Newborn sessions really are something I think every family should experience! I photographed this family when big sister was around 2 years old and I was so excited to hear they would be welcoming another little girl into their family and that the family wanted to schedule a lifestyle newborn session.
Today on the blog I’m sharing a few different ways you can make sure to have a full gallery of images from your in home lifestyle newborn session.
plan for the newborn session to take place at home.
As a northern Virginia newborn & family photographer I usually find it’s most helpful to schedule the newborn session in your home. Each home is so unique to the family and the routines and environment can vary.
Although there are always specific “poses” and combinations of family members I take at each session, the way we get there and the outcome varies which I think makes each session unique to the family.
2. include ways your older sibling can participate in the session
If you have an older child, we know that their world has completely changed from maybe being the center of all attention to now having to share the spotlight with a brand new baby. If the older child isn’t ready to participate, we aren’t going to force it. But if they are interested in touching and being near baby, we will embrace it for as long as we can!
This is a good time to capture images of the siblings together, whether laying together or sibling helping to hold the baby. A curious sibling will often do something unexpected and we have to be ready!
3. photograph each parent with the baby
The newborn is really the star of the show at a lifestyle newborn session. We want to have a gallery full of images of the baby alone and with family members, doing different things and spending time together. Photographing each parent with the baby is another way to ensure a full family gallery from the session.
4. document a feeding
New babies eat a lot and they eat often. I like to plan for newborn sessions to be longer than traditional family sessions because at some moment during the session the baby will want to eat.
A feeding is a great time to take a few moments to slow down and embrace this stage of life.
5. embrace unscheduled moments
Babies are going to do what they want to do when they want to do it. And so will siblings! Sessions tend to go smoothly when we embrace the unscheduled moments and go with the flow.
We might not have expected a specific thing to happen when it happened but it gives us moments that we might not have gotten otherwise. I’m always ready to take the photo!
6. pick out areas in your home that you spend time or that have meaning
We spent most of this session inside of the family’s home, and ending the session outside in the yard. For most of the indoor portion of the session we used some different areas in the family room, couch, large windows, and kitchen.
There is such a variety of moments that can be captured at an in home lifestyle newborn session. All of this will vary based on the family’s home and it’s fun to get creative with how to use the space!
7. be flexible with expectations
I’ll finish up this blog post saying that it’s good to be flexible with expectations during a lifestyle family session. The baby might want to nap, the baby might want to be awake, the baby might want to be held the whole time.
All of those things are totally fine for these laid back lifestyle sessions.
