A newborn photo shoot is a beautiful way to capture those early days when your baby is still curled up, sleepy, and brand new.
If this is your first experience with professional newborn photography, you might be wondering what to expect. From the warm and cosy studio setup to gentle posing techniques, here’s everything you need to know to feel fully prepared for your session.
Before Your Session: How to Prepare
The best time for newborn photography is when your baby is between 5 and 10 days old. This is when they are at their sleepiest and most flexible for those beautifully curled-up poses. For this reason, I always recommend booking while you’re still pregnant to secure a spot in my schedule.
Your session is initially booked for your due date plus seven days. Once your baby arrives, we adjust the appointment if needed. A couple of days before your shoot, I’ll send you a confirmation and a few tips to help your session go smoothly and then, the day before you visit, you’ll receive your session options form via email so you can let me know exactly what you’d like to do, props and digital backdrops you’d like to include and also give me all the information I need about the new arrival for me to setup the studio for your arrival.
A Warm & Comfortable Studio for You and Your Baby
My Crawley Down photography studio is designed to make you and your baby feel at ease. It’s kept warm and cosy to ensure your baby stays comfortable throughout the session. I have everything we need on hand, including:
✅ Soft blankets and wraps
✅ A range of beautiful props
✅ A comfortable seating area for parents
✅ Baby-changing facilities
I encourage parents to relax and enjoy the experience—there’s no pressure, and I allow plenty of time for feeds, cuddles, and settling your baby.
The Studio
When you arrive on the driveway, we’ll grab everything you need from the car (I recommend just bringing your baby up in their car seat so we don’t disturb them too much if they’re sleeping. We walk up a little pathway to the studio building.
When we get into the lobby, I’ll get you to sanitise your hands before we move into the heated part where we’ll be spending time creating your images. I’m still recommending masks for newborn photo shoots as we’re spending quite a lot of time together but the choice is yours of course. Once we’ve done the boring sanitiser bit, we go through the shooting area and you can get comfy on my giant chaise longue.
If your baby is happy and cosy in their car seat, we’ll just leave them be while we take care of some of the necessary little bits of admin before we start shooting and just quickly chat over the options that you put on your pre-session form and make sure you’re happy with everything that I have set up for you. Then once we’ve done that, I’ll get your little one out and the session will start. Of course if they’re unsettled or hungry when they arrive, we’ll get them out of the seat straight away and start to settle them down so we can begin.
The studio will be really quite warm when you arrive – it’s newborn temperature not adult temperature as having a warm room really helps them to settle (especially if we’re stripping them down to their birthday suit) so you might well want to dress in something light or layered so you don’t have to sit and swelter while I work!
What Happens During the Shoot?
Newborn sessions are calm and unhurried, with the studio booked for two hours to allow for feeding, changing, and soothing. Each session is as unique as your baby but here are some areas that we’ll touch upon. The order depends on how your baby is feeling on the day and I always plan a route through the photo shoot to maximise all of our shooting opportunities and keep your baby’s comfort as my priority but we’ll usually come to the parent and sibling photos at the end of the session.
1. Wrapped & Swaddled Poses
I start with baby wrapped up snugly, as this helps them feel safe and secure while allowing us to create beautifully styled images.
2. Classic Newborn Poses
If your baby is settled and happy, we gently move on to unwrapped poses, capturing their delicate details, tiny hands and feet, and those dreamy, sleepy expressions.
3. Parent & Sibling Photos
Many parents choose to have a family portrait or sibling shots as part of their session. If you’d like to include these, we do them usually at the end of the shoot to keep things as relaxed as possible for everyone.
I guide you through natural and flattering poses so you don’t need to worry about how to stand or where to look—just enjoy the moment with your little one!
How & When You Receive Your Photos
After your session, I carefully select and hand-edit your images to ensure each one is perfect. Your private online gallery will be ready within two weeks, where you can view and select your favourite images.
With my simple pricing structure, there’s:
✅ No sales session – view your images from home at your own pace
✅ No obligation to buy more – choose the images you love
✅ Digital downloads for easy access and sharing
Your newborn session fee of £95 includes three digital images of your choice, with the option to purchase additional images if you’d like.
Booking Your Newborn Photo Shoot
If you haven’t booked yet, now is the perfect time! The best slots fill up quickly, so I always recommend reserving your space while you’re still pregnant. Secure your newborn session today, and let’s create stunning, heartfelt images of your little one’s first days.
Newborn Photography in East Grinstead
Newborn photo shoots are best when your baby is between 5 and 10 days old—this is when they’re at their sleepiest and curliest, perfect for capturing those beautifully serene images. To ensure you don’t miss out, I recommend booking while you’re still pregnant—we’ll set a provisional date for a week after your due date and adjust if needed once your baby arrives.
Your session takes place in my warm and cosy studio in Crawley Down, designed for your baby’s comfort. The shoot is relaxed, unrushed, and includes three digital images of your choice, all for £95. There’s no sales session—just a private online gallery where you can view and select your favourites at your own pace.
