Here’s some tips for getting ready for your newborn shoot.  Newborn babies will of course do whatever they feel on the day but following these simple bits of advice will give us the best chance possible of getting them fast asleep and camera ready.

  • Newborns are usually more settled in the mornings so try and schedule your shoot with a start time of 10 or 11am where possible. For whatever reason, and I don’t think that anyone really knows the answer, babies get really cranky around 4 or 5 o’clock so we definitely want to be finished by the afternoon witching hour.
  • Try to keep your baby awake for the hour before the session.  OK this is another difficult one but it’s worth trying to tire them out before they come.  Tickle their feet, keep them cool in just a nappy (not cold obviously!), give them a bath – whatever you can think of – there’s a good chance they’ll fall asleep as soon as you get in the car anyway.
  • If you’re more than 15 minutes away from the studio, then try to time your feed for when you arrive at the studio (I do know that it’s not that easy to be precise with these things).  If you’re less than 15 minutes journey from your shoot location, then it’s a great idea to feed them before you come.
  • Leave a bit of extra time to get yourselves all ready to come out, especially if you’ve not left the house before as a family.  It’s amazing how much time such a tiny person takes to get everything ready for and it’s nice not to have to rush or panic to make your appointment time.  Of course, don’t panic if you’re running a few minutes late – it’s kind of expected.
  • Don’t dress your baby in lots of layers, especial in outfits that need to be removed over their heads as it’s hard to strip them down without disturbing them.  Instead, choose a simple onesie and layer them up with blankets to keep them warm for the journey.
  • If you have a special outfit in mind for your baby’s photo shoot, then bring them in that as it’s hard to undress and redress a sleeping baby without disturbing them.
  • This is a really important one. Relax and much as you can and enjoy your session.  Your baby is already really turned into your mood, and there’s not much that I haven’t seen or dealt with before from crying fits to ‘poonamis’.  Take some time to enjoy your images being captured.

Newborn Photography

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.