COVID-19 CAUGHT US ALL BY SURPRISE. NO ONE PLANNED ON BEING IN ISOLATION FOR MONTHS ON END WHEN THEY LOOKED FORWARD TO THEIR SPRING – I KNOW I SURE DIDN’T. I WAS GETTING EXCITED ABOUT NEWBORN AND FAMILY SESSIONS ON MY CALENDAR, THE WARM WEATHER AND GETTING OUTSIDE TO THE PARK WITH MY KIDS. INSTEAD, HERE WE ARE, ATTEMPTING TO WORK FROM HOME WITH CHILDREN CONSTANTLY HUNGRY AND HOMESCHOOLING. AIR LAB, SOCCER AND CHURCH/BIBLE STUDY CLASSES: ALL CANCELLED. BUT MY HEART GOES OUT TO THE NEW MAMAS. HAVING A BABY DURING THIS UNCERTAIN AND STRANGE TIME MUST BE FRIGHTENING, AND I KNOW SO MANY MAMAS LAMENTING THAT THEIR BIRTH WON’T LOOK LIKE THEY PLANNED. MANY OF THESE MAMAS PLANNED FOR IN-HOSPITAL OR IN-HOME NEWBORN PHOTOS AND ARE DISAPPOINTED THAT THIS ISN’T AN OPTION. SO, IF YOU’RE ONE OF THOSE MAMAS, THIS BLOG IS FOR YOU. HERE ARE SOME TIPS ON HOW TO TAKE YOUR OWN FRESH 48 PHOTOS DURING THIS PANDEMIC.

TIP NUMBERO UNO: SEEK OUT GREAT LIGHTING

I WORK COMPLETELY WITH NATURAL LIGHTING FOR MY FRESH 48 HOSPITAL SESSIONS. I LOVE THE MOOD AND EMOTION IN THE NATURAL DARKS AND LIGHTS IT CREATES. SOMETIMES, MAMAS GET NERVOUS WHEN I TELL THEM THIS BECAUSE THEIR ROOMS DON’T HAVE A TON OF NATURAL LIGHT. WELL, ALL YOU REALLY NEED IS ONE WINDOW, AND SOME CREATIVITY.
FIND THE WINDOW IN YOUR HOSPITAL ROOM THAT LETS IN THE MOST NATURAL LIGHT. IF IT’S POSSIBLE TO MOVE THE ROLLING CRIB IN FRONT OF IT, DO IT. IF NOT, DO WHATEVER YOU NEED TO TO GET BABY CLOSE TO THE WINDOW FOR THE PHOTOS. ALWAYS FACE BABY TOWARD THE NATURAL LIGHT SO IT FALLS ON HIS OR HER FACE. THE BEST LIGHTING WILL BE BEFORE NOON.

TIP NUMBER 2: AIM TO CAPTURE SOME EMOTION

HAVING A NEWBORN IS AN EMOTIONAL TIME. ONE OF THE REASON WE LOVE NEWBORN PHOTOGRAPHY SO MUCH IS THAT IT SHOWS THE JOY AND LOVE NEW PARENTS FEEL FOR THEIR LITTLE ONE. WHETHER YOU OR YOUR PARTNER ARE TAKING THE PHOTOS, TRY AND GET SOME WITH BABY AND MAMA OR BABY AND DADDY. INSTEAD OF ASKING THEM TO LOOK AT THE CAMERA AND SMILE, ASK THEM TO LOOK INTO BABY’S EYES. GENERALLY, THAT’S ALL IT TAKES FOR A NEW PARENT TO GET AT LEAST A LITTLE BIT EMOTIONAL.

HOW TO TAKE YOUR OWN NEWBORN PHOTOS TIP NUMBERO 3: FOCUS ON THE DETAILS

MISSING OUT ON YOUR FRESH 48 PHOTOS IS SO DISAPPOINTING SPECIFICALLY BECAUSE THESE LITTLE ONES GROW SO QUICKLY. SO, MAKE SURE YOU CAPTURE THE THINGS THAT WILL GROW AND CHANGE SO MUCH OVER THE NEXT FEW WEEKS – THOSE TINY LITTLE FEATURES. IF YOU HAVE A DSLR CAMERA AND CAN ADJUST YOUR SETTINGS EASILY WITH SOME KNOWLEDGE, TRY AND GET YOUR APERTURE AS WIDE OPEN AS YOU CAN AND FOCUS ON THE FEATURE YOU’RE TRYING TO CAPTURE. THIS WILL MAKE IT SO THINGS AROUND THIS LITTLE HAND OR FOOT YOU’RE TRYING TO CAPTURE AREN’T QUITE AS IN FOCUS. IF YOU JUST HAVE A CELL PHONE, TAKE ADVANTAGE OF ITS FEATURES AND TRY TO ZOOM IN AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE TO BABIES UMBILICAL CORD, LITTLE FINGERNAILS, EARS AND TOES.

TIP NUMBERO 4: WATCH YOUR ANGLES

WHILE YOU DON’T NEED TO STAND ON TOP OF THINGS OR GO CRAZY, FEEL FREE TO SWITCH IT UP AND NOT JUST SHOOT FROM STRAIGHT ON. ONE THING YOU WANT TO WATCH FOR THOUGH, ESPECIALLY WHEN CAPTURING THOSE TINY FEATURES, IS MAKE SURE YOUR CAMERA ISN’T ANGLED UP BABY’S NOSE. FORTUNATELY, BABY’S ARE ADORABLE FROM ALL ANGLES SO IT’S NOT HARD TO GET A FLATTERING ONE, BUT YOU REALLY DON’T WANT A BUNCH OF IMAGES OF THE INSIDE OF YOUR CHILD’S NOSTRILS.
I COULD GO INTO A LOT MORE DETAIL, BUT THESE QUICK TIPS SHOULD HELP YOU CAPTURE IMAGES OF YOUR NEW LITTLE ONE THAT YOU’RE PROUD TO DISPLAY IN YOUR HOME. THE GREAT THING IS, EVEN IF YOU REALLY HAVE NO CLUE WHAT YOU’RE DOING, YOU’LL LOVE ANY PHOTO OF YOUR SWEET NEW BABE.
NEED SOME MORE INSPIRATION? CHECK OUT A FULL FRESH 48 SESSION HERE. OR, IF YOU’RE DUE LATE ENOUGH AND CROSSING YOUR FINGERS THAT PROFESSIONAL NEWBORN PHOTOGRAPHY WILL BE FEASIBLE? I’D LOVE TO CHAT WITH YOU!

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fresh48, hospital sessions, first 48 hours, Colorado newborn photographer, newborn baby, COVID19