What could an in-home session look like? I get this question often. We're all concerned about our own homes, and always those most critical of our own spaces. This particular couple happened to live in a converted barn, just outside of Jacksonville, so of course I knew we would want to hold their newborn session in this unique space! Not only is it unique to them, but their family painstakingly renovated this special space over the years and it sort of happened to become a home (originally meaning for it to only be a barn). How cool is that! I knew when I pulled up that I wanted to utilize the space as best as I could for their in-home newborn portraits.

Upon entering the main room where we would hold their session I noticed this GORGEOUS statement antique gold mirror. A vintage find I'm sure, I wanted to make this the focal point for most of their portraits. I did this for two reasons - one, it's beautiful and unique. Not many decorations can add to a portrait session, but considering the setting, this one certainly does. Second, mirrors are a natural reflector. So you can use them during a photo session to reflect and bounce back light. If used correctly, a mirror can add so much to your photographs.

As you can see from this space, it's pretty dark aside from those two rather small windows. When that is the case it's best to let the environment and the client's personal taste dictate the creative direction of the photo shoot. Mom, and even her own Mother, have a romantic farmhouse vibe going. So with that in mind, I went with an almost Rembrandt lighting situation, focusing on one main light source and creating a rich and dramatic photograph. 

The choice in Mom's clothing is also another enhancement to this newborn session. Purple and yellow are complimentary colors, and blue and orange are close, so the colors throughout these photographs serve to compliment each other. All of this from the mirror to the lighting, the visual look of the space, and even the way the images are edited, will all come together as a cohesive vision for artwork and be visually appealing.

Fun side note, that electric candelabra chandelier was actually turned off, as I always turn off any ambient light at my shoots to avoid distracting color casting and keep the focus on natural light. HOWEVER, I actually love the look of a true candlelit chandelier (who doesn't) sp I added a flame overlay to each individual light in that chandelier for every image. A bit more work than usual, but as a creative, when you feel inspired you just take it all the way and go for it.

Here are a few of my favorites from this beautiful in-home (converted from a barn) newborn session.