Mommy photographer teaches you how to take photos of super kawaii babies ***

Mommy photographers teach you how to take photos of super cute babies *** Getting along with your children, even the smallest things, is a big deal in the eyes of the mother! Whether it’s teething, drooling, learning to walk for the first time, pretending to be a family drinker, a first birthday, etc., traces of growth are hidden in these little clues. Let us follow the 24-hour non-stop mommy photographer, use images to capture these beautiful things that are easy to pass by, and record every exciting and touching moment!

"Cut time into morning, noon, afternoon, and night, and then subdivide it into each hour. In each time, the auspicious light created by light, temperature, and life is so precious . Any moment is worth taking out your camera to record and follow the children on their adventures in this fascinating world."─Ou Zijia Good photos are not necessarily made by a perfect aperture and shutter combination. It is undeniable that you want to take good photos, Mommy! We must spend some time to familiarize ourselves with basic photography skills. What is aperture? What is a shutter? What are sensitivity and white balance? With these basic knowledge, you can understand why the picture is always blurry when taking pictures of babies indoors? How to improve environmental conditions? How to set up the camera to solve this problem? Even further, you can control the depth of field to create different atmospheres, dreamy or realistic. However, Ou Zijia, author of "I'm a Mom , you can simply judge the light at the scene and the type of the subject, and use the appropriate mode to shoot to get the closest to the ideal picture.

"However, when an opportunity arises that you think you must take a picture immediately, maybe your mind goes blank, or maybe you can't judge what mode to use to shoot. I always say, 'Feeling "And "love" is the best model."

Extended reading: Learn quickly! It turns out that the children's photo studio is so funny that the baby will laugh! Understanding the principle + actual shooting experience = shooting success rate. Ou Zijia pointed out that many times, the index finger that presses the shutter does not move according to the clear instructions of the brain. Just copying other people's exposure combinations will not produce exactly the same work. "For me, photography is often just a feeling. How to shoot under what light is not an absolute rule, nor does it need to be memorized by rote. However, understanding the basic aperture-shutter principles and constantly increasing experience in actual photography will help It makes the shooting process more convenient and improves the success rate of shooting! " Are newborns suitable for taking pictures! ? Is it suitable to take photos of a newborn baby? Are flashlights harmful to babies? If I don't want to use flash, are there any good alternatives? "Babies actually have very rich expressions!" Ou Zijia said. If you don't take advantage of this period of time when you don't run around and jump around and are very cooperative when taking photos, and leave some precious records, I'm afraid you will still have some problems when you look back in the future. A little regretful! Avoid direct flash

Can I use flash when taking photos of my baby? Ou Zijia said that in fact, the current medical research report does not indicate that the camera flash is harmful to the baby's retina. As long as the light is not concentrated for a long time and intensely, it should not have much impact on the baby.

However, precisely because everyone still has concerns about this argument, when photographing very young babies, direct flash should be avoided. Ou Zijia said: "I personally have never used flash to photograph children. This is not because of the harm to the eyes, but because I like to use natural light to highlight the children's smooth skin, and the images will have a more life-like texture."

Master the following techniques and you won’t need a flash!

In fact, even if you don’t use flash, there are still some ways to improve the success rate of taking pictures! Ou Zijia provided the following suggestions for mothers to refer to: 1. Arrange the space. If you are shooting indoors, you can open the curtains, turn on the lights, move the crib to the window for shooting, and put a desk lamp to shine on the wall or ceiling. Bright, the only thing you need to pay attention to is to avoid placing your baby directly under the light source to shoot, otherwise unnatural and serious shadows will appear, affecting the beauty of the picture. In addition, you can place more reflective objects near the baby (out of the range of the picture), such as white pillows, clothing, or white boards, books, etc., to act as reflectors to fill in the light. There are unexpected effects. 2. Camera settings

˙Aperture

Use a lens with a large aperture (F1.4, F1.7, F1.8, etc.), or you can also shoot in an indoor environment with limited light. , effectively increasing the chance of success in shooting! However, generally speaking, single-lens cameras, mirrorless single-lens cameras, and quasi-monocular cameras are more likely to have such a large aperture. Generally, small consumer digital cameras have a maximum aperture of only F2.8 or smaller. In this case, mommies can match Use the space arrangement techniques mentioned above to increase light conditions.

˙Shutter

In addition, half-press the shutter button to focus before shooting, and check the shutter number displayed on the camera. Keep the shutter speed above 1╱30s for sleeping babies, and keep the shutter speed for active babies above 1╱30s. 1/60s or more, the recommended time for toddlers is 1/125s or more, and active and playful children of school age need more than 1/250s to keep up with their jumping speed.

˙Sensitivity

If the aperture and shutter have been confirmed, but the exposure is still insufficient, you can increase the camera's sensitivity (ISO value). It is recommended to be 400 to 1600 indoors, but Setting the sensitivity too high will cause noise problems, so just increase it appropriately.

