Welcome to my Fauxtography Studio

Now, I am by no means a professional photographer.  Heck, I don't even own a DSLR camera.  But, I am a mom who photographs my kids and desperately needed to "think outside the box" when it came to indoor photos.  My camera (Sony Cybershot-HX100V) performs so much better outdoors so that is where I take the majority of my pictures.  BUT, what do I do when the outside is not cooperating?  

I test sewing patterns.  Lots of them.  And they all have deadlines.  I can't exactly just skip the photos because it was too cold or rainy or *gasp* snowing!  It was after the Elise test for Little Lizard King that I decided I needed to think about something indoors where my child won't freeze to death because I had her outside in a halter dress in 30-degree weather right before snow started falling.  When a trip to the doctor was needed a couple weeks later because somehow she got sick... I thought "What was I thinking?!" 

I get cold just looking at this picture.
Modeling Elise Dress, by Little Lizard King

I tried a setup in my upstairs bonus room and used the railing of an old crib covered in a white sheet.  With editing, I could get an okay picture.  But, my 3 and 4 yr old are not used to standing in one spot and posing for a picture.  They are not posers at all.  My normal routine is to take them outside, preferably to the "walking trail", but the sidewalk works if I'm in a time crunch.  I let them walk, run, dance, look at nature, etc. all the while standing back and snapping hundreds of pictures.  So, you can see, having them stand in one tiny area when there is an entire room to run, dance, spin, etc is near impossible.

White sheet over a crib railing, edited with added bokeh
Wearing a simplified Candy Castle Princess Dress by Candy Castle Patterns

It wasn't until I was photographing my daughter's doll in her Mini Peppermint Swirl Dress by Candy Castle Patterns that I realized I had the perfect photography spot in my daughter's bedroom.

My light-bulb moment

My daughter has a relatively small bedroom compared to the other two bedrooms in our house, but her room has two huge windows that lets in lots of natural light.  Near the window is an Expedit shelving unit from IKEA that houses all of her toys (you know, when they are actually cleaned up). I realized that if I removed her wall-hanging above the shelving unit, it would make the perfect place to take pictures.  

Her walls are painted light pink which catches the natural light well and the shiny white shelving unit helps bounce some of that light upward.  The bonus is there's enough room for them to walk around, lean against the wall, work on posing, and they can't run away because they are 2 1/2 ft off the ground!  

Once I take off the wall hanging, and zoom in a bit, it makes for a darn good backdrop!

The space is even large enough for a small chair which is perfect for a photo shoot like this: 

Wearing Avery by ModKid and Licorice Bits Legwarmers by Candy Castle Patterns

If you look at the previous two pictures, you'll notice that the line between backdrop and "floor" are blurred.  I've used the Wrinkle Remover function on IPICCY  to soften the line to make it appear more like a professional photo backdrop.  I also bounce between PicMonkey and IPICCY to finish my edits.  Each programs has its pros and cons so I edit different things in each program.

And in case you're wondering, the space is great for adults.  Although, please note, you cannot stand on the shelving. But it is perfect for sitting (please check the stability before sitting!)

Modeling the tunic version of Jocole's Ladies Quick Dress

Because I didn't want to take all of my pictures sitting, I simply slid the shelving unit out of the way! 

Another tunic version of Jocole's Ladies Quick Dress

So, I thought outside the box and uncovered this hidden FAUXtography studio that was in my house the whole time!!  So, what's hiding in your house??

Have your subject face the light to catch the light.
Wearing Everyday Playdress by Love Notions