Inside my photography bag – Essential Kit
I launched my baby photography business back in 2018 and haven’t looked back since. Over the years, I have come to love certain bits of kit or items that make my job easier. Let me share with you what I use!
Camera Bodies
Back in 2018 I bought my first camera which was a Nikon D750 and it was a brilliant camera that never let me down. It has dual slots so that you have a back up disk at all times which is really very reassuring. It is a work horse camera and it never let me down. I would still have it if I wasn’t seduced by the new mirrorless cameras and I regret selling it to be honest. Ideally I would have kept it as a back up camera but you live and learn! If you can afford to have a second camera as back up then I would suggest you do.
I now have a Sony A7IV Mirrorless camera. It is a beautiful camera. A stunning piece of kit that like the D750 is great in low light situations. I work with natural light and I sometimes have to really rely on my camera being able to cope with higher ISO’s (2000+) and it copes really well. The best thing about this camera is it’s ability to focus on eyes and hold on to that focus as your subject moves about the room. Which is great for super fast crawling and walking babies! This is a great video to show you what this camera is capable of.
Lenses
With both cameras I used the relevant 35mm lens and my current go-to lens for newborn and baby photography is the Sony 35mm 1.4 G master lens. The high aperture means that I can shoot wide open and create a beautifully dreamy set of images. I love being in the 1.8-2.8 focal range and this allows me to do this. The lens is incredibly lightweight and is the only lens I currently use. My next purchase will be a 50mm and I hear great things about the Sigma 50mm and so I may well make the leap next year.
White Noise
The Baby Shusher is always the star of the show during my newborn photography sessions. It has an assertive shush that really helps comfort baby and is perfect for helping calm an annoyed little newborn and even encourage them off to sleep. As a newborn photographer, it is a given that we are expected to get babies to sleep during the photoshoot. But, I tell all my clients that this actually isn’t my job. My job is to take photos of their newborns and I can gently encourage a tired newborn to sleep. And this baby shusher really helps do the job as it helps to cut out other noise distraction and has a repetitive soothing effect. I highly recommend!
Beanbag and blankets.
Unfortunately, blanket suppliers come and go and so if you come across a selection of newborn blankets you like – buy plenty as there is no guarantee you will get them again. I have all my favourite newborn blankets at the top of my beanbag and underneath these – to make the bean bag really comfortable and soft – I have around 7 or 8 fleece blankets from Dunelm. But you can get blankets like this in a variety of places and you should not be spending a fortune on them. This is where I got my beanbag.
Posing beans
It is always handy to have some posing beans on hand to help position baby – although you could effectively achieve the same effect with flannels and towels. So think about this before you invest in the expensive ones. This is particularly important if you are working in the natural newborn photography genre. You won’t need to rely on them in the same way as someone who focuses on a more posed approach. These are the posing beans that I have.
I hope that helps those new photographers that are wondering exactly what essential kit they need to begin their newborn photography journey!
