One of my very favorite photography sessions is the newborn session. I love everything about it, the joy of a new baby, the light in the parent's eyes and the nonchalance of the siblings who are not quite sure they wouldn't prefer a puppy instead of the new little one that takes up so much of a parent's time.
When I saw Kelly Brown was going to present a class on Newborn Photography I knew i wanted to be a part of the experience. Of course it would be wonderful to be in the audience but I had a million things on my plate and it seemed unlikely that a gray haired grandma would be chosen for the studio audience - but I was happy knowing I could set aside the time to view the class and learn how Kelly captured those precious images I saw on her website.
Day one came and I was busy ALL day. I did not get to sit down at my computer until the evening (so glad CL has a rebroadcast). When I did get to the computer I was absolutely blown away. The first thing that struck me was how much Kelly handled the babies. I'm so used to handing the baby back to the mom to quiet - but not Kelly, she kept the baby in her arms, shushing and rocking and calming the baby into a deep sleep. It made sense immediately - giving the baby back to the mom to quite and then back to me is an extra transfer. Lesson one: Keep the baby in my arms until she is in a deep sleep and ready to be positioned.
The other thing that struck me was the slow methodical way Kelly worked to position the little body - so different than me. Once the baby is asleep I'm concentrating on capturing "the shot" before the baby wakes up. I don't give sufficient attention to all the details: fingers pulled out - chin resting on forearms - head turned toward the light. Once those little eyes close I'm shooting. Kelly, on the other hand is taking time to create the artful pose. Lesson two: Don't hurry the process. Put the camera down Cynthia, work with those little arms and legs and create the picture before you capture the image.
Before I went to bed I bought the course - looking at day one again there have been so many more aha moments - lucky me. Thank you Kelly for sharing, and a big huge thank you to Creative Live, for bringing Kelly Brown into my home.
