With over 4 million babies born in North America each year, more and more parents are taking it up on themselves to save money on a professional photographer and are grabbing their cameras and taking amateur pics on their own.
Top celebrity newborn photographers Keri Meyers and Jennifer Blakely, who have photographed Brian Austin Green and Megan Fox‘s son Noah, Ian Ziering and his wife’s new baby and Donald Trump Jr‘s newborn, took notice and started a website to help guide new parents.
“In the current economy and with the easy availability of advanced cameras, a lot of new parents are looking to take their own pictures of their newborn baby, so although we always recommend you hire a professional newborn photographer,” Meyers said. “We have developed some tips for those looking to handle the photo shoot independently.”
Here are 5 simple ones:
- Babies can be “jumpy”, so have someone within arm’s reach of baby at all times.
- Turn off your camera’s flash and use a large window with indirect sunlight.
- Make sure the room is very warm. Use a space heater if needed, but avoid having heat directly on the baby.
- Use white noise (i.e. hair dryer, vacuum cleaner, or iPhone app).
- Keep it simple – dress the baby in a neutral sleeper or diaper cover.
“With the low cost and availability of SLR cameras these days, more and more amateur photographers are starting their own home-based photography businesses; however, what’s alarming is the number of these photographers who haven’t been formally trained or mentored in newborn photography,” said Jennifer Blakeley, who recently launched newbornphotography.com, a website dedicated to helping new parents find the industries top photographers.
Not only does their site address a wide-variety of safety issues around amateur photographers handling babies for the first time, it also has a search function that enables new parents to easily view and find a reputable newborn photography in their area.