ByMaryam Marcell

One of the most captivating trends in modern photography is the maternity photo. There was a time when pregnant women were secreted away so that they would not be seen as they neared term. Where such an antiquated practice came from is uncertain, but thankfully we have moved beyond that to a place where we can openly admire and appreciate the beauty, energy, and life-force of a pregnant woman.

The belly of a pregnant woman provides a natural focal point for any photograph. Whether clothed or exposed, that baby bump says that new life is taking place. A Toronto photographer usually experiences a combination of awe, humility, and excitement while taking maternity pictures. Even in a still photo with very little background, there is so much going on, and there is always a keen awareness that one more is present with the mom and the photographer.

A good maternity photographer will be able to capture the radiant beauty of the pregnant mother in a way that is natural and unstaged. Once the baby is born, pictures of the pregnant mother and the newborn baby can be juxtaposed to create a wonderful testimony to the miracle of life as it unfolds.

If you are looking for a maternity photographer in Toronto, you will want to consider one who will come to your home or take pictures of you outside in nature or even in the middle of the city, if you desire. A Toronto photographer who will only take pictures of you at the studio may provide a lovely set of portraits, but they will lack the vibrancy that photos taken as you interact with your natural surroundings can provide. In addition, you will want to express your personal style so it can illuminate all of your maternity photographs. If they are taken at a studio, your photographs will run the risk of looking just like everyone else's.

Consider, too, having pictures taken in a setting where pictures can be taken of the baby after the birth. A picture of you in the empty nursery will look stunning next to a picture of you with your newborn in the same nursery. A photo of you on the bed can be a nice compliment to a picture of your baby lying on the same bed. Your Toronto photographer will also have many suggestion based on things that have and have not worked so well in the past.

You are about to embark on one of the greatest adventures of your life, trust your Toronto photographer to capture your excitement, eagerness, anxiety, and beauty in photographs made especially for you and your baby.

LivingFace photography provides professional, artistic maternity and baby photography in Toronto. LivingFace founder and Toronto photographer Bard Azima has photographed all kinds of events, situations, and people during the last 18 years. Since founding LivingFace Photography in 2001, Bard has photographed everything from casual to corporate and is a sought-after Toronto photographer. To schedule a personal appointment with Bard, call 416-732-1904 or visit http://www.livingface.com/

Article Source:http://EzineArticles.com/?expert

Lapp or Light Art Performance Photography is a style in which you literally paint your pictures with light. If you own a Digital SLR camera or even a Lomo camera, this could easily be you're new favorite hobby! The crazy part is, Lapp is created with only one picture. There isn't any photoshop skills needed, by simply grabbing a flashlight you will create spectacular works of art.

Tools you will need

DSLR camera (or any camera with shutter speeds slower than 5 seconds)

Tripod

Shutter release cable

Flashlights of any color

Now here's how to create simple photo paintings. Start by getting all the camera settings correct for the scene you are going to paint. It could be real tricky to get the lighting correct the first couple tries, but will become easier after your first successful photo painting!

First start planning on what you want to create whether it be a light globe, a sentence or name and so on. Having the shutter open for extended periods of time means you will have to pay close attention on how much light you are feeding the sensor. Big objects like globes spanning from head to toe will produce huge amounts of light even if you are able to finish the picture in under 60 seconds. For beginners we recommend starting with a completely dark room (even small lights like computers, or your phone charging light will end up ruining your photo) Once you learned all the variables with of painting with the light, then try different outside scenes with surrounding light.

Setting the Aperture- with such extremely long shutter speeds, means you will need to dial up the aperture setting very high, you want the least amount of light hitting the sensor to counter the long shutter. Usually any aperture above f/8 will work. I know it feels weird using such a high aperture in the middle of a dark room but don't forget you can always post edit the image to increase or decrease exposure.

Iso- as iso settings go for all circumstances the lower is always the better, same goes with light painting photography. Experiment by taking a couple sample shots and try lowering the iso as much as you could.

Shutter speed- For the first couple LAPP shots try shutter speeds of a couple seconds and try just scribbling with your flashlight. Then you can quickly adjust the Iso, and Aperture according to what you plan to paint. Once the photos are looking better and you want more time to draw your photograph move to the bulb setting on your dslr.

There are a couple more tips that will help tremendously

Always keep the light dead strait towards the lens, if you curve your hand and point it sideways (trying to add depth) the camera wont pick it up.

Make sure to have the light in front of you and not step in front of it, if you do end up stepping in front of your light it will make a silhouette of yourself!

ALWAYS spell everything backwards like if you were writing in a mirror, that's the trickiest part is learning to write every letter backwards.

That's about all it takes to create mind blowing Lapp paintings that will expand you're creativity, and your portfolio!

James Bern writes for Lomo Photography Everything a photo blog dedicated to film photography and lomography. Its packed full of tutorials

Article Source:http://EzineArticles.com/?expert