Four Things Not to Do When Photographing a Baby Shower

Let’s just start out this blog with a big fat disclaimer. I am going to be talking about a baby shower that was thrown for one of my friends, and I was attending this shower as a guest, not a hired photographer. My friend and I had discussed getting some maternity photos of her, and this seemed like a good time to sneak in a photoshoot. So last minute, I decided I wanted to bring my camera and capture what I could of the day. We ended up getting some amazing shots, but I was really conscious of the fact that if I were attending this shower as a professional, I was doing a terrible job. For today’s blog, I have compiled a list of four things that I did at this shower that I would NOT have done as the hired professional photographer. I have a few fail photos that I’ll be showing you today, and this is normal for every shoot. You’re bound to get some bad photos no matter how talented or experienced you are (or at least, I hope I’m not the only one this happens to).

1. Don’t Be Shy About Approaching Guests for Group Photos.

When I first arrived, most of the guests had already gotten there and were sitting around at their respective tables. They were all in deep conversations and I didn’t know any of them, so I didn’t approach most of them for table photos. If I were a hired photographer at this shower, I would have tried to get much more photos of the guests, especially of the soon-to-be great-grandmas. My go-to when I’m photographing an event like this is to just approach a table and ask “would you mind if I got a few photos of you?” So far, I haven’t had anyone say no and I like seeing the different personalities of each group. Some do a “cheers” pose with their glasses raised high, some gather closely and smile, and others can get goofy and really let their fun side shine through! I did get this sneaky photo from above, but most people have their backs to me, and the umbrellas cover half the frame:

2. Don’t Steal the Baby Mama for a Private Shoot During the Activities.

If I were the real photographer for this event, I would have asked the person throwing the party what the schedule looked like. How many games were there, when would people get up to eat, when will dessert be served, and when would they be opening gifts? If I knew those things, I wouldn’t have stolen the baby mama and baby daddy to get some maternity couples photos right in the middle of the activities. We literally got two minutes of photos (I went back and checked the timestamp on my photos), and the next activity was starting. We were lucky we were right around the corner and could get back to the party quickly. I would have liked to have more uninterrupted time to really get them positioned right and get enough shots to make sure I got some good ones. I was pretty lucky and out of the 27 photos I took in those two minutes, there were 3 photos that I really liked.

3. Don’t Say This to the Mom-To-Be: “You Don’t Want Any Photos of You Opening Gifts, Right?”

Yep, I actually said that. I was basically telling her “I don’t feel like taking pictures of gift opening, so I’m not going to do that unless you put up a fight.” At this point during the shower, I just wanted to relax and enjoy watching my friend open her gifts. I was a little preoccupied because I was sitting next to her mom, who was recording who got what gifts, and I was helping her figure out what the items were. I couldn’t help myself and snapped one photo of them opening gifts, but my heart wasn’t in it so I caught a bad pose, they were opening a gift from a wedding gift bag, not a baby gift bag, and to top it all off, her face isn’t in focus (though, she looks gorgeous no matter what).

I got a little distracted and shot this fun one with them opening gifts in the background:

4. Don’t Go to a Baby Shower Hungry.

I think this is the most important one. I was starving. I hadn’t eaten lunch that day and the shower started at 2pm. I spent too much time getting ready and didn’t leave myself any time to eat. This was perfectly fine since I was a guest and there was a wonderful, massive charcuterie table set up for us. However, I would not expect clients to feed me, and I wouldn’t want to waste the time that they paid me by spending it eating.

Speaking of that charcuterie table. It was incredible, honestly the best one I have ever seen. I should have gotten photos of it as soon as I arrived, before guests started serving themselves, but as a guest myself, I spent a few minutes introducing myself to people, participating in the guessing games, and greeting my friend and her husband (and their dog Kirby!). By the time I got to the charcuterie table, it was surrounded by guests, and I was so hungry I had to jump in on the action and get myself a plate. So what did I end up doing? I had my plate in one hand, my camera in the other, and I tried getting photos of the table without adjusting my settings or making sure I had the right lighting. The table was also surrounded by people so I felt pressured to get my food and get out of there as fast as possible. Get ready for some bad photos, folks! The majority of my photos ended up looking like this:

Do: Have Fun and Be Yourself.

The most important part of all of this is to just have fun and be yourself. Your style will shine through when you just be yourself and that’s what makes you unique and valuable as a photographer. I wouldn’t do photography if I didn’t love it. It’s expensive, time consuming, and can sometimes be very frustrating. But that feeling you have when you get the shot you want is priceless and I wouldn’t trade that for anything.

If you’re interested in seeing the good photos from this baby shower, you can check them out on my Facebook or Instagram (the first set starts here). As always I can be contacted through Facebook or Instagram, through my website (www.kimholdenphoto.com), or through email (kimholdenphoto@gmail.com). If you haven’t already, subscribe to my blog on the sidebar to the right to get these delivered directly to your inbox every Friday!

Let’s create some memories.

Kim