• Safe Newborn Posing
• Newborn Posing

10 “Must Know” Newborn Photography Tips! Newborn photography can come with many surprises, especially if you aren’t a parent. I’ve compiled a list of newborn photography tips that have helped me tremendously and I am sure will be helpful for anyone interested in learning more about newborn photography.

Of course every photographer will have a different way or style of doing things but these are just some of the top things I’ve learned through the years as a newborn photographer. Posed vs Lifestyle: Know Your Clients’ Expectations There are two types of newborn photography – posed/studio & lifestyle. I love both for different reasons. However, it is important to make sure your client knows what type you intend to do so there are no surprises during or after the session.

Posed/studio sessions – Typically must be done within the first 2 weeks of birth when the baby is very sleepy and “mold-able”. The focus in this type of session is on shots of the baby looking perfect, usually in blankets, wraps, hats, & headbands. The session can last up to 4 hours with feeding, potty breaks, and posing. Editing this type of session also takes quite a bit of time as each image needs to go through Photoshop individually to get a polished end result. Lifestyle newborn sessions – Are a bit more casual approach to newborn photography. There may be some posing but the intention is to capture more natural images of the baby and their home.

These sessions can be done up to 6 weeks old and usually last 1-2 hours max. My favorite thing about lifestyle newborn photography is capturing the wonder and amazement between the family members. Newborns are incredible but so is the love in the air. Memories of this time-frame often become fuzzy for new parents and that is precisely why I feel these types of shoots are so important. Personally, I value both types of styles so I approach it as a posed session, but use the breaks in between poses to get my lifestyle shots. The breaks do not have to be wasted time for you.

Have the feeding take place in the best light and you have yourself a great opportunity for some lifestyle shots. Be Prepared If you are doing the session in the client’s home, posed newborn sessions require nearly the same amount of prep as a wedding. You need quite a bit of “stuff” and it is easy to forget something so I make sure to pack the night before and use a checklist so I don’t forget anything (I’m a mom with a very limited memory).

To make your life a bit easier, I’ve made a print ready checklist you can use which is included in the newborn photography toolkit –. My prep includes packing the following:. and backup camera. Formatted. a few loud and funny kid toys (if there is a toddler that will be joining the session). and. Step stool.

a pillow (for posing). (to catch messes). a change of clothes for me (in case of a mess). Props (baskets, crates etc).

Big blankets for backgrounds. Small swaddle blankets.

Hats/headbands. Loud enough music to hide the startling sound of my shutter (usually just my phone and small speakers – some photographers prefer white noise). Since the sessions can be up to 4 hours I make sure to eat a lot before I go. Also, because it will be very warm with the space heater blaring, I make sure to wear cool & comfortable clothing. Some photographers bring a soft mat for kneeling comfort but I’ve found using one of your blankets work just as well. Prepare Your Client The #1 way to ensure a successful newborn session is to make sure your client knows what to expect and how to best prepare for the session. I send my prep tips a few days before our session to get mommy and daddy prepared.

In fact, in dedicated to adequate preparation before the session. Many moms choose to feed while I unpack and setup. I have them feed the baby in only a diaper and a loose swaddle blanket so we don’t have to bother the baby with undressing them. I also let them know what I’ll be bringing, the approximate length of the session, to expect messes and frequent feedings, and to warm the house, even though I will be bringing a heater.

Let the Baby Inspire You Inspiration is everywhere – probably even in the form of Pinterest emails from your client. It is a great idea to have some poses in mind before you arrive at the session. However, like letting the love story of a wedding day unfold organically, I believe the best images are unplanned and inspired by the uniqueness of each baby. Whether it is cute dimples, big beautiful eyes, full lips, or a great head of hair, try to highlight the beauty of the baby. Be in the moment Let the baby move, yawn, and stretch. Babies have wonderful, perfect, sweet movements, do not stress over having the perfect pose in every frame. When you are posing, though, my top tip is to open up their fists.

