newborn shoot help!

[MxG]

I'm pretty new still to photography. I was asked by my sister inlaw if I could take some photos of her newborn . Ive been watching videos on YouTube but I still have questions?

Wat lens should I use?
I have 35mm dx , old sigma 100-300 f4, and the kit lens 18-55

Should I use flash or natural light . I have the yn568ex. I live in So Cal and the sun is still shining bright.

Any other advice is greatly appreciated?

Thank you

-Alex

Ps. Camera is a nikon d5200

 

[Snyder462]

Im no pro but i have a 1 year old ....make a reflector or if you have one even better anything you can bounce the light off of you dont want to hit the baby with the flash . i read it dosent hurt them but ehhh im just not for it ... a tripod wouldn't hurt they move alot ..but if you can make the light work for you with some bounce you can get a great shot especially in the awesome cali sun i miss it ... id set up the light on a doll or something then move in the baby when ya feel its good to go .. im sure youll get some more PRO advice here soon ..i have the same flash i love it

 

[tirediron]

If you have a nice south-facing window that would be ideal, but don't be afraid to mix a little flash in for fill if necessary. There is absolutely no credible evidence of which I am aware which states that a few speedlight flashes will harm a child of any age.

If the ambient light allows, I would suggest using the 18-55 for the compositional flexibility it will allow, however if you're in a low light situation, then the larger maximum aperture of the 35 will be handy. Whatever you do, review your depth of field tables and based on a estimate of your camera to subject distance, determine a maximum aperture which will ensure the necessary depth of field.

 

[KmH]

There is absolutely no credible evidence of which I am aware which states that a few speedlight flashes will harm a child of any age.

QFT.

Yet another baseless urban legend. I think the noise a speedlight makes when it flashes evokes an impression of physical force.

A key is that the duration of the flash from a speed light is so very short.
At full power the flash from a speedlight is about 1/1000 of a second.

 

[MxG]

Thanks a lot for the advice. Ill definitely review dof . Any good sites that you can recommend?

 

[tirediron]

This one. You can also get an application similar to this for almost every flavour of smartphone; VERY useful!