Newborns
Babies
Children
Family
Portraits
Posted on September 6, 2011
I received a few questions about my newborn setup post. Let me know if you want any more details!
- What’s the backdrop material called – wondering if a fabric store caries it? It’s actually the Ofelia blanket from Ikea! I’ve seen photographers use the Ofelia throw also. I have the blanket in brown as well. I’ve seen it in gray and tan on other photographers’ blogs – I don’t have an Ikea near me but next time I’m there I will get these as well! They’re great because they’re stretchy and don’t show wrinkles in the fabric. http://www.ikea.com/us/en/
catalog/products/60131593 - Are you keeping baby warm, seems like you are getting great shots without having to. Yes, keeping baby warm is a very important part to getting great shots. I have a small space heater that is sitting in the windowsill (it’s also often just sitting on the table to the side) in the photos I shared. It’s from Target but I know they sell them at Walmart too.
- Is there a light under your umbrella ? If so, how strong? Yes, it’s an umbrella light – this one from Amazon.com. It came with a 27-watt light bulb, but I replaced it with a 45-watt one that is 5500K color temperature so that it shines like day light. http://www.amazon.com/
PHOTOGRAPHY-CONTINUOUS- http://www.amazon.com/LIGHTING-UMBRELLA-Fluorescent/ dp/B000GX484U/ref=sr_1_10?ie= UTF8&qid=1314985479&sr=8-10 CowboyStudio-Fluorescent- Daylight-Temperature- Photography/dp/B004LONG0W/ref= sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8& qid=1314985582&sr=1-1 - You using a hot shoe flash as well? Nope. I don’t own any flashes, and my 5D doesn’t even have a pop-up flash.
- Whats your ‘go to’ lens for these shots? I use a Canon 50 1.4 lens for all my newborn shoots, except the macro shots, which are shot with a 100mm 2.8 L macro lens.
Hope this helps some of you!
Tell All Tuesday – Newborn Setup FAQ | St. Louis Newborn Photographer
Posted on August 16, 2011
To me, it adds a bit of dreaminess to the photo. Hope you enjoyed this quick Tell All Tuesday! I’m going to take a nap…never mind that it’s only 8:30am! 
Posted on July 19, 2011
It’s a tight space, but it works for right now. Here are a few more setup shots from a newborn session back in May. This is my basic setup for all of my blanket shots. I switch out the blanket, but the boppy you see under the blanket stays. I use a small umbrella light for fill light, since the window in this room is not very large. Plus, I just like having a little bit of fill light…it definitely helps with shadows and it warms the skin tone a little.
The window is south-facing. In the afternoon the light comes in pretty directly sometimes, so I hang a thin white sheet to diffuse the light.
And here are some of the shots I got from this exact setup that day.
I hope these totally NON sugar-coated shots of my setup help someone ! Feel free to ask questions.
Posted on May 24, 2011
For today’s Tell All Tuesday, I did a write-up of the steps I take to edit most of my newborn session images right now (I do change things up every few months it seems, but these are basics that I do most of the time).
BEFORE
AFTER
And here’s what I did, using Photoshop CS4:
1. In Adobe Camera RAW (ACR), I opened the image and adjusted the temperature. I leave my white balance on auto and adjust in ACR if necessary. I changed my temp to 5150 and left the tint at +1 (I hardly ever mess with the tint). I also upped the exposure +0.20 and bumped up the recovery to 26. I usually up the exposure if necessary to a level I like, then up the recovery to get rid of overexposure. I have my ACR’s sharpening tab set to automatically sharpen each image before opening it in CS4. Here are my settings, which never change: Amount 25, Radius 1.0, Detail 25, Masking 0, Luminance 0, Color 25. Then I opened the image into CS4.
