The "Taking photos of my child" thread

[detritus]

i'm not really a big fan of super shallow DOF but i couldn't resist this opportunity as she was staring intently at her toy

K5, FA50, F1.4, ISO800, no flash

its really fun to see babies captivated by the simple little things around them

K5, FA50, F4, ISO80, with flash

 

[geengar]

35mm ISO1600 F/2.4 1/60sec

My baby boy's gaze...

 

[tommyx]

Adam is turning 1 year old in 2 weeks

K5 + DA*55 F1.4

 

[pinholecam]

i'm not really a big fan of super shallow DOF but i couldn't resist this opportunity as she was staring intently at her toy

K5, FA50, F1.4, ISO800, no flash

its really fun to see babies captivated by the simple little things around them

How time flies, 6mths already. (same as mine... 1wk apart only IIRC)

Adam is turning 1 year old in 2 weeks

K5 + DA*55 F1.4

Nice effect on with the DA*55

 

[pinholecam]

#10 Use a flash - it will give more options - and need not look like one
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Flash shots don't not need to look like one.
Neither do they need to be into the eyes (and they are not going to blind the child Will Flash Damage Babies’ Sensitive Young Eyes? | Sublime Light)


Yes, direct ones into the eyes are uncomfortable for anyone even us, so we avoid that.
Using flash does not need to be formal as well.
The flash is just placed off camera to simulate a directional light where a lamp or window would be.
It increases the chances/opportunities for taking photos.


It increases the chances and opportunities
--------------------------------------------
This was taken on a moody rainy weekend (last Saturday in fact). There just was not enough light being spilled into the area.
Bad weather meant we were not leaving the house (the train service broke down as well.... ) and with the poor light, I'd not be taking any photos at home if I only relied on natural light.


It needs not be 'troublesome'
----------------------------
I placed a small white baby mattress upright on the right and the flash in between baby and mattress. The white of the mattress acted as a large bounce. Less than a minute to 'set up'


It need not be posed and not natural for the child
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No posing either, my son just did what he wanted and I took a series of shots as the opportunity arises.


K5 with FA135/2.8

 

[detritus]

How time flies, 6mths already. (same as mine... 1wk apart only IIRC)

yes. 1 week apart, last we spoke at macritchie

i try to take a few nice photos every month so i can show it to her when she's older. comparing her newborn photos to the more recent ones, can really see that she's growing. she was a very small baby at birth

 

[pinholecam]

yes. 1 week apart, last we spoke at macritchie

i try to take a few nice photos every month so i can show it to her when she's older. comparing her newborn photos to the more recent ones, can really see that she's growing. she was a very small baby at birth

Yeah, missed you at this month's outing.
It will be worth all the effort.
I compiled some of my daughter's 1yr of photos into a album and titled it "The First Year"

 

[detritus]

Yeah, missed you at this month's outing.
It will be worth all the effort.
I compiled some of my daughter's 1yr of photos into a album and titled it "The First Year"

i wasn't at the sunrise part. went straight to macro saw FW there later but didn't see u so figured maybe u didn't join the macro part.

 

[pinholecam]

#11 No posed shots - "I only want to take natural shots of my child"
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But there really seldom are posed/unnatural shots of children.

Their natural character shines through eventually, uninhibited, natural and beautifully.

I had thought the window light was pretty good on the morning I took the below shot.
So I asked my daughter to come over to the bedside where her brother was and 'pose' with him.
The asking from me was to 'pose', but the actions and emotion is never so.

K5 with DA40XS/2.8 window light

 

[ndroo]

K-01 + Lensbaby Composer Pro with Edge 80 optic ...

My lil boss is 5 this year. Took these at home using available light from the window.

 

[Nanoo]

I notice there are very few pictures of little girls so I decided to even out the ratio a bit. :bsmilie:

My first born.
Taken a year and a half ago when I still had my K-x.

My last born.
Taken a year and a half ago when I still had my K-x.

Cheers!

 

[Chowm4]

Would like to ask JK & others, what are your favourite lenses for taking children photos? Are primes better than zoom lenses? 50mm? 35mm? Thanks.

 

[detritus]

Would like to ask JK & others, what are your favourite lenses for taking children photos? Are primes better than zoom lenses? 50mm? 35mm? Thanks.

there's no "favourite" for me... i rotate between my 35 f2.4, 50 f1.4, 85mm soft and 16-50, depending on which one is on my camera, and what i want to achieve.

lately, i've been shooting with flash more. the effect is really very different and imo, much better than bumping up ISO. bumping up ISO helps when u just want to take a quick shot but if u have time to set up and plan in a more deliberate fashion, flash gives pretty awesome results - more DOF cos u can step down more, better details due to lower ISO, easier to freeze movement.

