Month: May, 2010
Wow! What an honor!!!!! I received an e-mail today that I’m one of 18 St. Louis Photographers in the running for Best Family Photographer! So, I need your help…
Please (pretty please) nominate Yvonne Niemann Photography for Best Family Photographer in Nickelodeon’s Parents’ Picks Awards! The five photographers with the MOST nominations will be crowned the official nominees and will go on for the final voting process.
You can nominate me once a day, every day, from now until June 17. The more votes, the merrier! And don’t forget to come back tomorrow and vote again, and the next day, and the next day…
Thanks for your support!
I’m so excited to announce a new type of session with Yvonne Niemann Photography! The Bump – mini maternity sessions! These will be offered throughout the year for those in their third trimester of pregnancy. Sessions will only be available to those who book and pay for a newborn session or the Baby’s First Year Program and are perfect for those wanting just a few images documenting the beauty of pregnancy. Sessions last 20 minutes at predetermined locations around the St. Louis area and result in 10 finished images beautifully displayed in a 5×5 mini luxe album. You will also receive an 8×10 fine art print of the artist’s favorite image from your session! Want wall portraits and/or other products from your session? No problem – you’ll have the option to order prints and products through Yvonne Niemann Photography once your newborn gallery is posted.
The Bump kicks off on July 17th at a park in Des Peres. There are very limited spots available, so schedule your mini session asap if you’re expecting in July, August or September. Session is only for mom-to-be {and dad-to-be} and are by appointment only. Price is $300, which is due at time of booking to reserve your spot. Contact Yvonne today at info@yvonneniemannphotography.com or 314.265.7142 to take part in The Bump!
* Not valid with any other offers. Newborn or Baby’s First Year Program must be booked and paid for before scheduling your spot in The Bump.
I get a lot of questions regarding photography and how to take better candid shots, so I decided to start answering those questions within my e-newsletter and here on{the blog}.
This question comes from a client of mine who got a Canon DSLR around the time her son was born:
“I want to take pictures similar to your photo of the month that has a focused image and a blurred background. Is this a lens need or a sofware editing need? I have tried to change the settings on my camera and don’t see a difference. Do I need a different lens other than the one that came with my camera (18-55mm). Do I need photoshop? Any advice is appreciated. Thanks so much.”
OK, first off, Ms B is referring to this first image from Mr L’s session that was last month’s photo of the month in the April’s Yvonne Niemann Photography e-newsletter. Notice how Mr L’s face is in great focus and the background and an area in front of him on the bed are blurred into a nice creamy smoothness? That’s bokeh as a result of the shallow depth of field, which I adore and do a lot of with my portraits to really make my subjects stand out and pop! This is something I achieve with my lens choices and where I place my subjects – not using editing software. I don’t like to spend a lot of time processing my images in my digital darkroom, so I try to get things as perfect in camera as possible. Sure lenses can make a difference, but before you go out and buy a new lens try out these tips with the lens you have and see if you get better results.
1) Use the smallest f/stop number that your lens allows. With your 18-55mm lens, that would be f/3.5 at 18mm (wide angle) and f/5.6 {zoomed all the way in to 55mm}. To choose your f/stop, you’ll want to be in M {manual} mode or AV {aperture priority) mode. (AV is a Canon thing – for those shooting with Nikon, you’ll set it to A}. The higher the f/stop number, the more will be in focus. This is perfect for when you want everything in your frame in sharp focus {think landscape}. In this example though, you want your subject to be in focus and your background out of focus, so you will need to choose a low f/stop number as I’ve outlined above.
Here’s an example using my daughter’s beloved lambie. Below, on the left, I have my lens set to f/4 and on the right, I have the same lens set to f/11. See a difference?
2) Keep your subject far away from the background and zoom your camera all the way in {with your lens, that’s 55mm}.
Notice that the picture on the left, the subject is further away from the wall than the one on the right. Do you see the difference that makes? Both images are at f/4 and are zoomed in to 50mm, but just the simple placement of the subject makes all the difference with how much is out of focus in the background.
