Many readers have asked—here, on Flickr, and on Facebook—how we create the weekly photos that document Clara’s first year. After answering several messages individually, we decided to write a concise how-to so anyone curious about our process can follow along. We love step-by-step projects, and photographing your family is an easy and rewarding DIY art idea, especially when the results are framed or gathered into a coffee-table book (which we plan to do eventually).
We aren’t professional photographers or expert retouchers—just parents who’ve developed a reliable system after a few months of shooting Clara on simple fabric backdrops and adding her age to her onesie in post. Here are the basics that keep the project simple, consistent, and affordable:
- Clara wears a plain white onesie (so far we’ve used the same one). We add the age text digitally in Photoshop.
- Each shoot needs only about a yard of fabric, which keeps costs low.
- We buy fabric at discount stores like Hancock or JoAnn and use coupons, but we’ve also used existing blankets and pillowcases for free backgrounds.
- We shoot in the early evening (around 5:30–6:30) because the light is indirect—no harsh shadows and less squinting.
- Our sunroom provides the best natural light; outdoors on a blanket in the early evening can work too.
- We use a Nikon D3000 and are still learning its features.
- To keep colors consistent week-to-week we white balance the camera against Clara’s onesie before shooting (most DSLR cameras have this setting).
- We typically take 75–100 shots to find one frame we both love.
After a shoot, the first step is picking the single image to use. We sort and cull in Apple’s iPhoto: delete the bad ones, flag the promising frames, and narrow the selection to a photo that represents Clara’s age and expression, while avoiding repetition of previous weeks’ compositions.
Once we’ve chosen the winning shot, we open it in Photoshop. Our workflow is straightforward and effective for getting the look of printed text on a onesie:
1) Basic adjustments: crop, lighten slightly if needed, and smooth any major wrinkles using the Healing Brush or Clone Stamp. These small fixes make the printed-text effect more convincing.
2) Add the text: we usually copy the text layer from the previous week’s file. If starting fresh, we use the Fyra font for the circled number and Otari for the word “weeks.” We position and rotate the text so it follows the angle of Clara’s body.
3) Color selection: sample a color from the fabric with the Color Picker so the text coordinates with the background, or choose a complementary hue for contrast.
4) Blend the text into the onesie: set the text layer blending mode to Multiply and reduce the opacity to roughly 60%–80% depending on color saturation. This lets the text pick up the subtle shading of the fabric and look naturally printed. You may need to tweak the color after adjusting opacity so it doesn’t appear washed out.
The Multiply + opacity trick helps the text follow the fabric’s contours. If the onesie is wrinkled, text may need additional warping or cropping to match the folds, but keeping the fabric smooth makes this step much easier.
And that’s it—our weekly image is finished.
We’re approaching the quarter mark of this year-long project and are excited to gather all 52 images for a printed book for our coffee table and a few doting grandparents. It will be fun for Clara to see her weekly growth and expressions when she’s older. Larger versions of the current dozen photos are available on our Flickr stream, where we add each week’s image.
We’re still deciding what to do with the collection of fabrics—options include a quilt, baby clothes, or an eclectic banner for birthday parties and future photo shoots. Whatever we choose, it’ll be a nice reminder of her first year.
If you try this method, we’d love to hear how you document your child, pet, or family. There are so many creative projects out there—we enjoy seeing different approaches and sentimental projects from other parents.
PS: If you want the same look without Photoshop, companies sell removable monthly milestone stickers that adhere to clothing for an easy alternative.