The following is the recipe from a quick photo session with my daughter.
Ingredients:
a 20 minute window
the side wall of our fence
a precious dress from daddy
wanting to really document our daughter turning three
Lighting: almost any time where the sun is not directly above. we took the pics in the shade but i was in the sun.
Camera settings: auto mode, ISO = 800, aperture = f.6. no flash needed.
Sit. Play. Lie down. Have a silly conversation. Chase each other.
Snap away! You are bound to get some photos of which you can really be proud.
Here is the finished product of my experiment.

And, I have a treat for you. A 12x20 story board for you to create your own collage. download here. If you use it, please post a link in the comments section. I would love to see your work and I just might reward a few lucky commenters with some digital goodies.
What incredible pictures!!!!!! I love this article. The tips are just great. Thank you.
Great article, your photos turned out great! Thank you for the collage sheet!
oh wow! new camera. would love to have one. maybe Christmas. In the mean time, I will work with what I have and follow the great tips. I can use the advise as well as a new camera.
Thanks! I came looking for you after I saw Aja’s layout crediting you. So glad I found this site AND this article. I need to do the exact same thing with my 2 year old, only I want to do it on the beach close to our house. Thank you for the inspiration!
Love it
thanks so much for sharing! Can’t wait to get started