Photographing your baby at home

You may have had a professional photographer booked for a newborn shoot or perhaps just want to learn how to capture this precious time spent together during lockdown. The best thing you can do is capture as much as possible with your phone or camera, because your baby will change day by day and it's easier than you might think to take some brilliant photos.

So I asked our photographer Amy for her top tips on how to capture stunning images of your family without the need for anything fancy:

1) Light – always look for the light

Work out the best time for you to capture your family at home and in which room. Natural window light is always going to work best for stunning photos.

Take notes over a few days, is it super bright in your bedroom in the morning? Is it soft at lunch time? Pick a room and work out when the softest light is then you can get planning.

2) What to capture - start with the details.

Look for the little details that make your baby so unique. It's these things that change so rapidly that it's worth capturing them in the early days

• Toes – tiny toes.
• Hands – think about connection, they will hold on to everything
• Feet – all of the creases and lines on their soles
• Ears – that cute layer of fur on their ears and back when the light catches it
• Eyes/Nose/Mouth – the beautiful shape of their lips and their big eyes or long eyelashes

3) Setting – pick where you want to shoot wisely.

Beds are great – I would always suggest your bedroom, open up all of the curtains/blinds move your bed if you need to, be bold. You will not get the time back so if you need to have a little re-jig of furniture then please do you will not regret it.

If you want a clean style then use:

• Plain bed sheets or a plain blanket
• Plain baby vest
• Changing station – always cute for their legs/toes
• Sleepyheads – you can move this to the perfect light in a room

4) Capture lots of everyday moments

I love the chaos of everyday. I would recommend trying to capture feeding, bath time, sibling cuddles, snoozing, cuddles with you and your partner.

5) Get in the frame

All phones have the self timer so get inspired and capture the whole family. Pinterest is great for inspiration for a family set up if you want a bit of help.

I always suggest for the couple to sit in the best spot in the chosen room (with the best light) and I will get the kids to play in the frame. Therefore I create the setup and my clients create the narrative.

6) Avoid Portrait mode on your Iphone

If there is any chance of movement it will not be able to keep up and it will be extremely blurred, but it can be beautiful for still, sleeping shots.

Another tip is to remember to tap the screen on the subject you want the focus on.

Steer clear of filters at this stage, they're better added through an editing app.

7) Composition – stick to the rule of thirds

This is basically where the image is split evenly into three as show below the subject of the image is placed at the intersection of those dividing lines, or along one of the lines itself.

8) Use an app for some clever editing

Lightroom is the one I always recommend as it helps with editing photos without having to be a pro. It's free on your mobile and I'd always recommend using a preset.

Things to explore in Lightroom:

• Exposure – is the image too light or too dark?
• Contrast – Do you want the black to pop slightly?
• White balance - sometimes other light sources can change your image without you even knowing. Therefore you can switch this to automatic mode to correct any other light sources.
• Clarity/texture – this will add a grainy feel top your image works well with black and white

Thanks so much Amy. Amy has developed two of my go to presets in Lightroom, so if you're interested in an instant overhaul of your photos visit her website here.

Stay well and get snapping 

Jen xx