Newborn Photography Master Class

Lesson 1: Introduction
Published: August 2017 with Tracy Sweeney

Duration: 2 hours 28 minutes

About Course

Join Tracy Sweeney for a masterclass in newborn photography! Filmed on location in Tracy’s studio, you’ll learn the essentials for getting started photographing newborns. Safety and comfort is job one in newborn photography, and Tracy starts off sharing her methods for keeping babies safe, warm, and soothed. From there, Tracy takes you through her choice of gear and lighting, and then gives you a front row seat for a series of newborn sessions. You’ll learn how to wrap the baby, how to pose the baby on a variety of props, and how to maximize the time spent on set to give you a variety of looks in a short amount of time. Family photos are part of the package, and Tracy shares her process for working with the family in a variety of configurations. After the shooting is done, you’ll learn Tracy’s workflow in Lightroom and Photoshop for creating the final polished images that go on to become timeless heirlooms for the family.

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[MUSIC]Hi, I'm Tracy Sweeney, newborn, child and family photographer in Bristol, Rhode Island.Today I'm gona be talking to you all about newborn portraiture.Welcome to my studio![MUSIC]I began photographing newborns in 2011 when my twin girls were born.I had been coveting this beautiful, beautiful newborn images and of course.As a sort of new photographer, I thought I wanna create these images for my own babies.So I started dabbling and taking pictures of my own children andthen from that blossomed further interest in really truly making this a business.So, my story's not much different from many other mothers who find this passion in photographing young children.I started sharing these images and from there, I started to receive inquiries.Can you photograph my children, my babies?My sister's having a daughter.Do you wanna photograph her baby?Before long, I realized that this was not going to be just a hobby,it certainly required a huge time and money commitment,but rather I needed to treat this as a business.So I opened up Elan Studio where we are today, andI began taking commissioned customers in 2012.So here I am, five years later, with a really beautifully blossomedbusiness that makes my heart happy and allows me to support my family.I value this as a business.But whether you're a hobbyist, an enthusiast, one that's interested in new born photography.My entire objective with this course is to impart to you my passion andto share with you everything I've learned along the way, because the journey was certainly challenging.There's a lot of information out there, there's a lot of misinformation out there.And at the very end, this subject that hopefully you're interested in or want to become more interested in.We're talking about newborns, we're talking about babies in their very first days of life.So if you remember that and think about how paramount that is and how important this is.It's really essential to educate yourself.To ensure that babies are safe when you're photographing them.To make sure they're comfortable the whole time.Truly, in the end, we want to craft the most beautiful artwork we can, sothat we can be able to present our clients with a gallery filled with beautiful images documenting the baby's first day of life.As you're booking the newborn session,what I do when I have inquiries is I always book while mom is still pregnant.So, I'm commissioned way ahead of time and that allows me scheduling options.So that I can track a pregnancy, I can keep in touch with mom,and find out when anticipated due dates are.And then from there, that is how I work my calendar.So I write down parent's anticipated due date and we keep in communication.If they have a scheduled delivery, a C section or induction, from there I can then schedulethe newborn session to take place, the week following and we can get that committed date.And the wonderful thing is the flexibility.This works out so wonderfully for those photographers who have young children ortheir children are in school because these sessions can be booked during the day.Typically, they're not working right after delivering.Typically, dad will have time off that he can accompany mom to the new born session.Every family is a little bit different certainly, so it is dependent on them.But it's really quite wonderful for a working orfor a mother who's children are at school who wants to work.And wants to perhaps procure additional income to be able to work during, let's say, mother's hours.So these newborn sessions take place for me, typically in the morning.I have natural light, so I like that early morning light that I can work with.And I can schedule them in that flex time for me while my children are also at school.Once my clients arrive at the studio, I greet them, I make them feel really comfortable.Always, always remembering how important this is.They've chosen me to document their baby, they've chosen me to create this timepiece.And more