Q&A with Yvonne: Perfect Photos of the Kiddos!

I'm excited to introduce you to one of my best friends, Yvonne Niemann of Yvonne Niemann Photography. Yvonne and I were college roommates and have known each other for over a dozen years now. She's one of the most gifted photographers I've ever seen, and she has a special gift for capturing the most precious images of babies and children. I hope you'll check out her photography, and if you're in the St. Louis area, give her a call to schedule your own custom session! Her images are stunning! She took my profile photo for this blog as well as the most gorgeous portraits of my boys and our family, and the experience was so much fun for the whole family!

Your blog name: Yvonne Niemann Photography {the blog}

Your blog address: http://www.yvonneniemannphotography.info/blog

Your hometown: Currently live in St. Louis, Missouri - most of my growing up was in Leavenworth, Kansas

How long have you had your blog? almost a year

3 things readers need to know about you or your blog: I'm an on-location baby and children's custom portrait photographer. I enjoy cooking and once in a while I share recipes on my blog. I'm a mommy and wife.

List 5 things you LOVE (about ANYTHING): My husband, daughter, wine, Autumn, photography

Your biggest pet peeve: people who lie

How old were you when you first started taking photos? I can't remember ever NOT taking photos. Started as a tot and then got really serious about photography in Junior High when my uncle gave me a Pentax K1000 camera with a couple lenses and flashes.

You're also a SAHM. How do you make time to run your photography business with your little girl at home? My priority is my family, so I only book sessions on weekends when my husband is home and can watch our daughter, Lily. Because of this, I don't work every weekend and I'll only do two sessions a weekend (one a day). Right now, I work very hard to not let my business take over our family life. I quit my career as a video producer to raise our daughter, so I try really hard to focus on our daughter while she's home. She'll start preschool next year, so I'll pick up more sessions, but I don't ever want to get overwhelmed with my business where I end up losing focus on my family. Not taking on a large load of sessions also allows me to really take care of my clients and give them outstanding customized customer service.

Any tips for staying organized while running a household and a business from home? I've always been an organized person. Being a journalism major, working for papers, television stations and then in the corporate world as a video producer, organization was always key to those positions and luckily it's a part of who I am. I keep calendars updated and have folders for EVERYTHING! I also set aside certain days for particular tasks to help keep things in order and keep me on task. It's really just about routines.

Your favorite location to take photos of your daughter? That's a hard one because I love taking pictures of her every where. I just love capturing moments that I don't ever want to forget. Running in fountains, jumping on her bed, twirling in a field, throwing leaves, taking a bubble bath, playing with her favorite toys, exploring the world, sleeping.... I'm a romantic and love pretty landscapes, so I love to get her in settings that speak to me on that level and let her just be herself in those locations. Love capturing her just being herself!

You primarily do photography for babies and small children. How did you decide on that specialty? I used to be strictly a photo journalist and landscape photographer, but when my friends started having babies, I just loved capturing their sweet lil' ones and I got hooked. When I had had my daughter, I just couldn't stop taking pictures of her and that's when I really decided to specialize in babies and children. I just love everything about lil' tots. They're so much fun and childhood passes so quickly that I want to capture those special moments that parents cherish.

How do you get great photos from a child who doesn't want to take pictures? I play games with them, so that they don't feel or notice that I'm taking pictures. Every child is different, so I do different things with every child - sometimes peek-a-boo, sometimes telling them "secrets" to get them to do what I need, telling jokes, making silly sounds, tickling, shaking my booty - whatever works!

What tips would you give to parents for a successful photo shoot with a professional photographer? Read all the materials given to you by the photographer since a lot of times there are some great tips within those items. Dress to coordinate, but don't be too matchy like in uniforms. Textures, layers and coordinating colors really help add interest in portraits. I'd also suggest scheduling your session either early in the morning or around sunset if you're going to be outside since that's when the sun is the most flattering. The most important thing though is that you schedule your session when your child/children are in their best moods - if your lil' ones are grumpy, you're just not going to get the images you want regardless of how perfect the sun is at that time of day.

What's your best tip for getting a good picture with the average point-and-shoot camera? Get down on your child's level (yep, this means sometimes you'll be laying on the floor) and capture them doing what they enjoy doing. Sometimes the best images are the ones where your subject isn't looking at the camera, but are just playing and having a blast being themselves. This will also allow you to get some great natural sweet expressions instead of forced smiles. I'd also suggest turning off your flash as much as possible. Your images will improve dramatically. Also, fill the frame with your subject and include only those things that ADD to your finished image.