Congratulations!
I’m so excited for your family - and I can’t wait to help you capture memories of those precious first days of life of your newborn baby.
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How to Prepare for Your Newborn Photo Session
You may want to have the following on hand:
Baby lotion
PacifierSpecial blankets
Hats or booties
Onesie (solid colors for onesies and diapers, or bold prints, tend to look better in photos than tiny patterns)
Representative personal items (favorite team, family heirloom, etc)
Burp cloth
Props
Prepare in advance any decorative props or backdrops you’d like. Please note I don’t provide props for newborn sessions, but most clients text me photos of what they are considering using for input.
Suggested props:
Flowers - two colors, and some greenery
1-3 colors/patterns of baby blankets. Creams and pastels look best. Greys might wash out your baby’s skin tone.
Flower headband (although most babies won’t want to keep it on for long)
Sonogram
Pillow for cushioning your baby on the floor if we end up in front of a window
One to two hours before your session…
Feed your baby right before the session so he/she will be sleepy, and make sure to burp your baby well before starting the session.
Try to keep your baby awake prior to your session so that at the beginning of the session your baby will fall into a deep sleep and allow us to pose him/her easily.
If your baby's skin is dry, apply baby lotion to dry or flakey patches before the session. Baby acne or minor scratches can be eliminated or drastically reduced during advanced post-production retouching. Keeping some on hand for during the session.
Loosen the baby's diaper about 45 minutes before the session to avoid diaper marks. Tight socks will also leave lines and dents around your baby's ankles, so don't have them on before the session.
Prior to your photographer's arrival, open all the curtains and blinds in your home. This will allow me to find the best natural light source, which will be most flattering for your baby.
Turn up the heat a bit in your home about 30 minutes before your session so your baby is comfortable. You might get a little toasty, but this will help your baby be more relaxed and sleepy.
Keep noise to a minimum during the session.
Clear clutter from any rooms or parts of rooms you'd like to highlight in the photos (nursery, living room, bedroom, etc).
Check your baby’s clothes: outfits with suspenders and large collars are adorable, but when you hold him/her up, the straps may fall off if it’s not snug, and the collar may pop up to hide your baby’s smile. If you’re looking down at him/her, this might not be apparent. I take a lot of photos near the baby’s eye level, so have your spouse crouch down to check for anything that doesn’t quite fit and hides your baby’s face.
Swaddling is usually best for newborns as it keeps them cozy, peaceful, warm, and contained. Make sure one of you knows in advance how to do a good, tight swaddle, and cut off any tags so we
Cut tags off of clothes before your session, or chose clothes you don’t have to return - we have a lot to do when maneuvering a baby, readjusting clothes, etc, and if we can worry about one less thing, the better!
If you have a dog, please keep it in another room. This will help prevent barking to wake the baby or any other interference with the flow of your session. And yes, we can certainly include your pup in photos at the beginning or end of your session!
Relax! :) This is a new experience, and you have to be very, very patient with newborn babies. We will capture adorable, loving photos of your new baby, even in spite of tantrums and feeding breaks. Babies can sense stress and anxiety, so let's keep them as calm as possible. If your baby has an accident (diaper or spit-up related), don’t worry - I’ve seen it all, and cleaning it up won’t cut into your session time. I don’t schedule sessions back to back on days when I’m photographing a newborn just in case we need the extra time.
We will do a combination of posed and candid "lifestyle" photos, so if you need to stop and feed your baby, change clothes, coddle your baby, make him/her comfortable, etc, that's great! We'll capture those moments too!
For parents:
Wear simple, light-colored clothing. Avoid busy patterns at all costs.
Parents’ hands may be shown in photographs - please make sure your nails look nice (both mother and father).
Women - Don’t wear black. Pastels and whites are more flattering and appropriate for happy, celebratory photos of you and your new baby. Try on your outfit in advance and look for bra straps or bras that peek out of low-cut tops, etc.
Men - You should be clean-shaven if you don't have a beard, and apply lotion to your hands right before the session.
Make sure your clothes aren't too baggy - if a shirt is ill-fitting, puffy sleeves can obscure part of your baby’s cute smile.
Newborn Session with an Older Sibling
If you have older children - of course we’ll include them in your photos!
Our focus will be your newborn, so we’ll want to plan for all of the sibling photos to be at the very beginning or end of your session.
If your baby is going into the session asleep, let’s plan to take most of the solo photos then so we can manoeuver him/her while sleeping, and get some good, clear close-ups without movement. Right after that would be a good time to bring in an older child.
Click to expand each photo to the right.
