Tips for a Quick Baby Shoot

I like to think of myself as a planner, but my husband describes me as "whimsical." My recent whim? "Aria needs to take Valentine's Day pictures! 
So I stole my younger brother's camera to take some photos. Things you need for a on the fly photo shoot:

• A clean backdrop: I threw a white throw blanket over the bed and propped up some pillows underneath. 
• A good light source: Natural light leads to great looking photos. Turn off the flash if it's bright enough in the room you're using. If you do choose to use flash, take a small piece of white paper and hold it in front of the flash to diffuse the light. It will give your picture a softer appearance. 
• Props!: Even though Aria was dressed in hearts, I wanted the images to read more "Valentine's Day" so I cut out hearts and flower petals from pink construction paper to toss around the bed.
• Keep Out of Reach of Children: Make sure any props you choose are just out of reach of your little one. I learned that the hard way...
• Take lots of pictures!: Keep clicking. Move around. Change positions. Try to get interesting angles. Imagine that your baby is in a bubble and take pictures all around it. This way, you'll have lots of options to choose from. 
• Smile: Grab dad, grandma, or the cat as your assistant to help keep baby smiling!
• Retouching: I use Adobe Photoshop or Bridge to brighten Aria's photos and manage the temperate (overall coolness/warmness) Sometimes I take out scars and boogers but never anything more than that! 
• Crop: Be aware of what objects are in your shot. Sometimes you don't want the lamp or toys or the remote in the frame. Keep it simple, not distracting.

Here are my favorite shots from our Valentine's Day shoot!

No, thank you, Mommy.

Aria appears to have no interest in baby food anymore. We started her on homemade baby food (cereal, mashed sweet potatoes, and bananas) when she was 4 months old and she took to it pretty well. Well, "pretty well" is relative. She hated the cereal at first. I had to alternate between nursing her and sticking a spoonful of mush in her mouth. After the second or third time, she ate without having to nurse. 

Full transparency: We slacked off a bit with making baby food. After a couple of months, we made sweet potatoes again and sent it with her to daycare. We were having trouble finding time after work to feed her.

My mom tells me that she can't get Aria to eat the sweet potatoes. Full transparency: I was happy to hear that because I was thinking, "Psssh, me and David can." 

So we started trying at home, and sure enough, she was not having it! Any of it! This seven month old wanted to play with the spoon. She wanted to be picked up. She spit out anything that even came close to her mouth. The only time we were successful was when my husband sang and danced to distract her. I'd post the video but I don't want to end my marriage. 

Fast forward this morning, Aria is in a great mood. I figure, "Let's eat some breakfast!" So I warm up some baby food, grab a few crackers and put her in the high chair. So far, so good. I start with the cracker, which she loooooooves (not as much as Mickey, just above Elmo.) Then I try a spoonful of baby food....

NOPE. Not having it. 

So I give her another cracker. 

"Yay, Mommy! You're the best mommy in the whole wide world!"

Tried the baby food.

"WHAT IS THIS DISGUSTING SLOP YOU'RE TRYING TO FORCE FEED ME?? AWAY WITH YOU, SHE-DEVIL!!!"

Cracker.

"Oh Mommy, how I love you so!!"

*Sigh.*

Fine. You win this round Aria. But as soon as I buy some more bananas, we will return to this battle. You can count on that.