This was a first for me – when the proud parents booked their newborn photo shoot, they asked if they could bring their Shar Pei dog along as she was just as much part of their family and they wanted to capture images of them all together.  Still, I love new experiences (and dogs) so of course I agreed.

It turns out that Shar Peis (this was the first I have met) are strong willed and will likely to do their own thing so a fair amount of dog treats were used in persuading her that there would be advantage in posing for the camera but luckily, her human sister was more than happy to snooze while we made sure the furry diva was ready for her close up.  In case you’re worried about safety issues, there were both parents just outside of the frame to make sure that there was no chance of the baby getting sat in on the quest for dog treats! Still, it was worth a few minutes of extra work to get this shot as I just love it.  Of course, I also captured plenty of images of the sleepy little human  – I wouldn’t want you to think that it was all about the dog! We also made time for some family portraits at the end of the photo shoot although it turns out that our dog model was only happy to sit and pose for them when we pretended that we didn’t care about it any more.  Then she sat on the chaise and worked it like a super model.

It was brilliant fun to try something new, and to meet this lovely family.  I’m also a little in love with the Shar Pei breed now, I just loved her independence and her diva style – not sure why that appealed to me so much?  Furry friends are family too and always welcome in my studio!

A newborn photo shoot is best when your baby is between 5 and 10 days old as this is when they are at their maximum sleepiness and poseability to capture those dreamy shots.  For this reason, I definitely recommend that you book when you are pregnant as this is one less thing to worry about scheduling when you’ve just got home from the hospital.   We make an appointment for your due date plus 7 days and then adjust it as needed.

My newborn shoots include your three favourite digital images which you select from your online gallery a few weeks after your photo shoot – I don’t make you attend a sales or viewing session.  Sessions take place in my warm and cosy studio in Crawley Down and cost £95.