10 Tips For Taking Baby Photos

Thanks to our friends from Kodak, check out these 10 tips for taking the perfect baby photo.

1. Get down on their level. Hold your camera at the baby’s eye level to capture the power of those magnetic gazes and mesmerizing smiles.

2. Use a plain background. An uncluttered background forces attention on your baby. Place your baby against a plain background or move yourself (and the camera) a few feet.

3. Capture feelings. A smirk, a frown, a wail - capture all the emotions, not just the pretty smiles. Babies are uninhibited and uncensored, show it in your pictures.

4. Get close. Zoom in, filling the frame to emphasize what’s important, creating a more impactful photo. Capture the details, like blue eyes, a toothless smile, or tiny fingers.

5. Show scale. Take pictures of your baby with items that will show her relative size - a teddy bear or Daddy’s hands. Take a series of pictures with the same object as your baby grows.

6. Try different angles. Get down on their level, shoot from high above, shoot some sideways, some looking up at them.

7. Include other people. Capture others with the baby - Big Sister feeding the baby or Grandpa dancing with his little grandson. Make sure to include everyone who visits your baby.

8. Take some vertical pictures. Many subjects look better in a vertical picture - from the Eiffel Tower to portraits of your friends. Make a conscious effort to take some vertical pictures.

9. Use natural light. Shoot photos next to windows or outdoors, taking advantage of natural light. Cloudy, overcast days provide the best lighting for pictures of people.

10. Take lots of photos. Always keep your camera handy! Babies change so fast, capture every moment right from birth, including all firsts. Document a day in the life of your baby.

For more tips, tricks, projects and ideas on photographing babies, visit Kodak.

from blog.heritagemakers.com

Chosen Mothers

Have you ever wondered how mothers of premature babies are chosen?

Have you ever wondered how mothers of premature babies are chosen? Somehow I visualize God hovering over Earth, selecting his instruments for propagation, with great care and deliberation.  As He observes, He instructs one of His angels to take notes in a giant ledger.

"Armstrong, Beth...give her a son.  Rutledge, Carrie, give her twins."  Finally He passes a name to the angel and says "Give her a preemie."   The angel is curious.  "Why this one, God?  She is so happy."  "Exactly", smiles God.  "Could I give a sick child to a mother who knows no laughter?  That would be cruel."

"But has she the patience?" asks the angel.  God replies, "I don't want her to have too much patience or she will drown in a sea of self-pity and despair.  Once the shock and resentment withers away, she will handle it fine."

"I watched her today.  She has that feeling of self and independence that is so necessary for a mother.  See, the child I am going to give her will have his own world.  She will have to make him live in hers, and that is not going to be easy."

"But Lord, I'm not sure she truely believes in you."  God smiles "No matter.  I can fix that.  This one is perfect.  She has just enough selfishness." 

The angel gasps "Selfishness!  Is that a virtue?"  God nods, "If she can't separate herself from the child occasionally, she will never survive. Yes, here is a woman whom I will bless with a child that is less than perfect.  She doesn't realize it yet, but she is to be envied.  She will never take for granted a single day.  She will never consider a step ordinary. When her child says "Momma" for the first time, she will be present at a miracle, and know it."

"She will never be alone.  I will be by her side every minute of every day of her life, because she is doing My work as surely as she is here by My side."

"And what about a Patron Saint for her Lord.  Whom shall it be?" asks the angel.  God smiles, "A mirror will suffice."

Author Unknown