Hello all!

[BnZsDragon]

I have been interested in photography since I was a teenager but have never been able to get serious about it until now. I'm currently using a Sony Alpha 560 with second-hand lenses but I've gotten some pretty decent pictures out of it. I'm interested in newborn and child photography. I have 2 kids of my own and they offer a lot of photo-op moments. I'll be doing my first newborn photo shoot in a few weeks. The mom is due on the 9th. I'm excited and a little scared so any tips or advice you can give would be much appreciated!

 

[Luke345678]

Hello and welcome! Glad to see you found yourself here.

Remember, as world famous photographer Chase Jarvis says, "The best camera is the one that you have with you." I've messed around with a friends 560 and you can get some stellar shots. I assume that's your daughter in your profile picture, she's adorable! I love the shot.

Below are some recommendations for you specifically that I think you might find useful.

- Regarding your camera and other Sony products, checkout the Sony Cameras section of the forum that I've included in the list of links at the bottom of my post. If you have any questions, there are many intelligent people waiting to help!

- If you're for general tips/ideas for regarding portraiture with children, the people photography section can assist you. Although I mainly do sports, I have a decent amount of experience shooting young children, families and more so feel free to shoot me a private message if you'd like. Be sure to do some googling. There are so many well done guides, tutorials, blogs and general tips regarding shooting kids floating around.

- POST YOUR WORK. I shoot for a few newspapers in my area and run my own small time business. Not trying to sound cocky or anything but I'm confident in my abilities as a photographer and the work I produce. With that said, I'm a nobody compared to many people here. I'm only 18 years old and there are people here with decades of experience that teach me something new everyday. Don't be afraid when some critiques your work or even tells you an image you created is of poor quality and not produced well. I've been on the forum for a bit and have interacted with just about all of the, "frequent flyers" if you will. They're all awesome people that truly want to help you better yourself as a photographer.

- Find a few photographers work you like and consistently follow their work. This is something I have been doing for quite some time and it helps greatly. During the school year, I shoot a lot of different High school and Middle school sports in my area. I am always browsing photos from a few local guys I work with and few of the local competitors. I analyze there work and see where I can better myself. I ask myself, what are they doing that I'm not? What angles are they shooting at that I'm not? What players are the covering that I'm not? What settings are they using that I'm not? Of course, browsing the pros is always a good idea as well. I'm always going through the galleries ESPN has available. I look through the work of photographers such as Chase Jarvis,Bob Donnan, John Mercer, Rob Tringali and more. I'd recommend finding professional photographers in fields that interest you. Many have books, blogs and other sources of tips & tricks. Even if they don't, you learn so much just from viewing the work of a true professional that has dedicated their life to their work.

Wow, I usually don't make my welcomes this long but this is what happens with lots of coffee. I hope something I said helped and all the places I mentioned above are labeled and linked below. Let me know if I can help you with anything else and once again, welcome!

LINKS
People Photography: People Photography
Sony Cameras: Sony Cameras

 

[BnZsDragon]

Thank you for the welcome!

I'll check out the links, thanks!

That is my daughter and I think she is pretty adorable! Thank you for saying so! I'm hoping to be able to get on my computer tomorrow so I can post some of my photos.

Thank you for all of the great tips!