2. I then ran my own “The Regular” action:
- Ctrl + J to duplicate layer, High Pass Filter radius 7, change mode to Soft Light opacity 50%
- Gentle Boost at 50% (this action was bought from Vibe a couple years ago – use it on every photo)
- Ctrl + E to merge layers
3. Filter –> Reduce Noise – 10, preserve details 11% (I use this on all my newborn shots)
4. Patch Tool to remove blemishes from baby’s skin
5. Ctrl + J, Ctrl + L to pull up Levels – upped mids to 1.30, then created a layer mask and erased back most from face & skin – this is an easy way for me to lighten the shadows and seamless paper backdrop
6. Curves bump – output 132, input 123
7. Ran another Gentle Boost at 50%
8. Ctrl + J, Sponge Tool on lips – saturate, brush 65px, flow 20%, then set the layer opacity back to 50%
9. Touch of Darkness (available for free from MCP ACTIONS HERE) to accentuate baby’s eye line slightly – brush 13px, opacity 30%, layer opacity 50%
10. This is a fairly new step for me and I LOVE what it does for skin tones, both outdoors and indoors…let me know if my directions aren’t clear:
Warming Filter (Adjustments –> Photo Filter –> Filter: Warming Filter (85), Density 25%, with the box checked) – then click on the layer mask, hit Ctrl + I to invert the mask, then brush only onto skin with Brush Tool set to white at 100% opacity
11. Touch of Light (again, available for free from MCP ACTIONS HERE – love this action, use it all the time) to lighten right side of face – brush 813px, brush opacity 20%, layer opacity 50%, then again to lighten barn floor beneath baseboard in the left side of the image, and front of bed where there are shadows – brush 715px, brush opacity 30%, layer opacity 100%
12. Hue/Saturation Adjustment Layer – Choose yellow in drop-down menu, yellow -70, then Ctrl + I to invert the layer mask, and brush onto the blankets and bed to get rid of yellow color cast without messing with the skin tone at all.
That’s all folks. I know it seems like a lot, but it only takes me a few minutes. Please let me know if any of this is unclear or if you’d like to see a tutorial for any of my steps above.
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Posted on May 17, 2011
Hubby was out of town this weekend, so I didn’t have time for a full write-up on this before and after newborn shot. Look for a step-by-step post-processing tutorial very soon!
BEFORE
AFTER
And you’ll be seeing a lot more of baby Adam this week…
Posted on January 25, 2011
For today’s Tell All Tuesday, I thought I’d throw out another setup shot from a recent newborn session. He’s on a beanbag, on my kitchen table, next to the window. I also have my umbrella light set up for fill light.
And here’s the shot…
More of this adorable guy this week!
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Posted on October 12, 2010
It’s about time for another Tell All Tuesday, don’t you think? Here is a quick tutorial that is helpful when your subject wears glasses…let’s call it Reducing Glare from Glasses.
Here is a before shot – see the yellow glare on his glasses?
1. Ctrl + J to create a new layer (in case you want to adjust opacity), then click on the Quick Selection Tool and use it to select your subject’s glasses frames.
2. Then create a Selective Color adjustment layer. Choose “Yellow” from the dropdown color menu, and slide the “Yellow” slider to -100 and “Black” to +100. Adjust the opacity if you’d like (I left mine as is).
Ta da! Easy peasy.
Here is another tutorial, by MCP Actions’ Jodi Friedman, to remove glare from glasses. It’s a much more involved method. CLICK HERE. And HERE is another of her posts with more tips on reducing glare.
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Posted on September 21, 2010
Today’s Tell All Tuesday is just a quick one about photography props. I love to find photography props on Craigslist and at yard sales, etc. I know it’s hit and miss, but if you are looking for a specific type of prop and are willing to check Craigslist often, you can usually find a deal. Here are some of my recent treasures…and take a guess at how much I spent for everything (all Craigslist finds, by the way).
Doll crib/bed…I’ve looked for over a year for the perfect-sized doll CRIB at the perfect price and finally found this one last week. I will most likely be painting it. The price?
$10 (Whaaaat?!!)
Child-sized chair. My old trusty white chair finally bit the dust, so it was time to bring another chair into the family (picture my hubby rolling his eyes). This one is pint-sized and perfect! I was thrilled to see a similar chair on Lisa Lucky’s blog the day I bought mine (loooove her)! My price?
$5 (Again…whaaat?!)
A red wagon. I’ve also searched Craigslist high and low for some time for a reasonably-priced wagon. I think this image would be so cute framed in a little boy’s room. Hmm…if I could only convince Carson to take down his Star Wars poster… The price?
$0 (Deal of the century!)
Mind you, my sweet husband would tell you he thinks people should be paying ME to take this junk off their hands. Someday he’ll understand. Surely someday he will.
Here are some tips for searching for similar photography props on Craigslist.
Doll bed/crib – I use search terms like “doll crib” and “doll bed” and sometimes throw in “antique” or “vintage” as well. It goes in waves. Be patient!
Child-sized chair – I search with the terms “child chair,” “toddler chair,” “wood chair,” and “kid chair.” Sort through the Dora camping chairs and it will pay off.
Red wagon – I stopped using the search term “Radio Flyer wagon” and started using “red wagon,” with much better results. There are actually a lot of different vintage brands of red wagons, and they all do the trick! I actually like that mine is a vintage Sears brand, because it makes it unique.
