Coming home…
Your guide to a newborn session at home.
The newborn days can fly by in a sleepy, love filled bubble. I’m so excited to capture these precious memories for you and your family. This is a short guide on what to expect on the day of your shoot and some tips on how we can create beautiful heartfelt photos in your home.
Tip 1: Find the light
Photos are light paintings. I’m always hunting the best light to create with, and ideally will want to shoot in the rooms of your home with the most natural light. Consider the time of day we’ll be shooting and where the sun is at that time. We’ll usually start the shoot between 10-11am.
Tip 2: Embrace your home and your new normal
Shooting in your home gives the opportunity to really capture the little snippets of your new family life. Embrace your personality, your style and the items that are meaningful to you. Your home doesn’t need to be spotlessly clean and tidy. You just need to feel comfortable with how the rooms will look in the photos, (dirty laundry can always be chucked out of sight). So don’t worry about doing a big clean. You’re in the depths of newborn life, it’s okay, I’ve been there and I get it. Just focus on a few areas that have the best light and I’ll capture the magic…
Tip 3: Plan what you’ll wear
Think about the colour pallet of the rooms we’ll be shooting in, and wear what you feel comfortable in. Leggings and a t-shirt totally works, so does a floaty dress. For baby’s outfit make sure it isn’t too big. Baby’s features are so small, it’s easier to capture them if clothes don’t swamp them. I’ll always bring a long a few neutral newborn outfits as an option for you to use. I can also bring along dresses for mum too if you’d like – just let me know. You can see some of the studio wardrobe here.
Tip 4: Skin-to-skin photos
Breastfeeding and skin-to-skin time with baby are really special bonding experiences, I’m happy to capture these moments if you ask me to.
Tip 5: We’ll go at baby’s pace
Newborn sessions tend to take between 2-3hrs. I won’t be shooting the whole time. We’ll go at baby’s pace, pausing for feeds, settling and nappy changes – and of course I’ll be snapping some of these little moments along the way. Please do eat and keep yourselves hydrated during my time with you. You’ll both probably be running on broken sleep – so there is no need to rush. I want you to enjoy this time, use it to really focus on the little miracle you’ve created and connect with each other.
If you have any questions about your newborn session please don’t hesitate to ask – no question is a silly one. I’ll confirm the date, time and address for our shoot a few days before. If for any reason you need to rearrange your shoot please let me know as soon as possible. It’s best to do a newborn session within the first three weeks of baby arriving, as they’re more sleepy and it’s wonderful to capture them at their tiniest. But if the shoot can’t take place within those early weeks, we can still capture this special fleeting moment. Here’s one of my favourite at home newborn sessions with a baby who was 8 weeks old: