As a traveling newborn photographer, I need to have a lot of tricks up my sleeve, and techniques in my pocket in order to deliver the images that most mommas want. I don't have a gorgeous studio to be able to set up each backdrop before baby arrives. Or a large lighting system to get beautiful light every time. I bring my big ol' suitcase to your home, unload my supplies, and hit the ground running.
I do my best to get my settings right in camera, but sometimes a cloud comes along and changes the amount of light in the room (stinkin' little cloud). Or, I have to quickly snap the picture during the .3 seconds that a toddler is looking in my direction (sometimes dad's attention span is this small too - just sayin'). With all the things going on during a session, it's impossible to get it right every-single-time. When that happens - photo editing software to the rescue!
I definitely could not do what I do without the help from my trusty computer and editing tools. The editing process is when the images from your session come alive, and it's almost my favorite part about photographing newborns (because you can't ever beat the newborn snuggles, am I right?).
So, without further adieu, let's jump into some before and after images!
(Oh, and if you don't speak "photographer", SOOC stands for "Straight Out Of Camera". Translation: no editing has been done.)
Let's start with a simple one. Sometimes all you need to do is bump up the brightness, adjust the color a bit, and viola! Too bad they all aren't as easy peazy as this edit.
Here's that pesky little cloud that I was talking about earlier. It decided to show up just as little Beau was smirking. No worries though! Thanks Lightroom for saving me from the wrath of the little cloud.
Could these three be any more adorable? But man, were they busy! One thing holds true with almost every toddler, you have to be fast when photographing them. No fiddling with settings or perfecting posing, just put them into position, and click! Sometimes one shot is all you get.
Background extending is a normal editing skill that many newborn photographer's need to master. Especially when you travel and don't want to carry a ginormous beanbag stand with you.
(Oh, and can we talk about his amazing hair for a second? To. Die. For.)
And finally, I just knew that I needed to get a shot like this with this gorgeous momma and her baby boy. Obviously the straight out of camera shot needed some help, but I knew that I would be able to perfect it later on. Having the ability to edit, opens up so many opportunities for shots that may have been missed otherwise.
After seeing these, it's hopefully easy to understand that the actual session is only a small portion of the work that goes into your newborn session. There are hours and hours you don't see, of me tirelessly editing away to perfect the images of your perfect new little human. Let the before and after images speak for themselves. It's so worth it!
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