Extended reading: 4 tips for Christmas baby photography ~ Dress up × Scene × Lighting × Tease, the cute baby is you! 3. Make good use of post-production software

If the photo is dark but not blurry, you can also use post-production software to brighten the color. As for colors, generally speaking, warm and bright colors can better bring out the childishness and cuteness of children. "When encountering a subject with rich and saturated colors, if I want to do post-production, I would like to retain more of the original feeling. I will only choose 1 or 2 pictures to play with the colors. I will not make major color adjustments, or Photoshop adds more layer styles and filters, because the popular colors vary from season to season, and the post-production tones may also go out of fashion, and overly exaggerated techniques will feel too abrupt when looking back in the future.” , Ou Zijia believes that since it is a casual photo of life, it is best not to rely too much on post-production techniques, and let the photos return to the natural appearance of life, so that they can last forever. Mommy photographer teaches you how to take photos of super kawaii babies*** Tips for babies of different ages The book "I Am a Mom There are 3 periods: infancy, early childhood and preschool. Each of the 3 periods has different development characteristics. If mommy can understand the characteristics of the baby in each stage before taking pictures, it will help you find the best one. Shutter timing! Stage 1: Infancy (0 months to 18 months) The baby has just come into this world and is very sensitive to all light, touch and hearing. For mothers, coming into contact with a newborn is also a new experience. While keeping an eye on the baby, you might as well prepare a camera at hand and try shooting in continuous shooting mode. You will find that the baby has many unexpected things. subtle expressions. Remember to keep the background simple to highlight your baby’s delicate skin! Stage 2: Early childhood (18 months to 3 years old) At this time, the baby's activity level has greatly increased, and he explores the world with curiosity and full energy every day, whether he is starting to learn to grasp things, learn to sit, Whether they are learning to crawl or stumbling to start walking, endless new things happen to children every day, making them cry and laugh, and sometimes even make the whole family a mess. Please remember to always keep your camera in a safe and accessible place, because memorable moments may happen at any time! Stage 3: Preschool age (3 to 6 years old) After the age of 3, children can already express themselves and have many interesting ideas. Any fun ideas or new things will always be shared with mommy as soon as possible. Sharing, and also helping mommy with some simple housework, these will be great shooting opportunities. After starting school, the separation time becomes longer, and the longing between parents and children becomes stronger. When picking up your children to and from school, don't forget to bring your camera to continue recording the scenery along the way for your children as they grow up. "Mommy Photography" Q&A

What problems are common for mothers who have just started taking photos of their babies? The following will be answered by mommy photographer Ou Zijia!

Q1: Which one is suitable for photographing babies, small DC, monocular, or monocular?

A: All are OK. In fact, mobile phones are also very suitable.

When I first got into photography, I used a DC portable camera (RICOH GRDIII). I wanted to take care of my children while helping them record their daily lives. It would be more convenient to have a camera that can be used for shooting and has good controllability.

The camera I currently carry with me is a micro-DSN with interchangeable lenses (Olympus OM-D E-M5). Because my children are older and the whole family does a lot of outdoor activities, the size and weight of one camera are too big for me. A loaded camera can be taken out frequently to take pictures.

Q2: What is the most critical function of a camera used to take pictures of babies?

A: Because I personally am used to pressing the shutter button when the image touches my heart, so the number of continuous shots is not my main concern.

Aperture may be the condition I consider most, because a large aperture can improve the success rate of shooting and can be used in many types of situations, such as indoors at home, game rooms, dinner parties, etc. Capture the scene.

Q3: What magical props can be used to take pictures of babies?

A: The most fun thing about photographing children is that there are always new things going on in their world. The thing that can warm up the atmosphere most instantly is the bubble gun.

Other items that children carry with them can also be used as props, such as dolls or cars. You can interact with the children more during filming, such as: "Can you give your doll a big hug? Let the doll kiss you too." "Can your car fly high? Can it be higher?" In addition, the small flowers and grass on the roadside can become interesting as long as they are in the hands of children, and their expressions will be perfect.

Q4: What is the secret to taking unique baby pictures?

A: I like the composition of the picture to be clean and bright, try not to include objects that have nothing to do with the theme, and the background is simple and simple, so the picture is pure and beautiful. In addition, you don’t have to travel far to take good photos. There are always opportunities to take photos with your children at home. Extend your ears and listen to what they are playing. Interesting scenes are happening at any time.

The only thing you need to pay attention to is the placement of the camera. Only in a place that is easy to hold and safe can you successfully capture the photo in the first place. It doesn’t matter if you miss it. Young children often repeat actions or game content. If you pay a little attention, you can still take another photo!

Q5: Is it better to take a side shot or let the child look at the camera?

A: I like photos whether they are looking at the camera or not. I often add my own perspective to the side shots to interpret the story. When asking the baby to look at the camera, I will focus on the baby's body movements and expressions.

Q6: Why doesn’t the baby like taking pictures and cries when he sees the camera?

A: When my children were young, I always took out my camera silently, like a silent recorder. Later, when the children got older, I would look for opportunities to take pictures in daily interactions and encourage them more.

For example, when you are playing, say: "Are your animals lining up? They are so neat!" Let the child be willing to share with you the activities he is doing. There is no need to deliberately ask the child to look at the camera and smile. , use the camera to record the child's life at any time, and the camera will be invisible and integrated into the child's life.

In addition, when I get a satisfactory photo, I will open the preview function and enjoy it with my children, highlight their smiles, and praise how cute they are in the picture. How much I like this photo... Wait, if you do this often, they will definitely fall in love with taking pictures. I think there is a tacit understanding between taking photos with the child. The child understands the mother's preferences, and the mother also feels that the child is suitable for taking pictures. Sharing and communicating together is also a very precious parent-child moment.

As long as I find that my child is in a bad mood and doesn’t want to be photographed, I will put the camera away and take good care of the child and respect the child’s wish to take pictures.