While there are so many places that you can take family photographs, a newborn session has a few more elements to consider. I always urge my clients to do them in their own home, even if we only have one room that has great light. We can always move furniture around, put neutral linens on the bed, etc. (Of course we do this leading up to baby and not after. There is already enough going on that we don’t want to add that to the list and stress the new parent(s) out.) Bellow I will list some reasons why I love in-home lifestyle sessions for newborns.
The comfort of your own home: There is a sense of “home”…because you’re home. One of my former momma’s, Krysten: “There is so much chaos surrounding that time. Even in the best circumstances, labor is tough. Those first few days are a whirlwind and when I look back at them, I can feel myself in that moment. Don’t let those things, like a perfect house or a mountain of laundry keep you from getting those perfect moments. See yourself in your own bed, in their own crib, on your own couch.”
You can involve your animals: As you’ll see in the photos bellow, this family decided to involve their dogs in some of the photos. They didn’t pose with them, but they were hanging around the house as I did the session. This is exactly how they are every day and now this family gets to remember these moments with them (their first babies). Your animals are part of your family and usually around while your baby is young. It’s so special to involve them in the family memories.
There is no transporting baby from one location from the other: We schedule the session for when your baby usually wakes up. I love to get some feeding photos of the parent(s) with their baby (whether that be breastfeeding or bottle). It’s so nice to not have to put everyone in the car and transport them from one location to the other. Some babies hate being in car seats and we don’t want to start of the session with your baby already uncomfortable. We do everything in one location and it’s glorious!
We don’t have to worry about inclement weather: It doesn’t matter if it’s hot, cold, raining, or allergy season. We are going to be indoors.
If you need to take feeding breaks: You have a newborn. That means that you’re on the baby’s time now, not yours. You can plan around things all you want, but it really comes down to what’s going to make your new baby happy. If we are in your home then it becomes so easy to just stop what we’re doing and feed them. You already have the bottles or can breastfeed comfortably. You don’t have to bring a bag and carry all of that stuff with you to another location.
Easy outfit changes: I like to go over outfits with my families before I show up, but it’s still nice to have plenty of options. Accidents happen and your baby might end up messing up the outfit that you had put them in and planned for them to wear. No big deal, we have their entire wardrobe at our fingertips.
Baby’s first home: This is the first place you brought your baby home. This is where they will spend some of their most important life moments. When I look at old photos of me as a baby, I love seeing my old home in the background. I was seven when we moved from Georgia to Jacksonville, but I can still remember the entire layout of that home. I can remember the wallpaper, the backyard, my bedroom, and every other important detail. Part of the reason is my own memories, but the other is that I get to see it in old photographs.
From Ashton, the mom pictured bellow: “It was more sentimental to me. Our home is the place where we daydreamed about what she would be like and things like where we set up her room. It was finally her house, too so it was special to have these photos here. I was a new mom and I didn’t know what all a newborn would need. Being in my own home was nice because if she got fussy or hungry I could take a minute and be where I’m comfortable to assess and have everything I needed right there to make her comfortable.”
