I’ve seen lots of different tutorials on how to take these dreamy maternity photos, and I finally decided to give it a shot on my own! It really is easier than it looks, and you don’t need any fancy gadgets to get a great shot. Here’s what I did, complete with before and after shots so you can see how much of a difference the editing makes!
What you need:
-camera or phone with a self-timer
-tripod, or makeshift pile of boxes and books
-white see through curtains OR a white sheet
-tight black clothing
-window
As you can see by the list above, there are a lot of high or low tech ways to get this photo!
What to do:
-Dress in tight, all-black clothing. This will really help the contrast against the light coming through the window.
-Set up the self timer on your phone or camera and place it far enough back that you get as much of a full body shot as you can. I used the automatic settings on my camera and it captured the contrast I was looking for.
-Take some practice shots to figure out where to stand and how you want to place your hands. I tried both behind my back, cradling my belly, and one behind my back with one on my belly. The last pose looked the best to me because it accentuated the curve of my back while also accentuating the whole bump of my belly. I stood about 1-2 feet away from the window and that seemed to be a good distance too.
-Once you get the picture you want, editing is the next step! I used a filter on my laptop called Sauna, it basically made my body darker and the background lighter. Then I played around with the brightness and contrast until I got the final effect that I wanted. All in all this took about 5 minutes!
Here is my before and after, side by side!
That’s it! The whole process of setting up the tripod and camera, hanging up a sheet, taking a bunch of pictures, and editing the one I chose took about 20 minutes. Wayyyy easier than I thought! I probably won’t take these every week but I think once a month for the last trimester will be a fun way to document the final stage of this pregnancy! Let me know if you try this, I’d love to see your before and afters!