I love photography, like love it, love it..  I always have, I am that person willing to thumb through your photo albums and sit through your family vacation videos.  I also know what I like in a photo, what makes my heart sing and what makes me wish I was the one that captured that moment in time.  I didn’t start actually becoming a photographer until later in life (I’m obviously a late bloomer), and I write ‘becoming’ as I feel like I am ever evolving, learning and thus ‘becoming’ who I want/hope to be in my photography adventure.  I like to encourage others to explore their dormant skills and have been blessed with many successes in our classes we have taught.  I don’t shoot a lot of individuals, though I wouldn’t be adverse to it. I just haven’t had the opportunity and I am not sure they would be up for what my idea of a perfect photo would be; I can tell you this, it would not be a posed shot. I do not like posed shots, I like images of people wherein it looks like the photographer has just happened upon that perfect moment, I feel like those are the images that are worthy to be framed and added to the wall. Some shots, if you were a brilliant creative genius you can absolutely make them look like they were instantaneous ‘caught in the moment’ ones, here are two of my favorite shots that look spontaneous but were actually produced ones–there’s this and this.

Now that I will have my very own little individual that will be living with us and who can’t complain about my camera for some time, I have been gathering up piles of inspiration, techniques and of course ideas on how-to to preserve these precious memories. A lot of these baby photography resources extend past baby of course, but I do know that a lot of future photographers don’t start exploring the medium until a baby arrives.  I hope you find these useful!

//BABY PHOTOGRAPHY RESOURCES//

There is no way that I am not going to pull out my film camera and try a few shots (or million). The above images by Taylor Lord are film and you can see how beautifully creamy the tones are. I am so happy that I took Jen Huang’s film photography workshop and now that she has her workshop-in-a -box, you can too! She also has an upcoming workshop that would be well worth the investment! I have found both Elizabeth Messina’s and Jonathan Canlas’s books (both film centric) ,very helpful on my film photography journey.

I have preached about this forum for ages. I am not writing the name because I feel like the name is off-putting for those that are not mom’s or mom’s-to-be but I truly believe every newbie-moderate photographer could benefit from being part of such a supportive community.  I have watched their business evolve and expand exponentially since I joined and they offer some of the best (and most affordable) classes around, their blog has tons of free and valuable advice. They also have some gorgeous presets and actions that have a film feel that are very well done!

If you plan to solely partake in digital, I have already mentioned previously one of my very fave people and baby photographers-Meg Fish. Meg excels at creating beautiful creamy soft tones and is a master with light, lucky for us she is sharing her ‘secrets’, I highly recommend her book, I have the pdf version (instant gratification!) and Meg writes in a simple + clear voice that even a newly minted photographer can easily comprehend.

Post processing skin can always be a challenge, but especially newborn skin and perhaps even new mama skin (I know a little about this one right now, grrr!)  Here are some processing tools that I have tried and would recommend based on ease of use and results:

• VSCO-their presets are tops when trying to get that film look, the bonus is that film look can also be very flattering on the skin!
• Paint the Moon-The photographer that developed these actions has two little girls she often photographs and processes with her actions. She also has great tips on her blog that are very helpful!
• Jinky Art-These are more stylized looks, but people RAVE about this company and it’s worth taking a peek, she offers workshops, actions and an on-line Lightroom processing course.

There are many ideas on how to compile your images, but as you know I prefer simple + clean.  Jennie has created some photo books (based on her Iphone images) of her first year with baby that I am wildly inspired by. She shares her printing source with you and glimpses of how the books have come out. Her daughter is going to be so lucky that her mom had such foresight, taste and talent.

A perennial favorite Creative Live will be hosting an online class ‘Bumps to Babies: Photographing Motherhood’. You can watch it live for free and after that buy the course if you so choose.  It is being co-hosted by Sue Bryce whom I worship/adore (she knows how to make a woman look her most beautiful).

If you are missing my normally scheduled Pinterest inspiration post, please feel free to check out my every growing collection of baby centric inspiration at my Oh, Bebe board!

P.S. If you have a company or service that you think should be added to this please let me know! I am also open to adding any of your favorite baby photography resources here too, so bring them on!