 

[otc]

i'm not really a big fan of super shallow DOF but i couldn't resist this opportunity as she was staring intently at her toy

K5, FA50, F1.4, ISO800, no flash

its really fun to see babies captivated by the simple little things around them

K5, FA50, F4, ISO80, with flash

This is Donald Junior....Cute, very cute.

marcus

 

[pinholecam]

Would like to ask JK & others, what are your favourite lenses for taking children photos? Are primes better than zoom lenses? 50mm? 35mm? Thanks.

Personally, I don't think primes have any advantage over most modern good zoom lenses for taking photos of children,. esp babies.
I don't have a favorite lens for children photos, though generally, I use around 35mm to 85mm focal length.

From what I have/had. I'd probably use the following lenses :
1. Tamron 28-75/2.8 - a handful of nice sharp focal lengths at f2.8 on just one lens (all in very usable portrait focal lengths on APS-C)
2. FA35/2 - easy to use focal length in the house. Shallow DOF control; sharpness; move in or out for close up or half/full body shots. All can be done with it.
3. FA43ltd - perhaps it beats the FA35 as my go to lens. Crazy sharp and nice DOF control. (I'm beginning to like the DA40XS a lot too)
4. Any fast 50mm - I don't have the FA50/1.4, but got a couple other fast 50mm. Very nice too for close up shots (eg. hands/feet) and portraits.
5. 77ltd/85mm - harder to use indoors. Very nice o/p if you have the working distance.

Personally, I'd think #1 to #4 are pretty safe choices.
Others that will be cheap and good would be the DA35/2.4 and DA40XS.
Logically, I'd say go for DA35/2.4 and wait for the new DA50/1.8 (should be cheap) that is supposed to come out later in the year.

 

[Supersimon27]

For me I used to name Fa 50 f1.4 as my "Jaden lens" ..... but now I think the title was taken over by DAL 35mm F2.4. Both are fine for taking children I guess

 

[Chowm4]

lately, i've been shooting with flash more. the effect is really very different and imo, much better than bumping up ISO. bumping up ISO helps when u just want to take a quick shot but if u have time to set up and plan in a more deliberate fashion, flash gives pretty awesome results - more DOF cos u can step down more, better details due to lower ISO, easier to freeze movement.

Yes, I discovered the benefits of using flash recently, as you've mentioned, so I'm investing in flashlights. But alas, my 13 and 11-yr-old children hated it when I use flash on them, even bounced flash. They accused me of 'blinding' them. I suppose baby doesn't like flash either, fill flash or bounce flash.

To JK & Supersimon27, thanks for your tips. I do have an FA50mm f1.4, but I find its AF a bit slower than my DA 18-135mm. Of course, the latter aperture starts at f3.5, so it's not very useful indoor. Now I'm considering the 35mm f2.4, & also the Tammy 17-50mm f2.8 that FW is selling. Decision, decision...

 

[detritus]

Yes, I discovered the benefits of using flash recently, as you've mentioned, so I'm investing in flashlights. But alas, my 13 and 11-yr-old children hated it when I use flash on them, even bounced flash. They accused me of 'blinding' them. I suppose baby doesn't like flash either, fill flash or bounce flash.

my 10mth old baby's ok with it... to be sure, she doesn't love it but she doesn't protest too much when i take photos

as for AF speed, i think its a matter of making the best use of it. its not blazingly fast but i find it functional enough and as with all forms of photography, u have to know your subject and either communicate or coax them to give u the shot u want.

anyway, i seldom use the FA50 wide open so if u ask me, f1.4 is over-rated. its rather hard to get right cos of the shallow DOF and i find my copy a bit soft wide open.

 

[stuck]

My current go to lens for shooting my 5mth old baby is the FA35 f2. It used to be my dfa50 macro but I found the working distance indoors makes the 35 far more useful.

For a while I was also obsessed with getting faster lenses & shooting with ambient light. However I've found that even with the great high iso performance of Pentax cameras, I found that using bounced flash, shooting at low iso gives far more pleasing results - less noise, more sharpness & better Colour. My wife also freaked out for a while that I'm going to use flash on Hee precious baby! But I assured her that all the research indicates that given the intensity n duration of bounced flashes, it's perfectly safe. My baby also seems pretty unaffected by the flash, & I think the greater pop from using flash in the pictures convinced her!

 

[pinholecam]

#12 Strobing -Keep it simple
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Pentax K5; FA43 at f2; Vivitar 285 bounced from drawn white curtains


Absence of window light?
No problem. Draw the curtains and bounce the flash off it.
It then comes 'from the window'
Window light is like a big softbox the size of the windows, so bouncing the flash off some drawn curtains just tries to mimic that.
Leave the setup there for a while, and one can dispense with the worry of not enough light/ slow shutter speeds/ high ISO.