I can remember the early days of Hector’s arrival all too well. The sleep deprivation, the hormones, the ‘oh my god I don’t know what I’m doing’ feelings but most of all the all-consuming love I felt for this tiny human being.

Ste and I had talked at length whilst I was still pregnant about having a photoshoot at some point in Hector’s first few weeks in order to capture his teeny perfectness. It was something we were both very keen on capturing but as it happened didn’t quite pan out. A combination of exhaustion, a revolving door of friends and family wanting to meet the new arrival and the fact that Hector lost a substantial amount of weight in the first week meant that a newborn photoshoot just didn’t happen. Once the fog of the first month had lifted I felt like we had missed the boat.

If only we had read today’s post by the super talented Lisa from Little Beanies! If only we’d known that actually there was still plenty of time to photograph Hector in all his newborn glory…Today’s post therefore is for those of you considering your own newborn photoshoots and when best to time them. Feel free to ask any questions too! Over to you Lisa…

As a natural light photographer specialising in bumps, babies and families, this is the question I am frequently asked time and time again. My opinions are by no means the definitive answer but they have been gleaned from lots of experience in this area.

I would also suggest asking yourself what it is you would like from a newborn session. For example if you want smiles and babbling captured on camera then don’t commit to a photoshoot within the first week of your baby’s life as this is when they are most sleepy and don’t do very much. In order to help you make a decision on when to best time your photoshoot, I’ll try to explain about the first key moments of your baby’s life that you may want to capture using my experience of taking newborn photos.

First things first I’ll tell you a little bit about me… I’m a natural light photographer using very little posing. My style is very much capturing you and your baby in your natural environment rather than in a studio. You can read about me over on my blog if you’re keen to find out more.

The Sleepy Stage

I call the first few weeks of any newborn’s life “the sleepy stage”. Some say that this is the only window of opportunity to take newborn photos. Personally when I had my little boy I defined the newborn phase as the first 12-16 weeks. I literally didn’t want it to end, and I’m sure lots of you don’t either. Although they are very sleepy, this is definitely the time to photograph the teeny tiny hands and feet and features.

You are still in a bubble of ‘what the hell am I doing?’ and ‘am I really solely responsible for the smallest person on earth?’ so it can feel incredibly overwhelming. Of course if you do feel up to it then go for it; I absolutely love capturing them when they are so tiny and those connections between the whole family in the first few weeks. But please don’t worry if you can’t quite make it out of bed yet or you just don’t want to face the camera, there is still plenty of time to capture that teeny tiny little person. Some people have their baby and want to capture it straight away but some just want to wait and get their head around it all. So please don’t panic, you haven’t missed it all.

5-6 weeks Old

I would say the next early milestone to capture is at 5-6 weeks or thereabouts. I have photographed plenty of babies in between though. Some people choose this stage of their baby’s life as their little ones are now more alert and some have even shared their first great big smile and I do everything in my power to get that smile if I can. Also if there is any dry skin or baby acne at the beginning it has normally started to clear up by now.

8-10 weeks Old

At this point their heads are still a little fragile but they are starting to interact more and even mimic your expressions. They may even reach for you when they need attention, security or comfort. What’s important here too is that you are definitely starting to find your feet now and understand your babies’ pattern much more. It can be so daunting at first can’t it? If you feel more in control around this time, then it’s definitely worth thinking about planning a photoshoot now whilst they’re still quite small.

12 – 16 weeks

Most babies can now hold their head quite comfortably at a 45 degree angle if they have been doing lots of tummy time. They generally feel quite robust now too. Some babies are even cooing and gurgling and their faces are becoming less like a newborn and more like tiny human beings.

This is such a lovely period in your newborn’s life and a time that I love to capture on camera. I’d probably say after this time you have probably stretched the newborn phase as much as you can. I didn’t want it to end but I have to say I’ve enjoyed every single second of my little boy Louis’ first year and the more you get back from them the better it is. It really does just get better and better.

I hope this has helped you decide on when you would like to think about planning for your newborn photography session. I do urge those that want to capture their tiny babies on camera in the first couple of weeks to book your photographer around your 20 week scan to avoid any disappointment. From a personal perspective, I only schedule in a small number of the really tiny newborn shoots to make sure I can accommodate them just in case timings do change.

For those of you that want to capture the all of the first milestones within the first year, please have a look at my ‘Watch Your Little Beanies Grow’ package here. This has become really popular and a great way to document your child’s first year.

If you like my style then please do get in touch to organise a session time to suit you. I simply love what I do and if I can create those memories for you, it makes my job and love for photography so worthwhile.

Lots of love

Lisa xxx

Image by Little Beanies