Week 2 of 2011

I am always struggling to get good light in Abram's eyes in photos. I don't know if it is just the dark color of the iris or the shape of his eyes or just my beginning photography skills. So I challenged myself this week to really work on getting "catchlights" (reflections, and it doesn't count if it is a pinlight from camera flash).

In order to get the perfect catchlights photographers hope for, I needed Abram to sit still. At a 45 degree angle to a large open window. And look at me with eyes open. I tried to bribe him with food and toys, but it was a no go. I didn't even get to try many shots because he kept running away. Here is the ONE I managed that met most of the conditions except he wasn't looking toward me, so the catchlights ended up on his pupils. Not the most desireable effect:


Then we came home from lunch at Red Robin with a green balloon. Abram has always been infatuated by balloons. So much that I used to buy him a mylar balloon whenever I was at the dollar store because I knew it would keep him happy for so long. Out came the camera while he played in the kitchen:


He was in front of the sliding doors, so plenty of opportunity for catchlights, but a very wiggly laughing boy doesn't make it easy to get sharp eyes. Even with the catchlights, his eyes just look so dark. Not lit up like I want them. Don't miss the big bruise on his forehead - daycare injury:


And a few more with great catchlights/reflections... but I am still disappointed in the eyes overall:




Just for comparison, I used photoshop to "brighten" his eyes. This usually looks totally unnatural, but I still think Abram's eyes look dark.


Abram still wouldn't let go of the balloon, but he was worn out from all that playing. Resulted in this sweet photo:


And, finally, catchlight success with a subject who almost always sits still. You can see the ceiling fan, television, most of the family room:



In Abram news, he is starting to use full sentences. Most of them begin with "I want!"