Baby - What Am I Missing?

[Shannon_A_S]

I did a free portrait shoot of triplets a few months ago. My first attempt at newborn photos with a proper camera. I think they turned out ok, but just not what I was looking for and not pro looking in my opinion. I just can't seem to figure out what I am doing wrong. Is it the color? composition? clarity? What am I missing?


EXIF
Nikon D90
f-stop: f/4
exposure: 1/100 sec
ISO 800

[Sime]

I'm no pro, but I think it's your composition... and your lighting...

The blanket flowing over the bottom of the basket.. I can't put my finger on it, but it just doesn't feel right.
The dummy - I thought "is that a dried apricot?" you either need to dump it, or make sure people know what it is.
The half closed eyes, makes it "baby sinister" needs to be closed or open - I think half way between is odd.

The light is quite flat, there's not really any interest to it... I can't articulate what I mean right now.

Just a point - your comment "with a proper camera" "not pro looking" ...don't beat yourself up - David Bailey didn't get his first Brownie and after a few photos say "It's just not pro looking"

It was free, practice, try different lighting setups and do it again.

hope this helps (more than confuses)

Sime

[MrJones]

i think it's the angle from above. it's boring and usual. much like a parent taking a photo of his baby in his bed.
other than that, like sime said, the dummy and the eyes really take away from the photo.
maybe it can work with a different crop.

[kristenh]

to me, a lot of what makes it ho hum is that the baby's face, or even the baby's cute naked body, is not the star of the show in this shot. think about how much of the frame is taken up by each element- blanket takes a lot, basket takes a lot. baby's face- what? 15% of the frame. baby's face isn't really even showing- kwim? you could photoshop mr t's head onto that baby and few people would notice. so i'd try to really hone in on the child- get her eyes in nice sharp focus. as mr j said, try different angles. i imagine you had little to do wtih the clothing choice, but i'd strip her down- who wants to be distracted by a really random sleeper with little giraffes or whatever? giraffes will be well out of style when this kid's mother prints out a poster size of the photo for her sweet sixteen party. and i agree about the pacifier- never even seen one like that- crazy

there are lots of folks on these boards who post sys with newborns and i'm sure you could steal a few ideas there... make sure to post the 2 month shots

[Kara78]

I personally think that the black is harsh. Newborns should be with softer colors and the blanket would have been nice if it had color or a different texture. The pacifier should have not been in the picture. I think next time you could suggest to the mother to have fed the baby prior to the shoot and make sure it's not taken around nap time. Try getting at the babies level, too.

[SuperDan]

i agree with the above statements

the composition doesnt work for this shot... i understand the basket idea.. you can see a few of my own in a similar basket, but... one of my biggest issues with this is the baby itself. heres a big tip (i received when i started doing newborn sessions) Take the pacifier out. thats my biggest issue.
secondly, the sleeper does nothing for the set up, nor does the blanket... the head looking to the side, you should have recomposed and went on to a different side shot...
if you cant get the baby to do what yuo want it to do, go with the flow and do what the baby will allow you to do
im not trying to jack your thread, but ... heres a similar basket from one of my newborn sessions:

there are tons of pointers that i have gotten as i am just starting in doing newborns, and mostly, is what Kara78 had said as well...

pm me if you are interested in discussing

[curelightwounds]

Originally Posted by Kara78

I personally think that the black is harsh. Newborns should be with softer colors and the blanket would have been nice if it had color or a different texture. The pacifier should have not been in the picture. I think next time you could suggest to the mother to have fed the baby prior to the shoot and make sure it's not taken around nap time. Try getting at the babies level, too.

I very strongly agree with this. Black is an odd color choice for a background. Was that what you were shooting against or was that part of processing?