive criticism.

Any tips. I still consider my self a noob to all of this. I'm learning lots, or at least trying to.

I'm still struggling with lighting and exposure. Currently reading "Understanding Exposure" at the moment and reading tutorials and such online. Just read the post about "Sunny 16 rule" under the tutorials in the forums.

What compostitional errors do you think I have? I thought I was following the rule of thirds pretty good. Maybe I'm not understanding the rule.

I don't think I am anywhere near being a professional yet and I don't think my photos are that good or have that "emotional impact" as you said.

I'd really like some tips if you or anyone has any on where I can improve. Oh and the story of the stay at home mom... I realize that. But it's the truth. This is more of a hobby than anything at this point. Maybe someday (I'm thinking a few years) with lots of practice and a good business model, then maybe I can be a great photographer.... heck it may take longer than that.

Stephanie, I understand that you're pointing out your realization of what Ryan said in his critique, and that you understand, but I just want to reiterate what he said:

You can be a great photographer, and that will not make you successful, particularly when the world is completely saturated with images like this.

Compositionally, some are fully following the rule of thirds perhaps, but that doesn't make a composition good. What makes a composition good is knowing how to bend the rules and make a unique image. I could take a beautiful picture of a palm tree with wonderful congruence to the RoT, nice DOF, and a sunset in the background. There are probably at least 200 people, if not more, in my Tampa zip code that could do the very same.

So, starting a business out of photography is a complex thing. It requires skill, but even more than that it requires marketing. I know you said "a few years from now", but I can tell you are interested in getting started. This is going to sound rude, and it may not apply to you, but there are a lot of people out there with well-designed/thought out watermarks and their images are the polar opposite.

With all of that said. Finish reading Understanding Exposure, which is one of the best photography books on earth, and then continue reading. Continue looking at others' work. Continue learning, and lighting and really just wrap your head around it all. While you're doing that, since you have free time, you should practice. Don't just shoot portraits, or babies. Shoot everything. Try it all. I like DPChallenge.com. It's $25/year, but it's an enormous catalyst for me as a photographer.

And at the end of it all, don't get discouraged. That is a very easy thing to do.

mjoshi123 · March 14, 2012

One more thing - look into post processing part of photography also because no matter how good you get with taking pictures with right exposure and creatively composing it if you cannot take it to next level in terms of editing it will become hard to progress beyond certain level.

LTPhotograhy · March 14, 2012

As already mentioned above the lighting to me seems a bit flat but that can be fixed with some work and practice. If you plan on going into newborn/children photography there are a lot of great photographers on Facebook that you can follow to see how others in the industry are posing and what props they are using. It's a tough business but very worthwhile. Send me a message and I can give you the names of some of my favorite places for props and some of the photographers that I like to follow.

Stella7d · March 14, 2012

Hi Stephanie,

Kudos to you for putting yourself out there and asking for CC right off the bat. You've been given some great advice. Sometimes it's not always what we want to hear, but through honest critique comes growth!

In addition to exposure, composition and post processing, I would suggest working on white balance. Learning to set a custom white balance with a $5 grey card is easy and will make a world of difference in your skin tones and in your in camera images!

Have you ever considered taking a workshop or an online class?
Since you're a mom of little ones, you might enjoy Karen Russell's workshop....perhaps you've heard of her! She's an amazing photographer and an extremely gifted teacher!!

Her classes fill up quickly but definitely worth waiting for ~ http://www.snapshotsofagoodlife.com
and her blog ~ http://www.karenrussell.typepad.com/

Also if newborns is the direction of your focus, I would look at blogs of some of the industry leaders to gain inspiration and help with composition. Best of luck to you. Photography is a wonderful journey!

VayCayMom · March 15, 2012

Hi Stephanie! Good for you to have the guts to post and ask for feedback. I began somewhat like you but as an empty nester, the best part is that I have ton's of time to devote to learning. The first thing I did was to take an online class on how to use my camera.. I had a Nikon d70. I almost quit the second week.
Your images are a bit like near misses. The focus doesn't seem to be correct in most of them. Number 3 is the worst offender. The last image is a hodge podge of "props" and textures that is very distracting. Looks like you began with a placemat on a blanket, then put more stuff on top and a odd green nest with eggs to the side, and that orange thing , what is that?
Here is a suggestion if you want to improve.. get a doll and practice shooting with just simple basic images you have seen and with only one or two"props" like just a wrap. Work on the exposure and then learn how your lens works to give you the focus in the right place. Maybe do all of these in black and white until you can look at your images and tell what could make them better. This will go much faster with an object and not a real baby. Look at other people's work everyday and figure out why it works or doesn't work. Good luck, this is a wonderful subject to spend time on!

shioti · August 19, 2013

Hi Guys, this might be the dumbest question asked but I would like to know do you use dry cleaning on the faux fur blankets and are they safe for a New born baby skin (the chemicals with dry cleaning). any suggestion how to clean the props?

Thanks in advance!

Qarik · August 20, 2013

here are actual suggestions:

1) bring up that exposure by maybe 2/3 of a stop (#2 is the least undeexposed of the bunch). This get's it into the "technically" correct range. Artistically babies usually look better with high exposures. A lot newborn skin issues can be "erased" with high exposures.
2) flat light. with the exception of 4, all the images are completely flat..meaning the light is simply straight on and you lose dimensionality in your subject. Find some window light or use flash and umbrella to add direction to your light
3) skin is plastic looking with the exception of 2 and 4. This is processing issue..not sure what software you are using but local contrast (clarity slider in LR) is waaay to "soft" and destroys any semblance of real skin

Babies - C&C please

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