I’ve photographed a fair amount of in-home newborn sessions that I figured I’d share some tips on how to make it go as smooth as possible! First of all, I (or any photographer) do not expect things to be perfect. Messy houses are fine, a baby who cries is fine. Taking breaks is fine. It’s all going to be just fine 🙂
I personally walk into each and every home knowing full well that there will be breaks involved and that it’s going to take a while. We have the luxury of taking it slow and just following the baby’s lead! I work really hard to make it a super low-stress experience, because you’ve already got enough going on as new parents! And yes, if your baby cries, I’ll photograph it, because even when they’re crying they’re so damn cute!
Okay, here we go!
- Try to wait until the session starts (or RIGHT before it starts) to feed your babe! This gives us a better chance of having a pliable, sleepy, happy baby. I think this is the most important tip I could ever share about your newborn session!
- If you want any photos of your baby in the nude or just in a diaper, be sure to not put tight clothing on your baby that could leave marks (think clothes with elastic bands in them!) on their skin.
- Have a sound machine ready. If your child is sleepy and responds well to a sound machine, fire it up! Have it playing for the entire session if you want! Whatever you normally do to comfort your baby is what I want to see!
- Make sure your hands/nails are clean. As my friend Staci said at her session “Thank goodness I got a manicure yesterday! I knew my hands would be in these photos a lot, so I wanted my nails to look good!”
- Remember, you two know your baby best! You’ll know what’ll work better than I will!
- Try to plan ahead for any special outfits or mementos you want your baby photographed with! Having them all ready to go is going to be super helpful! While I focus more on the natural environment of you just hanging out as a family, if there are things you want photographed, I will be sure to get them in those photos!
- I’ll help you find the perfect spot in your home to do the photos! All I need is window to create beautiful portraits!
- Shooting within the first two weeks of your baby’s life is the most ideal time frame, but not a deal breaker 🙂
There you have it!  We never had an official one with Lily, and I wish we had, just so that we had some photos of the three of us in those first few weeks! It just literally never occurred to me, haha, because we had birth photos done! I hope that these tips are helpful for all you new parents out there planning their own newborn sessions!
Linda is a Boston-based photographer specializing in weddings and creating family legacies. You can see more of her work online at lindabarryphotography.com, on Instagram, or on Facebook. If you want to reach out directly: linda@lindabarryphotography.com. To sign up for the monthly newsletter full of encouragement and real life, click here!
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