Congratulations on the upcoming arrival of your little bundle of joy! Since the little one will be arriving soon, here is a little information to best prepare for your in-home newborn session.
The great thing about lifestyle newborn sessions is the flexibility of when you can do the session. There is not as much of a rush as we aren't aiming for posed photos where ideally you are wanting the baby sleeping so there is definitely a bit more flexibility in timing in terms of booking.
It's great to connect with your photographer to block some time or an estimated date but the exact date and time can be confirmed closer or when baby arrives. Being a mom I know how important it is in that initial period to enjoy the time with your little one as a family.
How to prepare your home for your lifestyle in-home newborn session
Your home doesn't need to be perfect. We will only be using a few spaces in your home that have good, natural light. A cozy corner in the living area with a big window is great, or the nursery are great places to capture your beautiful story.
The images of your home in its beautiful, authentic way is what you and your little ones will cherish. We will be capturing your connection between each other and baby.
Let's Tell Your Story
When you think about looking back at your photos think about what is going to be most meaningful to you. What are things you enjoy doing as a family? My number one aim of a session is to tell your story. Focussing on your authentic, beautiful connection to each other and to your baby and incorporating whatever you enjoy doing as a family.
A great way to do this is to incorporate things like your daily activities into your session. I love incorporating play into any session so it could be your toddler picking their favourite book to read to their sibling, or singing a song as they play with their toes. I also love to capture the in-between moments anywhere from changing to feeding. Incorporating your favourite things - maybe it's playing the guitar, a motorcycle or having a coffee. There is honestly so many beautiful moments waiting to be captured doing what makes you a family.
Locations
Aim for the rooms with the best lighting. My go to rooms are the living room, master bedroom and the nursery. If you have a backyard it is always lovely to incorporate a mix of indoor and outdoor into your session.
I also often get asked what bedding to use in the master bedroom. My advise is to aim for light bedding
The Day of your Session
I always give myself 1.5-2 hours for a newborn session to allow timing for all the things that come with a baby such as feeding and diaper changes.
We will take pictures of the whole family, each of the parents with the baby, sibling with baby and baby alone.
What to wear for your session
I am a big fan of comfort. Wear what makes you feel the most at home and comfortable. As for colours neutrals and deeper tones photograph good. Try to avoid clothing with logos, sayings, pictures etc on them as they can be distracting.
If you need some inspiration you can check out some of my other newborn sessions here
