baby

harrisburg nc family photographer | m family | staci noel photography /  by Staci Noel

This gorgeous family came into the studio for a milestone session for their sweet baby girl and of course we always capture family portraits during our time together! They brought their A game in outfits and we spent our time together capturing amazing family image and then moved onto adorable birthday images for their sweet pea who couldn’t have been more fun! I’m so glad they chose their family images for a large collage in their living room and they had so many portraits to pick from! I loved capturing these memories for them!



miss brooklyn turns 1 | charlotte baby photographer staci noel photography /  by Staci Noel

I had the joy of photographing Miss Brooklyn before she was even earth side as I did her mommy's maternity photos:) We followed that up with her newborn session, her 6 month session and recently it was time to celebrate her very first birthday! While she wasn't too sure about the cake at first we managed to get some gorgeous shots of that devilish little grin she has and some pretty lovely images of her beautiful personality!

Happy birthday big girl!!!

 

charlotte-newborn-photography | little miss b makes her debut! /  by Staci Noel

I loved loved loved this little munchkin!!! She was so precious and her little face was just divine! We even managed to get big brother in on a few shots and up the cuteness factor into overload! Seriously, this family was just gorgeous all together and I could feel the absolute adoration that both mom and dad felt when they held that sweet little miss and just took a moment to breath her in. Congratulations on your sweet baby girl and may you all be blessed with in joy and love!!!

 

charlotte-newborn-photographer-baby safety and compositing /  by Staci Noel

One of the first things I always go over with my newborn parents are my rules for safety. Every baby's comfort and safety are my top priorities in a shoot - as it should be. 

With a bazillion options in newborn and baby photographers, not just here in Charlotte, but everywhere across North Carolina and around the country, I think it's so important to know that the photographer you choose for your session understands all of the aspects of how to keep your precious little one safe while achieving those perfect shots. It requires an understanding of newborn and baby development and physiology as well as an expertise in the use of editing software. There are so many people advertising as newborn photographers that it's easy to forget that many of them may not understand all of the things that go into keeping a newborn safe during a session.

There are two main areas of safety concern when it comes to photographing babies for me; one when they are placed on my large shooting bag which is about 3 1/2' wide and second when they are placed in any prop (basket, bin, bucket, moon, etc.) 

I generally shoot newborns with a 35mm lens when I am working. This allows me to be within arms reach of baby at all times after I have perfected a pose on my beanbag and if baby starts to stir it's simply a matter of placing my hands on them to make sure that they continue to be stable and safe from going anywhere. If for any reason I have to step away from my bag to grab an item I always have mom or dad step in to replace me and keep a hand on baby. While they seem small and you can't imagine them moving that much, newborns can be surprisingly strong with their legs and can very much move themselves forward by "frogging" or pushing their feet behind them into the surface and scooting forward. The other time I ask parents to help me with newborns on the bag is when I have them positioned so that they are facing forward with their head supported by their arms or wrists. Those heads are wobbly and I would never expect a baby to be able to maintain that position without gentle support or else they could easily flop to the side. Photoshop allows me to remove helpers hands and arms in editing.

 

Here Mom is holding baby's head from behind with her fingers applying very gentle support at the back of the head. Prior to this shot I had her holding baby's forehead as well and asked her to move that arm up out of the frame for 3 seconds and then replace it. The final image is below.

These same rules apply when baby is in a prop of any kind as well as a few other basic rules for safety. Generally mom or dad is sitting directly to the side with a hand on baby the whole time. I also will only attempt prop shots when baby is in a nice deep sleep. Babies that are awake or fussy can easily throw their arms and feet out causing props to become unbalanced. I add weights to the bottom of all of my props regardless and make sure never to put baby in anything that has sharp or rough edges. 

As you can see, these rules should extend all the way up to older babies and toddlers. Many babies celebrating their 6 month and 12 month milestone sessions still require support and close adult supervision in order to feel safe, stable and comfortable.

So while you will obviously have lots of decisions to make when it comes to choosing a photographer for your newborn or baby, I think one of the most important is how they will safely handle your little one when working to get you those perfect moments. As a mother myself, more than style, price or anything else, that would be the most important thing you could know!

charlotte nc newborn & baby photographer | big k is turning one! /  by Staci Noel

I cannot believe that it's been a whole year since I first met this family. We have had some serious fun with this big guy! From the first time he came in and was a perfect doll for his newborn session to his hilarious expressions at 6 months up to his super fun cake smash. Mr. K I know that you have made your mom and dad's life an absolutely amazing ride this year and I have to thank you for sharing just a little bit of your sunshine with me!  Happy birthday kiddo!!!!