Charleston, West Virginia Newborn Photographer | What To Expect At Your Newborn Session
Well first of all congratulations on your sweet new baby! I hope you’re as excited to capture that precious newborn stage as I am. Documenting your little one’s beautiful newborn details is something that I absolutely love to do for my clients, and I want you to love and proudly display them throughout your home.
Let’s go over some tips and details about my studio newborn sessions to help you prepare for, and know what to expect during yours.
Book your session ASAP - To ensure that all my clients receive my very best work, I only take a few newborns per month. Most of the time I am booked 3-4 months in advance, so I suggest booking early in your second trimester if you have waited longer that that don’t hesitate to reach out though. Sometimes babies being born early gives me last minute openings in my schedule.
Schedule session within baby’s first 14 days - Unless there are unforeseen circumstances newborn sessions are usually scheduled within baby’s first two weeks of life. When you book your session, I will tentatively place you in my calendar for your due date. Once baby is born I ask that you let me know within the first two days so we can set up your session date.
Fill out your questionnaire - Once you learn your baby’s gender, shoot me a quick message and I will send over a short questionnaire. In it I’ll ask about your plans for their nursery theme, colors you decorate your home in, what poses/props are your favorite, if there are any you don’t like/want, if you have any heirlooms you’d like incorporated into the session, etc. Please note, you do NOT NEED to bring any sort of prop to your baby’s session. I have everything from wraps, outfits, bonnets, tiebacks, props, and more right here in my studio.
Keep baby on his/her schedule - Typically my newborn sessions start around 10 am. I ask that you simply keep your baby on their regular schedule. Don’t worry about changing their eating times or trying to keep them awake before their session. I have learned that babies tend to do best on their own time. I do ask that you give him/her a bath (or sponge bath) the night before and dress them in a sleeper that snaps/zips down. That way we won’t make baby mad by pulling clothes over his/her head right before the session starts.
What to bring - As I said earlier, there is no need to bring props. However, there are a few things that I ask my clients to bring for baby. Here’s the list:
Diapers
Wipes
Burp Cloth
Pacifier
2-3 Extra Bottles (if bottle feeding)
Getting the session started - When you arrive we will head into the studio and I will ask where baby is in his/her schedule, (when the slept/ate) so that I can judge where to start. Throughout the session we will do photos with baby wrapped, in props, unwrapped, and with parents/siblings.
During the session - Aside from being in some photos or breastfeeding, there’s not much you’ll need to do during your baby’s session. Plan on having a couple of hours to relax and watch how adorable your baby is while I pose him/her.
After the session - I know you’re already dying to see how your sweet baby’s photos turned out. So I like to share a behind the scenes style video from their session on social media and directly to you within a day or so to help tide you over until your reveal/ordering appointment. Reveal/ordering appointments are scheduled for 1-2 weeks after your session. At this appointment you will see your gallery for the first time and make all images and product selections. Folio albums will be ready to take home that day, as well as your digitals. All other products are typically ready for pickup/delivery within 2 weeks of the ordering appointment.
FAQ’S
What if I don’t want my baby to use a pacifier? That is perfectly fine. I would never ask a parent to do something they aren’t comfortable with. Just know that we may have to feed baby a bit more than usual to help him/her settle into some poses.
My baby has really flakey skin/bad acne/cone head/etc. What should I do? Nothing! All newborns have at least one of the issues and they can all be fixed in photoshop. A lot of times trying to remedy these issues actually causes them to become worse. So just leave everything up to me.
If you have a question that I haven’t answered here, please don’t hesitate to ask me. If you haven’t already and would like to book your newborn session just fill out my inquiry form and we will get started!
