This week’s interview is with Jessica McDaniel from Boston Baby Photos. I first came across Jessica’s amazing portfolio of black and white children’s photography while doing a blog search on Google. We featured a favorite post of mine from Jessica’s photos last year in Getting One Baby to Smile is Challenging, Let Alone Three.

MBP: How and when did you get started in child photography?

JM: I started my business in May of 2003, just as I was finishing up an MBA program and thinking about how to incorporate a creative career and a business where I could work with children. I minored in Photography at Connecticut College, but my focus had always been on the inanimate: architecture, nature… I think because I’m innately pretty shy. I also used to wonder if I should go into teaching little kids - but realized that focusing my business on photographing children from birth to age 3 (before they’re really aware of the camera), was the perfect fit for me. I also enjoy the business side (the marketing, the sales, the financials) of my work almost as much as I like the picture taking side.

MBP: Can you share with us your philosophy and style of photography?

JM: I try to capture moments for families that otherwise would go undocumented. I love the simplicity of black and white photography, and I’ve built my business around these simple black and white baby and family photos. Color becomes irrelevant - light and shadow are the most important. In terms of subjects, although my business is “Boston Baby Photos”, I like including parents

“I love the simplicity of black and white photography, and I’ve built my business around these simple black and white baby and family photos. Color becomes irrelevant - light and shadow are the most important.”

in the pictures when I can, because I often find that’s what’s missing for people. One or the other parent is holding the camera, so that parent isn’t in most of the family photos. But when looking back at my own childhood photos, I love catching glimpses of my mom and my dad here and there - they’re changing through the years, too, and photographs that I have where we’re playing together are the ones that tell me the most evocative stories of my childhood.

MBP: Do you prefer studio or “on location” photography?

JM: On location, every time. I’ve shot studio-style for various things over the years, and there’s a place for that kind of photography, but for me the art of what I do is about walking a different family’s home for every shoot and finding the artful in the everyday. The light in every house is so different, it’s a fun challenge for me every time. Looking around, getting a sense of how this family lives in their home and what they do together, and how I can capture that best in our photos.

Getting a Tickle from Mom and Dad

Getting a Tickle from Mom and Dad

When I bring that same family into the studio, especially since I don’t shoot studio-style very often, my focus is on expressions and on the people themselves - their personalities. I find that the lighting when I shoot in the studio is too controlled - it feels like half the creativity has been taken away…

Perhaps I can sum it up by saying on location photography requires me to bring together the background, the lighting, the people, the expressions, all in a single perfect moment, whereas the studio takes out the first half of that and makes it too easy for me. But that’s just me. I know lots of photographers who do amazingly creative work in the studio. I just like to do mine elsewhere.

MBP: Can you relate to us a story about your funniest photography shoot? and your most difficult photography shoot?

JM: It’s hard to narrow down the funniest shoot… particular photos stick in my mind… the little guy peeing in an arc (not appropriate to post on the web or I’d show you… trust me, it’s a funny shot)… and then just so many older sibling/new baby moments that make me giggle and bite my tongue…

The Girls and their Giggles

The Girls and their Giggles

My most difficult shoot was only difficult after the fact. I was shooting studio-style in a Pottery Barn Kids store, so I saw new children every 20 minutes or so for a few days running. It was about three years ago, and I was 8 months pregnant and just exhausted. I was running into the back room of the store to pull photos off the memory card between each shoot, and wouldn’t you know, given my pregnancy brain, that I’d leave the memory card in the back room and pop out to shoot a little sister with her two big brothers with no card in the camera. The shoot itself was a tough one, these guys didn’t really want to sit together, but eventually I did feel like I got some good shots. But oops, had to call that mom later in the day and give her a free in-home session… because I didn’t have a single photo for her! A very sad day for me, but luckily she was really nice about it.

MBP: How much time do you spend editing photos to make them production ready? What types of photo editing do you do? What software do you use?

JM: I normally spend about three hours editing an hour’s worth of pictures. I start in Adobe Bridge, choosing my favorite moments, and then I convert those final images to black and white using Photoshop.

MBP: What type of camera equipment do you use and why?

JM: I’m shooting with a Canon 5D these days, and I have a Canon zoom 24-70 lens that I love, in addition to a number of fixed focal length lenses that I use here and there. I don’t shoot with flash, but when I need to, (like tomorrow, when I’m shooting my daughter’s preschool class picture), I have a 550 Speedlite flash attachment.

Jessica McDaniel

Jessica McDaniel

MBP: What advice do you have for parents who are looking for a professional child photographer?

JM: Look around, find a style on the web that matches your personal style, and then talk to them. It’s nice that there are so many options out there, so everyone can end up getting a look for their photos that works for them.

Thanks to Jessica for a great interview. You can find out more about Jessica McDaniel at her website boston-baby-photos.com and keep up with the latest happenings at the Boston Baby Photos blog

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