so, I remember it's challenging to get out of the house for the first time, especially new moms.This is their first time out quite often other than the often coinciding one week pediatrician visit.But this isn't really big deal because I want them to feel comfortable the moment they walk in my studio.I want the climate to be comfortable.I want it to smell lovely, I'll burn a lavender diffuser, so that it feels really comforting.I want them to come in and have a space to sit right away where they know they can be relaxed.I have a boppy adjacent for feeding time, I have all my beautiful albums for them to sit and look through.And I want this to be a serene time for them, the experience is really important.Beyond any image you can ever craft for your clients,beyond any gorgeous piece that they will ever have.Your referral will come from their experience before it will come from the actual image you created for them.That's what everyone remembers is their experience, I get repeat clients who are coming back for their second.Their third, even their fourth child and say I have been looking forward for this, I knew this was gonna be such a peaceful time for me.And what better feedback can I have, when I've created that environment forthe client to be able to come, sit down, relax, while I take over.But that's the important part, I need to know what to do, you need to know what to do toensure that your clients experience is both peaceful and of course, that the session is successful.And so that's what this entire course is about.I'm going to be teaching you all those soothing techniques to ensure that you have a very smooth session and baby stays sleepy.I wanna photograph the newborns asleep.The purpose of this session for me is that I photograph them in their firstdays in that serene, peaceful beauty that is the newborn's slumber days.So I want the babies asleep.I have to ensure the environment cultivates that sleepiness.So, a well-fed baby, a warm baby, a comfortable baby, will typically sleep throughout.I'll be teaching you all my best tips for that.I'll show you how to wrap babies, so that they're very comfortable andit also presents you with different options to create artistic sets using different colors.I'll be showing you how to implement various textures throughout the different sets to add both interest,different dynamics to the session, and also give you options, so that you can have different styles.Hopefully, if you have not already developed a style, once you try these different things, you'll realize what works for you.Or maybe you'll be inspired to try something new as I continue to give you someof my inside views as to how to create images that will really, really stand out.I'll be showing you posing from both the bean bag, the more simple layering that I use to begin.So that I can sort of seek out a child's disposition before I continue to find to the new point in session.So from the beanbag to more creative posing on the floorboards,using bowls, and baskets, and achieving that newborn look that a lot of people are seeking presently.Finally, I'll be showing you how I create these images.How I actually photograph them and I craft multiple images within the same set,so that baby does not have to undergo too many transitions.And also, if you're just starting out and you don't have a ton of acquired goods or props, you don't need them.Few items, few timeless pieces or few non specific pieces that can translateinto a new effect using different textures that I will be teaching you about.Will be all you need, whether you are traveling to a client's home or you are photographing within your own space.You will find out which items are really essential for this journey andas you grow, you can continue to add to your arsenal.I'll finally be showing you how I edit in post processing too.We know babies have a lot of blemishes that we often have to clean up and tone down redness, flakes, etc.So the final polished image that you want to present to your client will be this really gorgeous piece of course.We want them to look at the gallery and go I can't decide.I want them all.So, I'm so happy you're on this journey with me.I'm so excited for you to learn with me, everything I know about newborn portraiture.Thank you for being here.Let's dive in.

Tracy Sweeney

Tracy Sweeney, owner/photographer of Elan Studio in Bristol, Rhode Island, is an international award winning child, family and commercial photographer whose work has been featured in Click Magazine, Digital SLR Photography Magazine, Professional Photographer, Rangefinder,The UK Daily News, Buy Buy Baby, Babies R’ Us and Target Stores. Tracy loves capturing simple, candid moments, the indelible beauty of new beginnings and life. She is also an educator and published author with a Masters Degree in Education and Doctoral work in Curriculum, Instruction and Technology. Tracy lives and works by the sea with her husband and five children. Join Tracy, as she demonstrates how to establish connectivity and effortlessly evoke natural emotion in family photography.