What do birds, trees, rivers and flowers have in common with newborn babies?  That’s what we wondered when Marian was approached at a recent vendor show in downtown Ottawa.  A woman approached the MarmiT Creations display table and expressed her admiration for our work which features outdoor urban and rural photography.

“Do you consider commission work?”  she inquired.

“What do you have in mind?” Marian asked.

“Well, my son and his wife have a beautiful newborn and I was wondering if you would consider a photo shoot.”

And so now we circle back to the question that opened this blog. Our experience, background and skillset does not involve photographing people, especially indoors.  Yet the woman was impressed enough with our work to ask us to capture this moment in the life of her family.

People not familiar with the art of photography are not always aware of the differences between portrait photography and shooting nature outdoors.  We are aware, and that is why we were at first hesitant.  But it is good to step outside your comfort zone once in a while, so we decided to connect with the parents and take the challenge.

The event came with a precondition, however:  we could not guarantee the results.  We would come to their home, have some fun and take as many photographs as possible, then provide them with a portfolio of the final products free of charge.  In return they agreed to allow us to use whatever photos we wanted to add to our online gallery keeping the baby’s identity private.  It was a win-win for all parties involved.  At worst, we would all lose a couple of hours of our time holding a beautiful baby.

As you can see by these photos, baby Lilia was simply a doll and she co-operated beyond our expectations.  It could have gone south in a hurry, but she was a joy to work with.  Such a gentle, happy baby.  Working with live subjects, as opposed to landscapes (which are alive in a different way), was truly a learning experience.  It did not instill in us a desire to focus our efforts in this direction, but it was fun and educational.  One of the most important things we learned was the importance of having the right equipment.  We managed to pull off indoor portrait photos with outdoor nature photography equipment.

Check out the “Babies” gallery on this website to see the rest of the photos of darling Lilia.

Would we do it again?  Probably, if asked, but we wouldn’t put our efforts into soliciting this kind of work.  We are always open to proposals for custom photo shoots.  It helps us to learn more about this craft and add to our portfolio.

All the family was thrilled with the photos we sent to them and that is really all that matters.