I was inspired to write this because I saw this amazing post by another blogger, Ashley at Spit Up and Sit Ups. It’s a step by step tutorial on a DIY photo session with your babe + christmas lights! Anyway, I saw it and thought YES I want to do this with Little Bear!
So here goes my own experience and tips, and be sure to check out Ashley’s post as well for other perspective!!
Step one: PROPS!
I decided to gather all my items together the night before to make the whole process less stressful. I had this pretty cool background that I bought used. It’s nice and small…perfect for a little baby photoshoot! If you don’t have a backdrop, don’t worry! Use a solid color wall, or some fabric. Use painter’s tape to tape it up so it doesn’t cause damage to the wall!
I took out all of our Christmas stuff (Papa Bear was away this weekend so clearly he had no clue this was all happening!), and pulled out things I thought would look cute in pictures. Be careful not to choose ANYTHING that is sharp, has little pieces, or could break easily. I already know LB will be putting everything near her mouth, so I’ve chosen things that won’t be harmful, and that I know I can grab really fast. I also pulled out our furry Christmas tree skirt, which doubles as an awesome base to put her on!
Step two: Experiment!
I put our little stuffed animal baby, Babar, in the middle of the scene just to see how it might look. Here’s the picture I got. I’m glad I started with some experiments because it helped me to roughly see how things would look when I took the real pictures. 
If you don’t have a Babar, a cat will also work…
Step three: Take your pics!
I used my Canon T3i with the 18-55mm lens. I used the Aperture Priority setting, where I choose the Aperture and the camera chooses the rest. This seemed to work out really well, because I wanted the background to be less in focus. I put it on the lowest value for this lens (4.5), and the camera chose 1/50 for shutter speed and ISO3200. Here is one of my favorite shots, unedited, and at these settings:
I absolutely adore this picture with Little Bear and her stocking. This stocking was knitted by Caitlin at All That it Seams. Her work is absolutely AMAZING (and she donates money from every purchase to animal shelters)! She knitted me this adorable Santa Hat, and she’s one of my featured small businesses in my Shop Small Holiday Mommy Gift Guide and Giveaway (she’s giving away a $20 gift card as part of the raffle!). If you haven’t entered, head to that post next and check out Caitlin’s work, as well as the other amazing gifts for that special mama in your life. And don’t forget to enter the giveaway!
Step four: Edit!
I use and love Lightroom, and used some awesome presets I purchased from Creative Market (these!). You can also use PicMonkey as a good editing option if you don’t have Lightroom. After editing, here’s a few of my favorites!!
Step five: Clean up….
UGH. The worst part. But it was worth it, right?!?!!
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Oh my! This is such a great idea and she is the cutest!!!!
One Awesome Momma
Belle recently posted…5 Little Things I Am Thankful For – A Thanksgiving Post
Thanks Belle!! <3
Such great pictures!!! I’ll have to save this for later. I would love to get some pictures like this with my Little Man…if I can get him to sit still. 🙂
Thanks so much for the sweet comment!
Ahh love this! Much less expensive than hiring a professional photographer and it’s adorable!
Those are such sweet photos! I may need to try that with my girls!
Thanks so much Dawnene!
This is the CUTEST. Great job on the photos!!!
Ashley | Spit Up and Sit Ups recently posted…Weight Loss Check In 11/21
Thank you!!! Learning from the best 😉 hehe YOU! 😀
OMG she is so so cute!
OMG she is so so cute! And great tips!
Thank you so much!
These are seriously fantastic!! Way to go girl– she is so cute!
Thank you so much!! <3
You have inspired me. I love this. Any tips for babies that won’t sit still?
Aw thanks!! Mine doesn’t sit still very much…I seriously had to pull the lights away from her every 10 seconds!!! I think it would definitely help if you had someone there to distract them, and keep their eye movement going!!!