Need suggestions for ghetto newborn lighting

[bethard728]

Thank you Matt and arlon. I've skimmed both of your suggestions. I'll have to read more thouroughly when I have a little more time.

Originally Posted by private

I just a very quick edit - levels, a crop and bumped up the exposure...oh and reduced the yellows

I will take it down if you wish. But to me it looks like WB is y our biggest issue.

Thank you, that looks great!

Originally Posted by lputman

Get him as close to the light source (window) as possible and use a reflector (white poster board is all it takes). In addition to the white balance, I would check the shutter speed. It seems pretty fast causing the photos to be underexposed. It is possible to take great portraits with natural light. A little post work will fix these that you've shown here just fine.

Here's a photo I took with minimal space between me and baby and as close as I could get him to the window for light. I did a little brightening up in post. This was my first attempt at baby portraits and I used the 50 mm f/1.8 lens.

Thank you so much for the suggestions. Your pic is so good! I love it!

Originally Posted by RussHeath

I've been taking some shots of my new daughter recently. This one is a combination of natural light and an off camera strobe at camera left for fill:
Congrats on your new daughter! Love the pics! Thank you for the suggestions!

Some key things to think about:
1) Get the baby away from the background.
2) Use a fast aperture to blur the background.
3) I second what Lori stated about getting them close to your light source and using a reflector.
4) If you're going to add light, then you need to figure out how to balance the color of the natural and artificial light.
5) Diffuse! Otherwise it will look harsh. The more diffused and the closer the light source is to the subject, the smoother and softer the light will appear.

You can add light with off camera strobes, but if that's out of the question right now, consider using a bank of daylight balanced fluorescents. Some people like the halogen work lights too.

Last of all, if the light sucks, move somewhere else. If your friend has tiny windows and you aren't comfortable with artificial, go outside. Shoot in open shade and use a reflector to fill in a bit. Works every time!

I did nothing in this picture except set her in the shade and shoot:

Good luck!

Congrats on your new daughter! Love the pics! Thank you for the suggestions!

Thank you all for your suggestions! Can't wait to take some fresh ideas and practice! I'll post what I come up with soon!