The diary of a newborn and baby photographer is a complicated place! Nobody told
your baby that they are expected to turn up for their portrait photography session and while some
can’t wait to get here, others are fashionably late.
Because we never know quite when your little ones will arrive my diary is always kept incredibly flexible with plenty of room to manoeuvre and accommodate early/late arrivals!
When you first book your session you will be required to pay a £99 booking fee/deposit to reserve your place in my diary. I take a limited number of newborn sessions each month so that I can ensure I have plenty of space to fit everybody in regardless of when their baby decides to arrive! All you need to do at this point is let me know your due date so I can put it in my diary and guarantee your slot.
Once your baby arrives and we can then confirm the best date and time for your
session. Those early few weeks are a busy time full of visitors, midwife and health visitor appointments - and it's also really REALLY important that you find time to rest and just bond with your new baby in the comfort of your own home. I therefore try to be as flexible as I can when offering you dates/times for your session. I keep weekend slots free especially for families where one parent might already be back at work, or older siblings are at full time school during the week so that we can capture those all important family portraits!
Your portrait session will take place in my comfortable purpose designed home studio.
My newborn studio is not like the traditional bright white and clinical photography studios you might have visited as a child. Instead it is designed to be warm, comfortable and inviting - a home from home environment with a comfy sofa and hot coffee. I want you and your baby to feel relaxed and at home
so you are able to feed on demand and put your feet up while I take care of everything else. (I have even had some new dads who use the opportunity to take a quick nap!)
Life is busy, especially with a newborn and so I encourage parents to enjoy this few hours to sit back and really enjoy your baby. So that I can capture your precious new bundle perfectly while they are still so brand new, for most of the session your baby will be in their birthday suit! Newborn clothes have a tendency not to fit
correctly and often drown your tiny tots, so we don’t get to see all those beautiful details that will change all too quickly!
However, one of the downsides of this, is your baby is guaranteed to poop and/or
pee on props, blankets, perhaps even me or you! I cannot stress enough that this is totally NORMAL and EXPECTED - an occupational hazard if you like and
something I’m used to dealing with on a daily basis! So please don't be embarrassed or alarmed if this happens during your session. Everything used during a session is washed and cleaned afterwards regardless of whether or not any accidents have happened so please do not worry.
Newborn babies are not capable of regulating their own temperature so in order to keep them comfortable the studio is kept at a similar temperature to the maternity ward. I therefore advise wearing layers that you can remove if you get too warm. I keep a close eye on baby at all times to ensure they are comfortable and not too hot/too cold - especially whilst they are without their clothes!
I will usually start your session with sibling & family images so that these are out of the way and everybody can relax and get comfortable afterwards in order to enjoy the rest of the session. It also means little ones are free to play and snack for the remainder of the session ensuring they enjoy their time here too. I feel strongly that it's really important your older children feel included, if when baby arrives they need a feed/change straight away I will usually use this opportunity to capture some portraits of your older children on their own and get them to help me choose some props/headbands for their new baby brother or sister - I always like to make a special fuss of children who are adjusting to their new role as a "big" sibling!
All my newborn sessions are completely baby led, your little ones really do rule the roost and their needs are always put first. Therefore if we need to stop for feeds/changes/cuddles we will do so as many times as necessary. There is no time pressure on a newborn session and definitely no clock watching!
If you have any questions about newborn photography sessions at Baby Buntings Photography or you'd like to get booked in - please get in touch and pop me a message. I'd love to hear from you!