Newborn Session Prep!

To help you prep for our shoot, I’ve put together a lil guide that’ll help ensure we get a big batch of framers.

How to dress

Think an elevated version of your everyday style.
Most people naturally gravitate towards similar vibes in decor and attire, so chances are you already fit in with your environment. (Hooray! You’re already doing great!)

Specifics that tend to work well:

Bare feet to keep things casual. Cozy socks are great too, especially for cold weather sessions.

Clothing you’d actually wear at home. Avoiding hats, jackets, and shoes (unless you really do wear them in your home!) and sticking more with sweaters, a henley, casual button downs, knits, and sundresses.

Softer, more neutral colors especially near your face. It will limit any funky color casts reflecting onto your baby’s skin and will make it easier to coordinate outfits among your fam.

For baby: swaddles are great, onesies, headbands, caps, or their regular clothes. I’m also a sucker for a few shots of baby in just a diaper or knit diaper cover. For shorter sessions 1-2 outfits is recommended. Longer shoots: up to 3-4.

Shooting in-home

The majority of newborn sessions are shot in-home, although there’s no need to spend the energy making the house spotless! We’ll contain our shooting to just a few nooks and/or rooms—usually those with the biggest windows—and rely on some clever rearranging and tidying, as needed. Most often our shooting space is the living room. Sometimes it drifts into nurseries, bedrooms, or backyards depending on the style of our shoot and your preference. If you’re unsure, send me casual snapshots of your space and we can decide together what might work best!

Ways to make your session more personal

Incorporate a real life activity. Maybe it’s ending our session by going for walk in the stroller? Giving a bath in the sink? Nursing?

Add heirlooms. Maybe it’s dressing your babe in an outfit you wore when you were tiny? Incorporating a beloved stuffed animal? Perhaps it’s recreating a photo of you and your parent that you treasure?

If it will help create a calming environment and is a possibility, think about inviting grandparents over! They can be on standby for moral support and an extra set of hands, later jumping in for a quick photo if they choose.

How I like to organize newborn sessions

I go into every newborn session aiming to get a solid shot of each of the following—

  • A full family photo

  • Parents + baby

  • Each parent + baby

  • Any older siblings + baby

  • Solo baby

  • Close-ups of little hands and little feet

If there are any specifics you’re after please let me know! While working with newborns does require some added flexibility and patience, I’d love to get you a gallery of photos that’ll make your heart swell.

For a better visual on the variety, have a look through these newborn blog posts—
Ella + Elliana + Sylvie
Elliana was a half sized session and Ella + Sylvie were full

Other helpful tips

If we’re shooting in the wintertime, have a space heater on hand to keep tinier babies warm. Especially if we’ll be doing photos where they’re not completely covered or swaddled.

Practice your swaddles ahead of time. I can do so for you, but it may keep baby more calm to have your touch instead.

If you’re planning on multiple outfits for baby—especially when bulkier swaddles are involved—try to layer when possible. Minimizing the time when baby is exposed may help keep them more calm. Start with the more form fitted outfit underneath with the larger wrap on top.

Some parents like the look of a sleepy baby, while others prefer eyes to be open and alert. For a sleepy babe, shooting in their first 2 weeks is ideal, combined with feeding right before I arrive. For eyes open, aiming for 3 weeks and beyond will improve our chances. Although please keep in mind the opposite could happen, despite best efforts!

As we are shooting, please let me know if anything is amiss, especially for c-section mommas. I want everyone to feel as comfortable as possible.

Don’t feel like you need to buy any props unless you wish. I will come with a small white fur rug to get close-up shots of just baby, while the rest of our session will unfold more candidly + organically in your home.

Try to let go of any unrealistic expectations for your baby. If there are some tears, those shots can also be a beautiful slice of real life, and I love getting images of you comforting them. If they won’t fall asleep, we’ll roll with it. If they need a diaper change or a snack, let’s take a break. (After all, there is time built in for that on purpose!)

Let’s do this!

Have any questions? Email me, I’d love to help!
Want to send some outfit or room snapshots my way? kimberly@studiokh.com