Portraits: Splish splash in the sink at 7 months

I'm always looking for family photography inspiration and pinning ideas here. When I spied a sweet bath-in-the-sink photo by Jessica Haderlie on Marta Writes, I knew I had to make it happen with Nora. This month she was just the right size and stable enough in a sitting position to try it.

So amidst this weekend's Christmas preparations and yard work (it's 70 degrees down here!), I managed to sneak in a few minutes to take her 7-month portraits. She loved every minute of it, smiling, squealing, chewing on her toys—and the faucet handles—and holding hands with her big sister, who was quite jealous of the bath venue.

We typically have great natural light in our kitchen, but it was overcast the day I had a chance to take these photos. I cranked up the ISO to 1250, which left the images a bit grainy. To reduce the grain on Nora’s face, I smoothed the skin in some of the shots. (Here's a great tutorial on using snapshots and Gaussian blur in Photoshop to smooth skin.) I also converted the images to black and white to emphasize the light instead of the bright wall color. (Here are a few basic tips on creating nice black and whites.)

P.S. No, I didn't forget to post Nora's 6-month photos; I took them during our holiday card session and didn't want to give anything away. They'll make an appearance later this month.

Nora's previous portraits: arrival, birth announcement, 1 month, 2 months, 3 months, 4 months and 5 months.

A few of Cricket's portraits: birth announcement, 1 year, 20 months and 21 months. 

Need some holiday gift ideas? Check out these simple DIY projects: no-sew tutu, photo plaque, heirloom display and gift tags. You can also view my holiday discounts and nature photo shop.