Our frequent and beloved contributor, Chubby Cheek Photography shares some guiding, inspirational words for photographers reminding us…well, I won’t give away the lesson. ;) Read on and enjoy.

Stepping outside of the bean bag box…

thinking outside the beanbag….

I originally set out to write this post to my clients, but the more I thought about it, I was really writing it more for myself…the photographer. There is nothing more beautiful than the simplicity of a brand new, just born, newborn baby. The quite stillness of watching a mom explore the parts and pieces she has waited so long to see, the slow rise and fall of their delicate breathes, yep its truly a miracle. As photographers we all see the utter beauty of newborn photography and as moms, dads, aunts, and even someone who has never had children we understand how quickly that “newness” grows up and the moment has passed.

As a typical “beanbag” photographer , I am sometimes thrown for a loop when I arrive to a home where the baby is just not the sleepy, moldable, type. I have moved away from what I enjoy and gotten in the habit of checking boxes. Pose 1 (check), Pose 2 (check)… Having been in business for 4 years does not by any means make me a master baby whisperer and while I know so many baby whisperer-slash-baby-poser-extraordinaire’s in this industry, I have to admit I am not always one of them. And ya know what… i’m okay with that!

The point you ask? Yes, I’m getting there…well, it’s kind of, that while the stunning, perfectly-posed perfectly-lit newborn shots are just that stunning and perfect, I would like to “allow myself” to think outside the box of the beanbag and just photograph this part of that family’s life. Maybe for you it will be mixing the two, a little of this a little of that. Maybe for me it’s moving away from the bean bag completely and maybe for her it’s to keep on keepin’ on and posing that baby like a rockstar. It doesnt matter, thats not really the point here. It’s just to get you thinking about what you really want as an artist and DOING IT :) (yep I’m kinda sneaky like that at hiding the real lesson in the story, ask the cheeks girls, ha).

Just remember, while beauty often lies in the details, it can also be defined by the moments.

3 steps to creating lifestyle moments

1. Take a tour

Scope out the available light in your clients home. In particular, head to the master bedroom and nursery. If all else fails, move a couch to an area of good light.

2. Feet Focus

When parents hold baby comfortably, look for the parts and pieces and shoot at a wide open aperture. Baby toes, baby yawns, little fingers…just get everyone comfortable and try to observe, new moms and dads just love to hold that little finger, etc, so be ready to shoot.

3. Make it a party

I love love love toddler and newborn sessions because they all provide the best lifestyle shots. Siblings always have such a loving curiosity of the new baby so use it to your advantage. It’s best to have mom or dad hold newborn and ask toddler sibling to find baby brother’s fingers, toes etc.

 //  chubby cheek photography  //

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