Should I Hire a Photographer for Photos of my Child?

“Why should I hire a professional photographer to take pictures of my kid when I can do it myself?”

“My kid is shy and a photographer probably couldn’t get the greatest shots of him/her.”

“My iPhone takes just as great of photos than a professional photographer could.”

I have heard these comments and questions time and time again.

You might not need a babysitter, a nanny, or the latest diaper bag. But I am here to tell you – er, highly encourage you – to hire a professional photographer to photograph your child. Here are a few reasons why:

 

Experience

Sure, one could argue that anyone who takes a photo is a photographer. But, to be a professional photographer takes some skill. I’m not here to toot my own horn, but I do believe that not everyone has the same abilities as someone who does this for a living. We have the skills to frame, adjust lighting as necessary, and most of all – edit (where a lot of the magic happens!).

I have seen photos come to life through Adobe Lightroom (my preferred editing software), and I think that many photographer’s experience is worth the cost of having someone else get behind the camera to capture your little one’s moments and smile.

 

Photographic Perspective

I don’t mean to speak for all photographers, but it’s true . . . we have a special eye for things. For lighting, balance, depth of field, angles… you will be amazed at the unique perspectives we can come up with. We know the “rules” of what is pleasing to the eye, and what traps to look out for. Editing is a magical process but it can’t fix everything!

As a parent, you probably have a million things on your mind already (trust me, I can relate). Leave the creativity for photos to the photographer and just enjoy them afterward.

Photos = Art

If you want to print your photo on canvas, or blow it up any larger than a small 4×6 photo, you’re going to have a tough time with your iPhone photos. Professional photographers shoot, edit, and send you your files with the idea that you might want to view them at different sizes. They won’t get distorted or pixelated the same way that they would if you tried to create a large canvas print with an iPhone photo.

Now, maybe I am a bit biased as a photographer, but even with a kid and a family of my own… I have hired other people to do my family portraits!  I am not arguing to NEVER take iPhone photos of your children! But, I am saying that a once or twice a year professional photoshoot will leave you with some long-lasting, high quality memories that you will want to show off in your home, on Facebook, and to generations to come.

To see some great examples of family/baby photo sessions, stop by my galleries!

Until next time!