Newborn Baby Photos
Baden James Forester Morton was shot with natural window light at 12 days old. We prefer to utilise natural window light with a reflector for shooting babies, as it protects a newborn baby’s eyes from startling flash heads. This helps to keep baby relaxed and calm for longer periods.
Baby photography is all about timing – like most other photographic subjects. I used two lenses for the shoot. Firstly my new lens – an 85mm f1.2L and a 100mm 2.8 macro lens for close ups of hands and feet. I believe newborn baby photographs also benefit from the simplicity of black and white treatments. Baby skin is often very blotchy when newborn and removing colour smooths the skin for a cleaner portrait.
I am happy to travel anywhere in Melbourne for newborn baby sessions during the day – just call me on 03 9416 5404 to discuss options
Studio Location Pregnancy shoot
Here are some pregnant shots of Michelle, with about three weeks until birth. Children, Ash and Em have joined in for a little tummy hugging. The studio was set up in the living room, where I brought along a big softbox, a hair light and some backgrounds with stands. I’m happy to travel anywhere in Melbourne metro for pregnancy shoots. I also tend to find that black and white, or sepia, selenium toning works best for prints. To get the best out of a pregnant belly, it is best to remove the distraction of colour, as it takes your eye to the beautiful form of pregnancy and the glorious shape of a mother to be. I’m so looking forward to the newborn shoots in a few weeks time.
Studio pregnancy photography on location to anywhere in Melbourne is $500 for an hour shoot. All images will be burnt in full resolution to an unlocked printable DVD and include 30 6×9 inch prints and an enlargement up to 12×18 inches. We will come to your home, or choice of location and set up a pro lighting rig for your shoot.
The Ultimate Portrait and Wedding Photography Lens?
I am now the proud owner of an Canon 85mm f1.2L II lens. I am finding this to be the ultimate portrait and wedding photography lens. The lens suits many shooting situations and is a perfect focal length for full frame portrait shooting and low light photography. Sharpness is phenomenal all the way to f1.2, although with such a narrow focal plane, one needs to be extra careful with focus. I have however found focus to be spot on the mark – which is just as well as this is critical for such a super wide aperture.
I have made up a selection of image types where this lens comes to life. The huge depth of field allows separation of subject and background in relatively confined spaces. The out of focus blur before and after the focal plane or ‘bokeh’ is soft and smooth beyond any other lens in sharpening the subject relative to the background. This lens cries out to be used in low light, as the f1.2 aperture allows many stops of extra light compared to most other professional lenses. This has the benefit of lower iso settings for less grain and / or faster shutter speeds for moving subjects. Most of all, this lens shines for reflecting the mood of the environment – many steps closer to shooting in available, natural light.
Location Portraits
I’ve been manically busy during wedding season, but I have managed to upgrade all my location lighting with the purchase of some great studio portrait gear. I did this little shoot a few days ago in my back room for testing purposes. i got some lovely portraits of my eldest daughter Ashleigh and her little sister Emily who wandered by a few times during the shoot. i shot with 2 lights, a softbox and a honeycomb hairlight, the Canon 5d Mk2 and 135mm F2L lens
Canon 135mm f2L
Wow. This lens is absolutely magic! I’m in love… Super sharp all the way to f2 with a deep buttery depth of field. It allows me to get far enough away from the subject to take great candid shots unnoticed. It’s wide aperture helps in hand held low light shooting, along with the Canon 5D Mark 11’s high iso sensitivity they make a great team for indoor and outdoor portraits. This lens is a part of every wedding photography and portrait shoot. It may well be the ultimate full frame professional wedding & portrait photography lens along with the 85mm f1.2L – A lens I have recently purchased and love.
Canon 100mm f2.8 Macro Lens
This lens is a corker with a huge depth of field! It allows me to get a 1:1 ratio for photography of tiny things up close and personal. It can also be used as a fast glass portrait lens as it has “infinity” focus. Here are a few shots I took around the house for you to see. This lens is as sharp as a tack & I’d recommend it to anyone looking to get into macro photography.