Why do I do this?

I bought a few nice fabrics on sale locally and made my own flokati rugs, and they made my photos “pop” more. You can use different colored flokatis and change posing on these. They resemble real baby photoshoots.

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You guys are all cracking me up :heart_eyes: I love the whole process so much it was my job for years. I specialized in newborns. I love the props the poses… playing with my lights to get different looks. I actually got into reborning to make a baby to catalog all my props for my website which I still haven’t done

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Why can’t I just be your neighbor, @PhotographyForLife? I would wheel my dolls over to your house and just pay you to take the pictures for me. :joy::joy:

Your pictures are gorgeous and I just suck at this no matter what I do.

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Lesson one.

Get a bean bag and toss some fabric over it…
put it in front of a window with soft even light coming in.
Put a baby in it facing the window
Stand to the side of the window (don’t block your light)
Take pictures
Turn the bean bag away from the window by small amounts to create shadows.

Bonus tip
You can clip fabric to a chair to pull it so there aren’t any wrinkles and you block any distractions in the background
That is how I took these next images

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Gorgeous!!! Seriously love your work! If I lived near you, I’d still hire you for this though. Lol In addition to these, you have the ability to do those really cool photos where the baby is edited into different backgrounds, which is such a nice touch for higher end babies.

Thank you for the tips though. Will definitely give this a shot.

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Lol “a shot”
Have fun with it :slight_smile:
Be creative!

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I hate taking pictures too. I’ll have babies done for forever and want to list them for sale, but my pictures are always terrible. None of the inside of the house gets much light because there are trees all around the windows. I take them outside and they look washed out. I think I might try a ring light or umbrella light soon since the lighting is the main problem.

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Skya and Jade!! Two of my favs! :smiling_face_with_three_hearts:

I don’t like photo shoots. I mostly just don’t like pulling all the stuff out and trying to find some good light. I try to keep it super simple, I use to change outfits, try to get creative with posing but now I do head down, feet up, left, right, full face, paci in, full body, glamour shot and a black and white. I do one outfit.

I have a Moses basket, some pretty blankets, and a few softies.

I love it when people get creative and go for it but for me the goal is just to get it done. I use my phone, try to do some natural light and call it a day.

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I actually think collectors prefer pictures of babies that are straight forward and show the details of how the baby is painted, rooted etc so they can see what they are getting, it’s not about taking beautiful pictures as much as it is about color correct lighting and focus that shows important details. Pretty photos and clothes are just fluff :heart_eyes:

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As a buyer I don’t trust any ‘professional’ photoshoot looking photos when baby all bundled up and buried with different beautiful barics. Leave it to their mommas to play with their photography and proudly display it on social medias. For selling - clear shots with displaying all details - that what’s matters. Yes, you should not include all that garbage on the background, you should pose your baby naturally, but striving for ‘professional’ photoshoot should not be a seller goal, in my opinion.

And I absolutely cannot emotionally tolerate sleeping reborn face up surrounded by artificial flowers. It’s reborn funeral for me. Scroll fast to the next baby…

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I agree with you. I think it’s because of all the beautiful prototypes pictures, we think we have to achieve that to be successful.

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I think if you are doing this as a hobby, then super fancy pictures aren’t that important, as long as they clearly and accurately show the baby. If it is your full time job then beautiful pictures are crucial. Excellent photography really helps the baby sell at the highest possible price. My opinion is photography is half of the art of reborning. You can work at it to get better and develop your own photography style, just like you develop your own painting style.

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@jeanhai I procrastinate taking pictures too. It takes a lot of energy and I’m just not as good at it as I want to be. I’ve been reading photography articles and watching videos on photography lately. I would love to take an in person photography class someday too!

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And with that how many times we heard here that prot baby looked so beautiful in the pictures, but somehow disappointing in real life?

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You are right, I have heard of people being disappointed with a baby not looking as good as a photo. Our photography definitely should not be misleading. I have heard of people being thrilled with a baby that also had beautiful pictures too though. My goal is to take beautiful pictures that accurately represent the baby. Photography and reborning are still works in progress for me, I’m not an expert and these are just my opinions.

I definitely don’t think there is anything wrong with taking simple photos, they are quite beautiful. As a hobby artist, simple photos are a great way to go. If someone is hoping to turn this into a thriving business vs. a hobby, I do think the pictures need to be very well done. Reborns that sell for 4 digits always have amazing photos.

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Oh, and I definitely agree that photos need to be clear and there should be pictures that include all of the details up close.

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There is definitely one advantage to taking crappy photos… your customers are always happy! I can’t tell you how many emails I’ve gotten from people who say they were pleasantly surprised that my dolls looked better in person.

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I think good photos are very important in the sale of a doll. It is time consuming and a bit of a pain. By the time I get done it looks like someone ransacked the room. And my back hurts. But the end result is what sells.