OK, now practice this at home and see what you think. Take several shots at different f/stop numbers and at different distances and see how it affects your final image. If you’re STILL wanting more bokeh {remember, that’s the out of focus area of an image}, then perhaps you want to look into getting another lens. I highly suggest the 50mm f/1.8 lens {Canon and Nikon both make this lens} and it’s around $100. I do have to warn you though…it’s very hard to get things that you want in focus at those low f/stop numbers. It takes a lot of practice and therefore you may find yourself using that lens at a higher f/stop number until you get a grasp of things anyways. I strongly urge you to make the most of the equipment you have and only upgrade when you’re feeling limited and have learned how to use your current lineup to it’s fullest.
For those of you without a DSLR, you can still apply these tips with your point and shoot camera. Most will allow you to set your f/stop number these days and if not, well then just zoom in, keep your subject away from your background and have fun!
Hope this was helpful and please don’t hesitate to let me know if you have more questions. I know this can seem overwhelming and complicated, so I just hope it makes sense. If not, let me know and I’ll try to clarify.
If you have questions about photography and how to make your treasured candid shots even better, subscribe to the Yvonne Niemann Photography e-newsletter and e-mail me your question to info@yvonneniemannphotography.com Each month, I’ll answer questions in the newsletter from subscribers. I won’t always post the answers here on the blog, so if you want to be “in the know” you’ll have to subscribe to the newsletter.
Good luck!
It was a pleasure capturing Mr. B for his first birthday. He is such a joy and you can feel the love this family has for each other. Enjoy the music video!
Luxe Albums | St. Louis Portrait Photographer
May 11, 2010
Many album choices are available through Yvonne Niemann Photography, but a favorite seems to be the Luxe Albums. Each of these beauties are handmade to order with fine binding, thick pages and luxe fabric choices. Each of your images are carefully mounted and adhered to the album pages. Many choose the Luxe Album when they want all of their images from a session, but may not have enough frames or room in their house to show off all those portraits. This way they get their favorite 30 images in a luxurious album that’s not only beautiful to look at, but is kid friendly as well! Another popular album in the Mini Luxe Album, which is a smaller version of the full size Luxe Album. This mini album displays 10 favorite images and is perfect for a brag book that can fit easily in a purse, briefcase or on your desk at work. Many also favor this album to gift to the grandparents or other loved ones. Perfection! Both albums give you many luxe fabric choices from silk brocade to suede and there are a few borders for you to choose from that go perfectly with your session portraits as well.
** Please note: As of January 2012, Luxe Albums have been upgraded to the Luxe Matted Album. However, the Mini Luxe Album is still available. **
{30 image Luxe Album in Mimosa Brocade fabric and 10 image Mini Luxe Album in Hollywood Orange Garbo fabric}
{thick pages}
{fine binding}
{Luxe fabric choices}
{displays your images beautifully}
{customized colorful borders that compliment your session}
{simple borders with a bit of class}
{Luxe Fabric Choices}
Man’s Best Friend | Defiance Pet Photographer
May 4, 2010
I met this family not too long ago when I captured their newborn daughter. I remember being so impressed by their dog. You see, I have two black labs and even though they’re up there in age, they still tend to act like puppies. Their dog wasn’t like that at all. Sure, the tail was wagging and he greeted me, but he didn’t try to jump on me or get so excited that he would knock me down {OK, my dogs don’t jump on people anymore, but they don’t know their strength and do tend to knock me down from time-to-time}. I kept commenting on how great their dog, Vader, was at the session as well as after. Shoot, I even talked to my family and friends about this dog. Yes, he made that big of an impression on me. So, it really saddened me to hear that Vader was recently diagnosed with terminal bone cancer. Having two dogs myself, I can only imagine what it would be like to go through what this family is dealing with right now – especially since they lost their other dog right after their lil’ baby girl was born. Yesterday, I had the honor of capturing Vader with his family. This session’s focus was on Vader and all his glory. Isn’t he just the most beautiful dog? For those of you with pets, make sure you give them hugs and enjoy every moment with them. I know that’s what Vader’s family is doing right now. Take care B family. I’m thinking of you.
One Comment
Congrats Yvonne!