Newborn photo sessions generally take place 6 – 18 days after birth and capture one of the most innocent periods of your child’s life. Whether you’re close to giving birth or you’ve already booked your newborn session, here are a few tips that will help you prepare.

The Outfit

Your baby doesn’t need much in terms of an outfit for their photo session. A swaddle and diaper cover are firm favorites. However, you’re welcome to pick out one or two knitted outfits too, think simple not over the top. If you will be joining baby in the photos, opt for soft, natural colors. Avoid loud prints and bright colors.

The Session Basics

You can count on your session taking about 1-3 hours, which allows time for breastfeeding as well as diaper and outfit changes. It’s best to keep your day free of other plans so that there’s no need to rush through your photo session. If the session will be at your home, make sure the room you will be using is clutter-free. It’s also ideal if the room as a fair amount of natural light. If not, discuss this with your photographer ahead of time. 

The Session Dynamics

Since each baby has their own temperament, it’s important to stay calm and relaxed and go with the flow. Aim to feed your little one right before your session and keep the room warm and comfortable. More often than not if there are young siblings we will do those first, then family then solo of just baby.  This flow can change depending on how everyone is doing.  It’s baby led so we take cues from baby.   As your photographer I will keep baby natural and in comfortable poses and guide you on how to pose too.

The Session Accessories

The main items that you should have on hand for your photo session include:

–        A pacifier that doesn’t leave marks around baby’s mouth (I would also consider one in a natural color so if baby is extremely fussy and we have to get some images with it, then it won’t scream a bright color in the photos)

–        A change of clothes for baby as well as parents

–        White swaddles

As an added bonus, if you have a white noise machine at home, this can help keep your little one calm and sleepy throughout your session.

All that’s left to do is let your photographer do what they do best.