Portraits of Mariyaa as an infant and toddler

I first photographed Mariyaa when she was an infant. This is a window-lit portrait, taken inside mum’s bedroom. I captured the shot during a split second of stillness as Mariyaa’s attention was caught by a bird flying outside the window. I remember being struck by the length and thickness of her dark eyelashes, which contrasted sharply against her delicate skin.

A few years later and I was delighted when Mariyaa’s mum asked for some follow-up portraits. This time, we opted for a studio set-up.

I captured a range of images on both light and dark backdrops. Going through them afterwards, I particularly loved this one on the black background. I’ve used a hair light turned towards the camera to separate Mariyaa’s dark hair from the velvet drape behind her. Another studio flash in front and to one side casts a soft light across her face, landing that all-important catchlight (white reflection) in Mariyaa’s eyes and picking up shining sequin detail on her top.

Meanwhile, Mariyaa is turned so she is facing towards the light. This causes a soft shadow to form at the side of her face, highlighting its shape and bringing depth to the image.

Mum is standing behind me (and the camera), and just slightly to one side. That’s how we got Mariyaa to look in the direction I wanted her to face, and also the reason behind that beautiful smile. It’s no use asking a toddler to smile or ‘say cheese’ because they haven’t learned how to fake a smile. That means you need to earn smiles if you want to photograph them, and is why mum started raspberries at this point!

Once again, Mariyaa’s stunning eyelashes steal the show. There’s no Photoshop trickery, false lashes or even mascara here. Those amazing eyelashes are all natural!

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Sarah Plater is a portrait photographer based in Bicester, Oxfordshire.

(c) Sarah Plater Photography