Does the thought of having newborn photos at home make your nervous? Are you worried that you are going to have to madly clean your house the night before our session? I’m here to tell you to take a deep breath and let that stress melt away. We can create beautiful photos at home, with minimal preparation and cleaning.
At every session, my goal is to make your experience as relaxed and easy as possible. You don’t need to go crazy cleaning or decluttering before your shoot. Life is crazy enough with a new baby, and I won’t judge if there are dishes in the sink or piles of laundry laying around. I promise you, we can work around all that stuff. I want this experience to be stress free and maybe even a little fun. With this in mind, today I am sharing five easy ways you can prepare for effortless and easy newborn photos at home.
Five Easy Ways to Prepare for Newborn Photos at Home
1. Take off Your Socks
It may seem small but, one of the best ways to prepare for your newborn or family photos is to take off your socks. Having bare feet helps your photos feel more relaxed and homey. Trust me on this one! Bare feet are one of the keys to creating photos that say “I don’t try that hard to look this good”.
2. Clear Off Your Night Stands
The only thing I will ask you to clean off before our session is your night stands. Seriously, that’s it. Everything else in your house can be shuffled around and moved out of the frame for photos. When you look through my portfolio and see clean newborn images with minimal clutter, just know that it is often a mess just outside the frame. You just had a baby, no one’s expecting your house to be in perfect working order.
3. Open All Your Blinds
Open the curtains and blinds in all the rooms we are planning to photograph. I want to let in as much natural sunlight as we possibly can. If it’s easy, and you have a little extra time, you can also remove the little sticks that are used to open the blinds.
4. Aim to Feed Baby just before Our Session Starts
If it works out, try to feed your baby right before our time together. This will help us get through photos as quickly as possible. A happy baby means everyone is feeling a little more relaxed and happy.
5. Have a Snack on Stand By
If you are pumping or formula feedings, it helps to have a bottle around that baby can have partway through the session. Same goes for mom and dad, have a snack ready to go in case any of the adults or toddlers get hangry and need to take a break mid shoot.
With just a little preparation, having newborn photos taken at home can be a relaxing and enjoyable experience. If you have any other questions about how my newborn shoots work, check out my frequently asked questions or get in touch! I’d love to work with you and your family.