White, neutral or earth toned colors always photograph best but this is especially relevant for your newborn session. White is really timeless and helps brighten the images and reflect light onto your skin. It also helps avoids any color casts on your newborns skin. If you don’t like wearing white that’s okay, a neutral, off-white, cream, or earth toned/muted color is also fine but I recommend staying away from anything dark or high contrast.

I recommend dressing up a bit. It may feel strange in your own home but I have had past clients express regret when they didn’t dress up. You’ll have these images forever and you may want to frame them or create an album so keep that in mind when choosing your outfits. Texture and movement photograph really beautifully so think linen, silk, knit, flowy dresses, etc. Keep prints small if you choose them so they aren’t overly distracting.

Makeup photographs a few shades duller so feel free to go bolder than you normally would or even get your makeup professionally done. If you’re interested in this, I’m happy to send some recommendations.

I like to get detail shots so your hands/nails may be in some of the shots. They don’t have to be painted and if they are please keep it light/neutral.

What not to wear: words or logos, neon or loud colors, polo shirts, too many accessories, exact matching outfits. Also please remove any hair ties or apple watches for our session.

We only need 1 or 2 spaces to shoot and that can include indoor or outdoor spaces. For indoor, we will want to utilize whatever area has the best and most natural light. Overhead lighting casts shadows and unnatural colors so I try to keep those off as much as possible. A spot in front of windows or a sliding glass door is best.

If you have good lighting in your bedroom that is typically a good place to shoot. You don’t need to have a cute or finished nursery unless you want to. 

You don’t need to have a perfectly clean home for your photos but I recommend sweeping whatever areas you do want to shoot in. Unplug things from the wall, remove any clutter, clear nightstands or tables and remove any larger items that may get in the way of shots.

Make sure the baby is fed but don’t worry too much, we have very little control over how they respond to photos. Sometimes they stay awake the whole time, sometimes they sleep through it. I have found it’s helpful to have some white noise in the background (if they like it).

We usually start with photos of just the baby and I have a few different mats for this. It works well to have a tight swaddle for this but we can also keep it more organic and loose if you prefer. I have found that babies don’t move around as much if they are tightly wrapped.

If you want sleeping photos, it’s best to schedule the shoot within the first week. As babies get older, they are more alert and I rarely have a sleeping baby after 10 days. Sometimes even at 10 days they are very curious and stay awake the whole time we are shooting. And of course I have the occasional baby who falls asleep while we’re shooting but it’s best not to have any expectations for that.

Usually at this age outfits look too big/out of place so to keep things timeless, a swaddle, diaper and naked photos are best. If you do have an outfit, keep it simple and make sure it’s a snug fit.

Kids:

Zara  Shop Figge  Jamie Kay  Nora Lee  Doen  Rylee + Cru  H&M

Women: 

Christy Dawn Anthropologie  Kara Thoms Boutique  Hazel & Folk  Shopbop  Doen  Baltic Born  Sea  Free People  Lulu’s  Morning Lavender  Reformation  Zara  H&M  Hatch  Nothing Fits But  Morning Lavender

Men:

Club Monaco  Todd Snyder  H&M  Urban Outfitters  J.Crew  Asos

Try to have the baby fed and choose a time where they are typically happy but don’t come with too many expectations. Often the day of your session is the day they decide not to nap. It’s totally fine. If they need to take breaks here and there we have time for that so don’t worry about anything.

If you have any other questions about our session, please send me an email. I can’t wait for our time together!