It can be very frustrating when you see your adorable little wonder doing something so funny and cute that you just have to snap a picture… you run in with a camera… click! Click! Click!! Let’s see - oh, why it doesn’t look so cute? You can barely see it… How can you make it better?!

Dream Come True Photo: loving family with a dad, a son and their beloved dog are enjoying the time togetherDream Come True Photo: loving family with a dad, a son and their beloved dog are enjoying the time together Most likely, that is the culprit of the problem: you can barely see it. Our body is the most amazing machine: we can see, when there is barely any light; we can discern shades and colors, that no technology will be able to capture; we can concentrate on our friend’s story even in the noisy street and block out all the distracting sounds we don’t care about; in the busy world around us - we can single out one cloud, one tree, one dear face with the best expression possible and enjoy how they all come together… well our cameras cannot. Even while the light seems plenty to us, your iphone photos become blurry because to your phone’s lens it certainly isn’t enough; even if the colors are so gorgeous from our perspective - our camera needs help figuring out what perspective to use to represent those colors correctly. And this is especially true, to the busy, cluttered environment we are constantly surrounded by.

So, it is not the latest and the greatest camera that takes the photographs. It is not the technology to blame. I’ve seen images some really skillful photographers were able to make with their phones that I still have to figure out how to do with my top-of-the-notch photographic equipment. And while there are a lot of things going into the process of creating a really stunning image, there are enough simple things that you can do to create the images to preserve some special daily moments you wish them to remember.

It is a good idea to think of technology as a little baby: it is not your camera’s job to create a gorgeous shot. It is yours.
Dream Come True Photo: preserving a priceless expression of an adorable one year old in a cute hatDream Come True Photo: preserving a priceless expression of an adorable one year old in a cute hat

The simplest, the most effective, absolutely the best thing you can do: Get Closer. Just like your eyes concentrate on the detail that you find the most important, help your camera to do the same thing: zoom in to eliminate everything that is not contributing to the story that you would like to tell with your shot. Sofa, toys, lamp, pillows, chairs may as well be in your room - but, most probably, no place in your image. 

Keep only what really matters: the fun activity your kid does, the excited look on her face, the lonely sad tear in the corner of her eye…

We live in the wonderful world of digital imagery: take a few shots from various distances and pick the one that tells your story the best. You can always delete the ones that don’t look so good afterwards. I, certainly, do! During the portrait session with a senior or a little newborn, I usually take about 400 images to deliver the best 30-50.. And during a family session with a few kids running around - up to 700 images, to be able to select only the very best, the most expressive, the most timeless, the most flattering to everyone. Unless you are a professional photographer, ready to commit the amount of time to go through all those images and hard drive space to save them, I wouldn’t recommend taking 300 shots of your baby digging in the sandbox… but a few might offer you a better chance to select the best one.

Dream Come True Photo: adorable naked cute baby boy is smiling for a camera on his tummyDream Come True Photo: adorable naked cute baby boy is smiling for a camera on his tummy	Dream Come True Photo: adorable naked cute baby boy is smiling for a camera on his tummyDream Come True Photo: adorable naked cute baby boy is smiling for a camera on his tummy	Dream Come True Photo: a wonderful expression of an adorable baby boy is smiling and looking at the camera during our 4 month old sessionDream Come True Photo: a wonderful expression of an adorable baby boy is smiling and looking at the camera during our 4 month old session
Straight out of camera image that shows the edges of the blanket, the floor, the unnecessary highlight lines that destruct attention from the adorable baby. What you don't see (something I don't even include in a frame - are a swing behind a blanket, some toys in front and a covered grill that I used to strap the blanket to.	In this image I cut out all the unnecessary details, edited it and further cropped the edges to bring out just an adorable baby, his cute naked chubby arms, energetic feet.  Both better composition and expression create a more compelling shot.	A close up!  My absolute favorite! I do believe it really brings out those gorgeous eyes and adorably mischievous smile!

Dream Come True Photo: an amazing gaze in the eyes of a one year old boy. Dream Come True Photo: an amazing gaze in the eyes of a one year old boy.