*One last tip – be persistent and BE SAFE. If the only way to contact is by email, don’t be afraid to send multiple emails until you hear back on an item. I always include in my response the area I’m in and a way to reach me so that I stand apart from the scammers. When I was inquiring about the doll bed it took no less than 5 emails before I heard back from the seller. She had computer problems, but since I didn’t give up (read: I annoyed her to high heaven I’m sure), I scored a great deal. I hope it goes without saying that you must also be ULTRA SAFE when dealing with Craigslist. Whenever possible meet someone in a public place for the transaction and/or bring someone with you. Now have fun prop-finding!!
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Posted on September 7, 2010
Today’s Tell All Tuesday is a real quick tip on getting REAL smiles from your children clients. Getting real smiles is always my goal. Sometimes it takes work – most of the time it does. This tip is brought to you all the way from Bobbi in Jefferson City, MO (the mom of the beautiful children in my last post). Have Mom or Dad stand behind you and make bunny ears on your head. When the child(ren) see their mom or dad being silly with the photographer, it gives them permission to be silly and break out their real smiles. Bobbi is a genius and I will for sure remember to use bunny ears more in the future.
Bunny ears have been known to trigger such real (adorable) smiles as this…
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Posted on August 17, 2010
I remember when I first started (okay, who am I kidding, I still do this sometimes!), I’d look at some of my very favorite photographer’s websites and think, “How in the world are their pictures so clean, so sharp, so GORGEOUS??!” Sometimes you’d just die to know what goes on behind the scenes. Like most photographers, I try to get my images as perfect as possible in camera – sometimes it works out and sometimes, due to the conditions or my error, etc. , it doesn’t. I do tend to keep my processing as clean and simple as possible though. Today I thought I’d walk you through my most-used post-processing steps. The photo I’m using is a throw-away from a (literally) two minute session I did with my nieces and nephew before they left Denver. It’s a throw-away because the eyes aren’t totally sharp, and that’s my #1 requirement for keeping an image. The eyes must be sharp (if they’re supposed to be…of course there are times when you are getting an artistic shot and the eyes may not be sharp).
Just FYI, I don’t use all of these steps all the time, but some of them I do. I will mark the ones I pretty much ALWAYS use with an asterisk. This one had a few problems that required some additional processing I wouldn’t necessarily always do.
Here is the photo we’re starting with:
***Step 1
My own “The Regular” action:
- Duplicate layer, High Pass Filter radius 7, change mode to Soft Light opacity 50%
- Gentle Boost at 50% (this action was bought from Vibe a couple years ago – use it on every photo)
- Ctrl + E to merge layers
***Step 2:
Curves Bump, then merged layers
Here’s what we’ve got so far.
Step 3:
This isn’t always necessary, but it’s a good way to get rid of color casts (common ones are yellow/green in subjects that are in bright grass, etc.).
Annie’s face had some red/pink hues reflected, so I used the Quick Selection Tool, highlighted her face, and:
Made a Selective Color layer (Magenta -7, Black -2), then merged the layers
***Step 4:
Eye Pop at 80% (since her eyes weren’t super sharp), then merged layers (if you need a tutorial on Eye Pop, see my Tell All Tuesday HERE).
***Step 5:
Patch Tool on face. I use this in many of my portraits of children and newborns. I don’t go overboard, but I try to get rid of boogers and crumbs!
Step 6:
This picture still wasn’t sharp enough for me, so I did an Unsharp Mask, amount 75%, radius 1.5 pixels, threshold 0 pixels. This isn’t a step I usually do.
Step 7:
Again, not a step I always do, but I felt this picture needed it…Burn tool on hair, shirt and background (shadows, 30%, 860 px brush)
*Step 8:
Touch of Light action (free from MCP Actions) on eyes and face (normal, 20%, 666 px brush), one click on each eye and one click on her cheek, change layer opacity to 50%, merge layers – I use this action on many newborn shots, and sometimes with Portraits too – usually only on the face, most specifically in the eye area. Be careful not to overdo it!!! Can’t stress that enough.
Step 9:
I felt like it still needed an oomph, so I did the Gentle Boost action once more at 50%, then merged layers
***Step 10:
Soft Light layer at 10%, merge layers – I do this action fairly often.
And here’s a side-by-side comparison. Nothing mind-boggling, but there’s a definite difference.
Here’s another edit using the same basic steps, plus a tiny crop.
I should also add that for most of these steps, I’ve created my own actions so that I save time. Man, I love Photoshop CS4 for that reason! Hope this helps someone out there.
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