Many clients don’t know what to expect during a newborn lifestyle session. I thought it might be helpful to create this guide to help you prepare for the session. Most important – and I will mention this a few times during this guide – relax, be yourself and let me capture the connection of your family. Don’t try to pose, go with the natural flow of your family.
Time:
The best time for in-home sessions are during daylight hours, usually in the morning (starting your session between 9am – 1pm usually gives the best light and happiest babe!).
Style:
I LOVE natural light and I love capturing your new babe and family in the natural light in your house!! We will be embracing your home’s natural light (open up those window blinds!), turning off the overhead lights and taking advantage of the natural brightness as much as possible. I will direct you to stand close to windows as much as possible for those pictures. . Even on the cloudiest (and even rainiest too!) days, you’ll be pleasantly surprised with how much the outside light comes in to give you the best possible pictures!
If the natural light is not sufficient enough (trust me I get it, some houses are dark – my own house included!) I will use my flash at a very low power to bounce off of the ceiling to add just enough light to illuminate you all in your space.
Location:
Obviously, I will be coming to your home for the session but we don’t shoot in every room. Lifestyle newborn photography is personal. They take place in your home, in your space – the place you spend the most time as a family. Sessions generally occur in the living room, mom and dad’s bedroom, and baby’s nursery. I completely understand how overwhelming it can be to take care of the baby plus entertain the family and try to recover from delivery. So do not stress about cleaning. We will only be shooting in two or three areas of your house.
These sessions are full of emotion and personality. They aim to capture the interaction and love you feel as you welcome your baby. During the session, you have a chance to relax and just snuggle your new babe, capturing the home you and your partner have built. The session isn’t a posed of stiff portraits session. Lifestyle sessions are designed to give you the opportunity to reflect on your love for one another and your baby. Go ahead and show those emotions.
Lifestyle sessions are fairly unposed; however, I do provide some guidance and I often direct my clients on where to sit or stand, but mostly use something called “prompts” to bring out emotions and personality.
Prepare the family:
Mom
You are the most important person in this session. You are the comforting arms that your baby will settle down in, you are the food source, and if you are stressed the baby will pick up on it. So give yourself an extra hour or two to get ready.
Please make sure you have enough time to feed the baby as you get ready. I have seen many times mom starting to feed baby minutes before the scheduled sessions and I can promise you, everyone will get nervous. I baby is hungry the session will not go well. Please schedule enough time to prepare. The more relaxed and beautiful you feel the better the photos. Everyone picks up on mom’s mood so as long as you are happy they will be too!
Dad:
On of the most important steps is letting your family know what to expect. For Dad, know that I will need approximately one hour of your time, but I won’t be photographing you the entire time. In fact, you’ll probably only be in front of the camera 20min or so. If you have other children then Dad will spend a good portion of time keeping them entertained before and after their turn.
Siblings:
For siblings tell them that someone fun is coming over to take their picture. Don’t stress them by telling them they have to look at the camera and smile (because they don’t, I promise you, you won’t like that fake smile!). Let them be they way they are, interact as a family.
PREPARING BABY
This part is pretty simple. Again, make sure they have a very full belly when I arrive along with a clean diaper. Plain white diapers work best so patterns don’t show through. Dress the baby in a simple cream or off-white shirt sleeve onesie.
WHAT TO WEAR:
COLOR PALETTE
Let’s tackle color palette next, my go to suggestion is always to stick with neutral and pastel colors. We want the focus to be on baby and not the brightest color in the photos. I recommend light pinks, blues, aqua, white, cream and gray. Avoid hot pink, neon green and bright orange as these can cast unflattering colors onto your skin and baby’s skin.
You can check out What to wear for a newborn session. The principles are very similar.
Dad’s outfit:
Keep it simple for dads! Be sure to pick out their outfit for them well ahead of time and lay it out so they know exactly what to wear. So make it easy on them!
Button downs can be a solid color or patterned. Just watch the colors and the pattern to ensure it’s not too busy or too bold. We want to keep the focus on baby and not Dad’s shirt.
Siblings outfit:
Definitely keep the tones for sibling outfits to neutrals and pastels. Avoid busy patterns and bright graphic elements. Nothing dates a photo more than a Paw Patrol or Minecraft shirt. If mom is wearing a solid dress you can put a sibling in a subtle delicate pattern
Moms outfit:
Dressing your post partum body is tough, The most important thing when it comes to what to wear for lifestyle newborn photos is that you feel comfortable!
Jeans are a classic if your style is more relaxed and casual. You can easily dress them up and they can help tuck in any post baby belly. Dresses definitely up the vibe of a session creating a more elegant feel. I recommend going with a maxi dress!
Definitely keep your top a light neutral or pastel color when wearing jeans. Whether you choose jeans or a dress just make sure if fits your style and the vibe you want for your session. I want you to feel comfortable and beautiful!
If you are concerned about your arms, a top with a long or 3/4 sleeve is a fabulous choice.
Baby’s outfit
Dress the baby in a simple cream or off-white shirt sleeve onesie. I will bring a few wraps, bonnets and blankets so we can swaddle up baby throughout the session. If you prefer baby in just a diaper and skin time – that’s perfect as well!
WHERE TO START & SAMPLE POSES:
I will start in the living room. This is mainly dictated by light. I’m looking for a room with the best light that has space for the whole family to cuddle. A couch is the perfect spot to gather everyone including siblings for a beautiful portrait.
Next on the list is the master bedroom. Starting with mom and dad sitting up on the bed with baby. Then … we kind of flow from there. I will ask you to cozy up on your bed. I always encourage you to sit close together. Next, I will ask you to lay together in a more intimate fashion. I will shoot down on you from a higher angle and perspective. I keep my aperture wide open while I do this, however, as I want any distracting elements, even the background, to be blurred.
Quite often parents won’t look at the camera, and that’s ok, you don’t need to see the faces to feel the connection.
Both parents are lying on the bed and I will shoot from above standing on the bed. I will be close to you to achieve this look.
Cuddle up on the bed, what is your routine?
This is the classic “we all look at the camera image”. We will try to capture one of those as well.
Lastly we’ll move on to the nursery. I love to document all the adorable elements of a nursery. Depending on the layout of your nursery I will try different poses. Below some samples of how I may pose you.
Samples of baby in crib
Sitting, interacting with baby
Through the door frame, capturing an intimate moment with your newborn.
I will seek out the room with the best light to capture a variety of “dad”, “mom” and “parent” poses. Below are a few samples of how those could look like.
Here are some classic “Dad” poses
Here are some classic mom poses
Classic mom and dad poses
…this post is work in progress..to be continued soon…
