Dressed for sucess...

This series really doesn't have any tips, except maybe make sure your house is clean (notice the nice spots on the tile) and that everyone (especially mom) puts their shoes away instead of leaving them in the doorway, but those aren't really photography tips. Perhaps the tip should be that when choosing your child's portrait outfits, if they are style deficient, maybe they shouldn't get to choose their own. While a diaper with an orange jacket and a hat with the tag hanging out the side might be sufficient for staying at home, if you are going somewhere that the diaper bag needs to come along too then perhaps you may want to dress your children up a bit more. In this series, Fuss chose his own outfit, took it to D who happily put the jacket on for him (Fuss puts is own hat on all the time), and then grabbed the diaper bag to go...I don't know where he thought he was going though!

Balance and the sun...

Today's tip is actually 2 tips...both of which I am sure you will see again! The first is balance your picture top to bottom and side to side. This series of photographs are of D's grandpa helping Fuss ride a bike and scooter for the first time! It was so adorable to see Fuss with his Great Grandpa having so much fun that I had to capture the moment. Obviously, I did that without concern that Grandpa was even in the pictures completely. I mean, who needs a back anyway.... Also, if you notice, and how can you help but not, that there is plenty of room at the bottom of the picture to see their extended shadows, and yet at the top Grandpa's head rests at the border...

The other tip is to beaware of where the sun is and how it is reflecting in your lens. Even though it appears as if I am taking this picture behind a foggy window, I was, in fact, standing right in front of them...

Finding the angle...

As you know, I like to shoot photos in series. This particular series was taken with the intent to document how Fuss would walk and stand on his toes in an attempt to avoid putting weight on his sprained ankle. It was sad, and yet funny to watch a 17 month old child limp around on his toes. The problem with this series of photos is:His pants were too long and I couldn't even see the ankle or the foot. I can tell in this picture he is standing on his toes because of the way the bottom of his pants hit the floor and fold underneath his raised heel.I decided to raise the leg on his pants so that I could see the heel (I know, a novel idea), and he put it down just long enough for me to take the picture. 

I finally got the picture, but it would have been much better if I would have gotten on the floor to get a better angle instead of trying to show something not on the ground from a significant distance above it!

I'm back...

I realize it has been nearly 2 weeks since I have updated this blog. I apologize to the few of you that check it out. I mean all I am doing is taking care of my 1 year old, working 2 jobs, and attempting to find some sanity in my life...it is no wonder I can't keep up! But I am rededicating myself. The problem is that I typically blog on my laptop and my pictures are on my desktop...big problem. I promise to become more organized!

Today's tip is: When someone that is not the main focus of the picture you are taking is going to be in it, make sure that they are aware that they are in the picture, and if it may be unflattering to them. Obviously, I was attempting to take a picture of Fuss' foot and his little sprained ankle. It really wasn't my fault that he was sitting on D's lap, or that D was slouching and it made him look pregnant...Not my fault at all! In my defense, he was on the phone so it would have been rude for me to tell him about his appearance in my lens. 

The foot of the problem...

I am what I call a "series photographer." I take pictures of the same thing over and over and over to either get different expressions, or to be able to rush through the pictures as if I were watching a movie. I don't really know why I do it. However, if you are like me I suggest that if there is something in the prodominent front of the picture that really distracts, try zooming in on the second shot...unlike I did in this series. D's foot drives me crazy...not that the pictures are all that great anyway.

The background...

It is usually a good idea to examine everything that will show in your picture before you take it. For instance, this photo was meant to be a precious photo of my beautiful, jaundice baby being held by his adoring father the day after Fuss came home from the hospital. This portrait of my 3-day old baby is distracted by his sleeping grandma in the background. While I love my mother, and I was very grateful for her help this particular day when I had to be a mom on my own for the first time, she doesn't quite look very lively and excited to be spending time at our house. And while I enjoy the view of my mother looking not so much alive, it really isn't her best look.

Details...

Paying attention to details can enhance your picture. It might be a good idea to make sure that the child's clothing is on correctly, or even on at all. Snaps on children's outfits can come undone easily making them look as if their parents may be a little careless while dressing them. You may also want to take a look at the background of the picture. While this picture demonstrates that my work space is not always organized, it also shows that I do in fact have an office in my house, we like Mac computers, and stacking books neatly is not really our thing. Fuss' eye direction also demonstrates that this picture really wasn't that important...if he were actually looking at something imparticular, this lack of good eye direction may have been a dramatic accent to the picture, but he is not so it just demonstrates poor photography on my part.