Why does everyone "ooh" and "ahh" over pictures of cute little babies? Capturing that absolute cuteness is difficult; but when you do catch it, it is irresistible. We are fascinated with baby pictures for several reasons and there are tricks to capturing that fascination on film.

Because they can't really help themselves, babies draw our instinctual interest in their adorableness (even though some people think newborns are actually not that cute). Mother Nature built in a warm and fuzzy feeling for cute, helpless babies so that those infants would survive babyhood. So, a baby's cuteness actually has a purpose.

Artists will explain that the eyes have it. Babies' eyes are large in proportion to their bodies. The eyes do not grow after we are born, so the adult-sized eyes in such a small face draw our attention. You can see that this is true by comparing your eyes with an infant's eyes. You will find that they are almost the same size.

The lack of proportion between the eyes and face make painting a baby difficult for the artist, but it is that very disproportion that is instinctually cute. Cartoon artists are aware of this as you can see by the cute disproportioned cartoon characters that have become so popular. Many of these cartoons have overly wide, large eyes compared to the rest of their body. The most popular will most closely recreate the proportions of an infant's face.

Now, how do you capture that cuteness on film without being a professional? First, you must be patient. Since babies don't really care if the lighting was perfect or the background was just right, we have to wait to capture that perfect moment when the baby is ready to cooperate.

When you are ready to snap a picture, make sure that you focus on a close-up of the baby's face. Too much of the surroundings will detract from the baby's innate cuteness by drawing the attention away from the face.

Some infants will become a challenge when you try to coerce a smile from them; others will be camera hounds. It helps if you know what motivates the baby. With favorite toys, faces, and sounds, you can work to elicit that happy reaction while someone else actually takes the picture. It may take several tries to get just the right shot, but that adorable baby photo that results will be well worth the effort.

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