Newborn Studio Lighting Setup

Ideally a kit should provide high quality pro studio lighting and backdrops be easy to set up and break down and a breeze to transport.

Newborn studio lighting setup. Prop light set up. You have a few options in terms of positioning the baby you can have the legs closest to the light which i use a lot or you can have the legs positioned away from the light. Is a natural light photographer in san diego specializing in newborns and children. You can tell the direct light really lights up baby and washes out baby s face.

When using studio lighting with newborns the light source should come from the direction that the baby s head is laying. This is sooc legs closest to the light straight out of camera and this is how i would edit. You need a light something to mount the light onto something to soften and spread the light more equally and in some instances something that will make the light flash every time you press the shutter. Lighting from the chin upwards would cause spooky up lighting and monster shadows which we want to avoid.

The feathered light is more faltering to baby and flows beautiful down baby naturally. As a result one side of the face is completely lit and the other just partly creating a triangle when the light falls on the partially shadowed cheek. The best studio light kits make a photographer s life easier whether they re just starting out or are seasoned pros. It s important that you watch the s.

Rembrandt lighting this lighting setup for newborn photography is the illumination of the newborn s face at a 90 degree angle. This one is the 45 lighting. I usually use it when i m taking a picture from above. The light should illuminate the baby s face downward from the top of the head to the chin.

The left image looks more like natural light and that is the look i am going for in my newborn photos. As a certified pediatric nurse practitioner she understands the stressors involved with having a new baby and to that end she strives to make newborn sessions as easy as possible on the new parents. The last setup i want to show is not necessarily wrong i just want you to be aware of the very slight difference because once you will pay attention to it you will definitely be able to achieve the dreamy lighting you desire for newborn babies. For my prop shots i put the light right down as close the ground as possible and tilted slightly.

The setup to the left is with feathered lighting. You just need a single light setup for your newborn studio.