Creative Monthly Milestone Photography Tips
Kiera Slye
“I’m a mama who struggled to find easy and unique ways to document my pregnancy and daughter’s growth. Time simply flew by and taking cute photos of my little one was way harder than I imagined — and I am a photographer!”
Does this sound familiar?
You’re expecting
or
You recently welcomed a new little one into the world.
Your heart is pumping full of love.
You’re already nostalgic to hit pause and soak in all the things.
You want to take creative photos to document and remember this fleeting time.
You’re overwhelmed by the options and you just want your pics to look cute.
I feel ya!
I’m a mama to a now 2 year old daughter (yes T.W.O! I can’t even believe it!) Time seemed to evaporate before my very eyes. I spent countless hours late at night googling ways to pause time and to appreciate the changes that were taking place. I struggled to find easy ways to document my motherhood journey as well as appreciate all of the developments my daughter was going through. Plus, taking cute photos of my little one was way harder than I imagined-- and I’m a photographer!
My hours of research, professional experience and shooting by trial and error have resulted in simple takeaway lessons that I am happy to share with you today! This blog post will go into more detail, but I’ve created a FREE PDF Checklist you can use that outlines my 5 Tips For Creative Monthly Milestone Pics. Hopefully this helps you to avoid the stress and late night googling and sends you happily on your way to documenting your life milestones in an easy and fun way!
1- Plan for fun
This is key! Taking these photos should be fun for you and if they’re not, don’t burden yourself with doing them! Perfection doesn’t exist in this world and there is no sense in trying to capture it in your monthly milestone photos! Some of my most favorite pictures came from my outtakes.
Keep your system simple and concentrate on celebrating the growth of your child. Add some fun to your photos by incorporating your cravings from that month if you’re pregnant or your child’s favorite toy.
Take note of milestones that are happening. Create a “milestones” note on your phone, in a journal, or better yet send an email to your baby’s own email address and to the grandparents. Note new experiences and developments you have noticed each month.
Has your child learned to smile?
Did she figure out how to use her hands?
What makes him laugh?
What are your favorite books to read together?
Does baby have a favorite song?
How is sleep going in your home these days?
Also take note of the specifics:
how much does baby weigh this month?
How many new teeth did they get?
What makes this month special.
Get creative and get specific. It’s amazing to look back on the changes that happen each month, especially when you feel like you’re living in Groundhog day over and over again during those first few months.
Share your photos with your friends and family. I love using Tinybeans- as a means of oversharing daily photos and updates about our family in a private gallery that doesn’t get blasted all over social media. Using my referral link will give you a free month of premium access if you decide to check it out. You (and your family) won’t be disappointed! You can also create free photo streams to share on your iPhone or share albums across different phone platforms using the Google Photos app.
If you’re sharing on Instagram -- I wanna see! Tag @frameoflifeproject or use the hashtags: #myframeoflife and #frameoflifeproject so I can celebrate your milestones with you!
At the end of the year, print out your photos and string them together to hang on the wall for your child’s birthday. When you’re done - you can also add these photos to that baby book you’re dreaming of making! Better yet, create an annual family calendar to give as gifts over the holidays - it’s always a surefire hit with the grandparents!
2- Keep it Light
Use natural light when possible. It makes for more visually appealing photographs. You will have more accurate color cast and your subjects will appear more comfortable and natural. Avoid Direct flash or overhead lighting, this can create unflattering shadows, color casts, and inconsistencies between photographs over time.
You can edit your photos on your phone using the built in photos app or by downloading an editing software app like VSCO to change exposure and contrast settings to help lighten and brighten your images.
3- Repeat Time, Place & Process
Choose a consistent time, place and process to simplify taking your pictures.
Do your best to shoot during daylight hours when it is the brightest in the space that you choose to use as your setup.
Search for a location in your home that is near a window where there is ample natural light. Position your setup a few feet away from the window and work on moving the angles to see which light flatters the subject most -- usually having the window to the side of the subject is best to avoid unflattering shadows.
Taking photos from above the subject helps eliminate distracting backgrounds. Using a plain wall as a backdrop is also a great simple alternative.
Keeping the scene as consistent as you can will help the focus be on the growth taking place and not changes in scenery.
Most importantly, pick a time when your little one is most likely to cooperate. This is typically after feeding or right after waking up when they are most content. You know your kiddo best, so just go with whatever works best for you (and accept that timing will probably fluctuate each month!)
4- Burst Mode / Fast Shutter Speed
These little humans (and in my case pups too) move quickly and don’t usually like to sit still and pose for pictures as much as one would hope! The key to capturing their silly and cute faces is to utilize a fast shutter speed and to shoot in burst mode if you can.
On your cell phone, you can simply hold down the shutter button and take a “burst” of photos at one time. Then when you review the photo you can select which image within the burst you like the best and delete the rest. It is the secret to capturing the best shots!
If you are using a “big camera” i.e. a DSLR to photograph your child, choose a setting that will allow for a faster shutter speed (something over 1/500th). You can also change your shooting settings to allow for high speed shooting where you can take several photographs in rapid fire succession just by holding down the shutter button. Check your camera’s manual for High Speed Shooting settings or for more information on burst mode.
5- Be flexible
I found that photographing my own daughter was incredibly challenging. Despite my best efforts to pre-plan our shoot, she’d always get hungry when I was close by taking pictures. The old wives tale is true that babies are able to smell their mothers when they are near. Without fail every time I picked up the camera to photograph my daughter, she’d get hungry again (even if I had just finished feeding her!) Being flexible and having a clear plan of action helped make taking these pictures quick and easy.
Success came when I changed up my shooting plan. I originally had planned to photograph my daughter on a blanket with a her favorite stuffed animal each month. I learned that she quickly outgrew my shooting space, wanted to roll, sit, eat the stuffed animal, and eventually get up run away (all before her first birthday.) Shooting multiple variations of a milestone pic for the first few months helped me have options to pick from in the end and kept me entertained.
I decided to get help with my monthly photos by adding my husband into the mix. I had taken weekly self portraits of my body while pregnant, and I thought it would be super cute to watch my husband grow as a daddy while simultaneously documenting our daughter’s growth and personality development. This plan had the additional benefit of giving me an extra set of hands to baby wrangle and coax smiles out of our little wiggly one.
The downside to this plan was that my husband was traveling a ton for work during this time and often we wouldn’t be together on the exact milestone dates. I took this as an opportunity to get creative and learn to be more flexible and less perfect.
Some months, I took the monthly photo using people who were visiting and helping me care for the baby (like my friends or mom). I would also take the photos in different locations, but pick a plain wall as a backdrop if we were out of town.
I eventually learned to use setting as a cool time and date stamp for my annual photos as my daughter got older and more mobile. In the winter, I photographed her playing in the snow. In the summer, running through a sprinkler for the first time and playing on the beach. In the fall, she jumped in her first huge pile of leaves. If I was a few days late or even a week or two off, that was ok!
Life is unpredictable sometimes.
Kids get sick;
you forget;
you’re traveling;
the weather is gross;
you don’t feel like taking pics;
the house is a disaster.
Give yourself grace and permission to be flexible in your journey towards documenting the beautiful gift that is your life.
Showing up and taking note to be present in creating memories of your precious life is the true gift of this project. Enjoy your time together and have FUN! I hope this post creates a safe space for you to imagine the possibilities and get creative.
I’d love to see what you capture! Stay connected by liking @frameoflifeproject on Instagram. Got something out of this? Share the Frame of Life Project with your friends, comment below, or shoot me an email with your favorite takeaway!
Happy memory keeping friends!
xoxo-
Kiera