Get your heads out of your asses!
December 9, 2011 in Big Girl Panties Advice by Christine
Since I’m not a baby or children photographer, I have hesitated to comment on this subject, but enough is enough.
Babies and children are precious, precious beings and we, as professional photographers have been entrusted with these tiny people by their parents to capture their important portraits as they come into the world and begin blossoming into childhood.
NEVER, in a million jillion years should we EVER place these tiny beings at risk.
There are some photographic fads out there of babies being placed in risky situations. I’ve seen a baby in a basket on a railroad track. Seriously? What the hell just possessed you to do that? This isn’t even artistic! Yes, it’s unusual, but so is eating a brillo pad for breakfast.
This photograph is an example of the kind of idiocy I have been seeing:
- (C) Barefoot Photography by Tina Doane
Before anyone gets their panties in a wad about this photo being placed here, I give you Section 107 of the Copyright Law (title 17, US Code):
Section 107 contains a list of the various purposes for which the reproduction of a particular work may be considered fair, such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Section 107 also sets out four factors to be considered in determining whether or not a particular use is fair:
- The purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes
OK, back to business. The above photo is wrong. It’s just wrong. Before you get your panties in yet another wad, this is NOT a composite. I have researched this and am satisfied that this was not done as a multiple composite image.
And here’s the really bad part – there ARE cool shots of babies out there (remember the baby hanging from a tree limb fad? oh, wait, that’s STILL a fad, no remembering involved) – and these shots ARE the result of composites, HOWEVER, sometimes newbie photographers (or seasoned photographers, for that matter) do not do any research at all and just blunder into a shoot like this with no prior planning and try to reproduce the shot as if it were not a composite.
So, we have tiny little beings being stuffed into glass containers, hung from tree limbs and propped up on their elbows till hell won’t have it.
Babies are NOT TOYS. I don’t care if you have a billion dollars in insurance policies, do not risk your tiny little clients any more. Have the integrity to turn down these kinds of requests if you cannot learn to do them safely or if your photoshop skills are not good enough to create composite works.
I imagine that this article will inspire hate mail. Have at it. If I can make one person stop and think and keep them from harming a baby, that’s good enough for me. Bite it.
For more in-depth reading, education and study, please see the following:
From the fine folks at “Take off Your Mommy Goggles”: Glass Babies
A Facebook group: Professional Photographers for Baby Safety
A Flickr group that shows examples of composite shots and how to do them safely: Composite Newborn Portraits
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Wootness! | Blog | Get your heads out of your asses! PART 2
on December 12, 2011
I am a "newbie" and would NEVER consider bringing glass anywhere near a newborn shoot.Thanks for getting the word out to others who may need to think twice.
Thank you! I have been contributing, following this for days and I can not believe the number of people thinking this is safe or can be done safely…engineers maybe? Some how I think not. I would have more respect for someone who would stand up after all of this and say "ok, I am hearing so much about this, maybe I should change how I do things" then call people "crazy bitches"…really?
Thank you for your stand. I commented on this photographers FB site…. Her answer was to call her critics bitches. Ha! Wrong gender here!
Oh they are also talking about getting a lawyer and trying to sue anyone for "defamation of character" LOL seriously?
You know what really sucks though? I just spent about 10 minutes on this photographers facebook page, all the negative press has garnered her a whole mess of new friends, and support over all the "negativity" and "trauma" she has had to suffer at the hands of her fellow photographers. As for me I'm not a fan of baby pictures, but personally I'm to paranoid over civil and criminal litigation to attempt a shot like this, it seems to defy common sense.
well said! I've always thought that these photos were dangerous! No matter how you look at it!
Thank you! I'm so sick of anyone saying those opposing this are jealous haters. We are not jealous and we SHOULD stand up for what is right. It is never ok to put a baby in harms way for any reason. It goes beyond what we think of the photo, that really doesn't matter. It is a matter of safety and ignorance.
oh dear. jealous? lol
Completely AGREE!
I appreciate all you photographers out there that respect the safety of our precious babies first and foremost!
Love this! Well said! I cannot imagine why anyone would risk putting a tiny baby or any baby for that matter in a glass container that has the potential to break with just the slightest movement. It makes me sad just thinking about it.
Well said. I agree.
<3 Love! Thanks for being so bold and in your face about safety. "bite me" cracked me up. Some people just don't understand that while they ignorantly think they are being safe and can tell people to eff off and mind their own etc etc…they still have newbies WATCHING THEM that may attempt and fatally, fail. It's time to take responsibility.