Challenges of Houston Infant Photography

While I LOVE shooting children, when it comes to shooting Houston infant photography, there are challenges to shooting newborns. Over the years, you tend to come across them, which only forces you to not only become a better photographer, but also a better nurturer for infants.

For instance, newborn shoots require both the photographer and the parents to follow the lead of the infant. But, the secret to successful infant photography, is to plan the shoot to where the infant is at their most comfortable and relaxed. This means doing everything possible to ensure that the infant is calm, and collected.

Challenges of Houston Infant Photography

• A Cranky Kid

  Now the crankiness isn’t the fault of the infant themself. You have to put yourself in their shoes (or crib, in this case.) “I just got to this place called Life a couple of days ago! I’m still trying to figure out why it’s so bright and loud! And I’m hungry. And I’m sleepy.” If you felt like this, you would probably start crying too. But, there are ways to make it comfortable and even fun for the infant, which I’ll cover in the next paragraph!

• Positioning/Repositioning

  The infant may be wide awake and understandably doesn’t want to leave mama or papa because they just found that perfect sleeping position.

• Flashing Lights

  Let’s say during the shoot, everything has been going great. The angles are nice, the infant is giving us nothing but golden shots, and everything is great. But then, one shot of flash hits and they wake up, crying and reaching for mama and papa again. This can bring a shoot to a complete stop! But, there are ways around this too.

How I “Challenge” These Challenges

• Schedule Shoot 4-5 Days After Birth

  This is usually the time period when the infant is still sleeping for the majority of their day. This makes it easier to position, take care of the child in between shooting, and get those cute shots like the one on the right!

• Make Sure Child is Well Fed

  I find that this helps with making sure the infant is very relaxed and comfortable during the shoot. This is one of the major things that lessens/gets rid of the crankiness!

• Shoot Around Nap Time

  Shooting around nap time is perfect, because this is the time when the child is feeling sleepy, which also makes it easier to shoot. This is another one of the major things that lessens/gets rid of the crankiness!

• Comfortable Shooting Space, Good Shooting Techniques & Props Tailored to Infant Photography

  Our props, such as our chairs, beanbag, etc. are made specifically for newborns and children, in order to make sure your newborn is on cloud 9 during our shoot.

• When & How to Use Flash

  Also, the perfect time to use flash is Never. We at Jessi Marri Photography only use natural light for all infant photography sessions. This is not only because flash is unpleasant for the newborn, but also because using flash brings out an unnatural skin tone in newborn images that isn’t appealing to their eyes.

Altogether, covering these bases are essential to having a great shoot. And, also, who likes a crying baby?? An unhappy kid always makes unhappy parents. So photographers AND parents, take notes the next time you go for an infant photography shoot!

If you like what you see and would like to book a session with us for a Houston infant photography shoot, or any other types of shoots, call us today at 832-329-3042, or you can email us at jessi@jessimarriphotography.com