Welcome, Baby Everett!
I was contacted early in Mom's pregnancy and quickly hired to be the lucky person to capture these wonderful new parents their son's first, precious portraits.
Whenever a family chooses me to capture their memories, I do an actual happy dance at home. I genuinely, truly love shooting newborn sessions; while I enjoy the other genres of photography that I do, newborns are, by far, my most favourite.
One of my favourite parts about a newborn session, apart from snuggling a brand new baby, is putting together different set-ups and creating a gallery of portraits that are unique from the other, but also pull together to create a cohesive session with flow to the gallery.
This means that when it comes time to create a beautiful keepsake piece, there are no two images alike that create redundancy in a gallery (although sometimes I can't help but throw in a couple of similar shots; I feel like I have mom-goggles for babies who aren't even my own sometimes!) but this also allows to create framed collages, albums or wall displays that have flow and a complimentary aesthetic.
As odd of a compliment it is, Everett had some of the most beautiful skin tones. The beautiful, warm tones of his skin were easy to accentuate by using bold but still earthy colours.
He even gave the cutest little side-smirk!
I tend to move toward moody, dark colours on my own natural preference when it comes to shooting newborn sessions. I like how it brings attention to the face of my tiny little subjects and adds a sense of emotion to images, in my opinion. It's easy to show the direction of light and the presence of shadows when colour is slightly muted and we let the light do all the talking.
Everett's parents were very easy-going and happy to let me style their son's session as I pleased; their only request was a hanging shot from a hockey stick, an image they'd seen in my portfolio, which I was able to easily achieve.
These images are "optical illusions"; a bit of photography magic, if you will. While it looks like Everett is hanging from the hockey stick, in reality, he was laying flat on his back the entire time while I shot from above him. The image of the hockey stick was taken separately, and the two images were composed together in photoshop.
This requires attention to detail; from the direction of the light to the tension in the wrap (to make it look believable). It is a process, but it is one that is worth it. However, I would NEVER deliberately or actually hang a baby from a prop; it is extremely unsafe. No baby is ever put at risk in my studio; I have studied and learned how to capture these stunning images by working with angles, tricks and photoshop to create these one-of-a-kind portraits.
I love the look of monotone portraits; they tie together so nicely! I love how warm and cozy little Everett looks in these photographs!
This bucket from Luneberry Props is one of my favourite buckets; I use it nearly every single session! It's a perfect size and is so easy to match up with any style due to it's neutral and rustic design.
My daughter once asked me, "Why do you put babies in a bucket?" And my response always is: "To prove that they once fit in one."
The most soothing part of a session, for me, is the table posing. I love gently coaxing a little one into different and adorable little poses; it's really quite amazing how they're able to sleep through the posing (for the most part) as long as they are fed and warm. It definitely requires extreme patience at times, but as long as there is no rush, some white noise and a gentle touch, most babies will pose for at least 2 - 3 different poses.
If the baby is sound asleep, I like to "play" and see how many I can get.
Also, pompom hats are the cutest thing ever on a baby. I love them!
Initially, Mom & Dad only wanted a couple of creative images with their baby featuring just their hands. I find this to be a beautiful way to represent the love and support parents have for their babies, welcoming them into the world and creating a "safety net" around their newborn.
At this point, little Everett decided it was time to wake up for a bit. I like to seize the opportunity to "un-soothe" baby and just let them look around and soak in their surroundings; this term is used to describe letting baby just be baby rather than trying to actively shoosh them back to sleep. Most of the time, they eventually tire themselves out and fall back asleep. And it also presents the opportunity to get awake-shots, which I've found almost every parent to fall head-over-heals in love with.
Everett even gave me the most adorable little smile when he locked eyes with my camera! I definitely let out a little squeal of joy!
During these "un-soothing" moments during a session, I love to capture newborn expressions. Whether it's a yawn, mid-sneeze, a look of surprise, or even a blooper of mom trying to straighten Everett's little face, they create adorably sweet portraits that show the range of expressions and adorable moments that we all love to hold onto of our babies; not just the sleepy ones.
Mom & Dad did decide to get into a couple of shots; they didn't want to risk the chance of regretting not getting them done. I absolutely love the simple, backlit approach to these emotional moments as parents look down upon the sweet face that is half of each of them. Sometimes expressions show pure emotion as parents fight back the tears the joy; I always love these moments. And while often parents apologize for getting teary-eyed, there is never a reason to apologize for it.
There is a great reason to shed these tears of joy, for in their hands they hold one of the most precious gifts they will ever have. And when that child grows and sees those emotion-filled expressions, I know for it fact it will bring about the same tears of joy and emotion in them.
How do I know? Because I, too, have experienced it when exploring the own keepsakes my mother has kept of me when I was little. It's a beautiful gift not only to parents but their children, too.
Everett's portraits will be forever treasured and enjoyed on this beautiful, custom-made wall displays. A couple of my absolute favourite products (Mom & Dad have good taste!) and I absolutely love how adorable and precious they are. They will look beautiful on the walls of their home and are sure to draw the attention and adoration from friends and family for years to come!
Thank you, little Everett, for being such a wonderful little model. Your parents are a wonderful bunch, and I look forward to seeing you all again soon! I am honoured to be your photographer. Welcome to the Hocus Focus Photography family.
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