Sometimes it’s a bit of a struggle, but relaxed hands will add a much more peaceful feel to the image. Be Mindful of Your Aperture I know many portrait & wedding photographers love to shoot wide open at f/1.2 & f/1.4. However, with newborn photography many of the baby poses can have extreme angles and you often will have better luck with your depth of field and sharpness by shooting around f/2 & f/2.2. Remember, it will be rare that the baby’s eyes are on the same plane of focus all the time and by closing down my aperture a bit from wide open I get that little bit extra of depth of field that is often needed.

Baby Sleepy Time = Macro Lens Time! Aside from posed and a few lifestyle shots, the other big “to do” in my mental shot list is macro work. I love to capture close ups of the baby’s toes, little bits of hair on their shoulder, pouty lips, & ears, etc These close-up “detail” shots are not only adorable but they are great accompanying images for albums and accordion books. Because of the sensitive focus on a macro lens, the best time to get these images is when the baby is very still (in their deepest sleep). As shown with the, when I notice the baby is deep in dreamland, I’ll just stop whatever I’m doing and I’ll pull out my macro for 10 minutes and get all the shots that I need. Encourage Mom to Get in Front of the Camera.Gently After I had my babies the last thing that I wanted to do was have my picture taken and put much effort into making myself camera ready. I know firsthand how hard it is for a mom to get in front of that camera.

But I also know how important it is. Mothers work the hardest and they also love the hardest.

They love that baby so much that they will spend their days and nights, taking photos of the baby asleep, awake, yawning, having a bath, eating, cuddling with siblings, & cuddling with dad. There will be so many images by the time the baby turns one and the sad reality is that mommy will hardly be in any of them. Get her in that image. She will treasure it and so will the baby years from now. The important thing is to keep mommy/baby poses easy and without much effort needed on behalf of the mother. Chances are, she’s still uncomfortable and in pain and possibly even recovering from a surgery so being gentle is crucial. Props – Your Best Friend and Worst Enemy One of my biggest mistakes when I was starting out was that I brought all my props/wraps/blankets/headbands to every single session.

When I got set up, I would have a mini panic attack because I had no idea where I should start. Now I plan 3-4 different setups (based on the client’s preferences and expectations) and that’s all. I am often inspired by something the client owns as well, such as a blanket knitted by Grandma or something else that’s special to mom and dad, so it is not uncommon for me to not even use everything I bring.

Siblings Are a Whole New Ballgame If the baby has older siblings, I try to make the sibling shots my very first priority and then let them go play while we finish the session. Toddlers simply don’t have the attention span to sit quietly and wait for you to call on them for their picture so get their poses done first while they are curious and excited about your visit. By the time the session is over, they are usually open to participating again and that is when I try to get some lifestyle sibling shots. If they don’t want to participate, I’ve found promises of ice cream & candy have magical powers! (as long as that’s ok with Mom & Dad). Be Flexible, Safe, and Don’t Give Up One thing I learned when I became a parent, was that the baby is the boss regardless of how much control I pretend I have. The same is true for newborn photography.

If the baby doesn’t want to go to sleep for posing after you’ve tried everything, take some lifestyle shots & keep shooting. Swaddle tight and try to get some eye contact. Get images of mommy rocking the baby, be open and flexible – the session doesn’t always go as planned and that might just be the best thing that happens to you.

The best shots often come from open minds and surprising moments Aside from being flexible, be safe. The most important thing on this list is to Many traditional poses are actually composites with spotters and safeguards in place so the baby is out of harms way. Lastly, don’t give up.

I remember the first time I went snowboarding, when I got back, before I could open my mouth, my friend said I need to do it 5 more times before I decide to give up, that the learning curve is steep and that it gets easier. The same is true for newborn photography. My first session left me feeling very defeated, but I’m glad I got back up and did it again (and again and again)and hopefully this list removes some of your growing pains. In addition to this tutorial, if you want all the info you need in one simple package with lifetime access, check out our which Cole and I have spent months putting together all the necessary knowledge & tools to be adequately prepared for the lovely world of photographing newborns. On sale for a limited time and all workshop participants also will get Cole’s, the, exclusive discounts & a whole lot more. Click below to see the workshop details.

Any questions? If so – please leave a comment in the form below, I’d love to hear from you. I know you’ll do great! Chrystal Infographic Share this Image On Your Site Please include attribution to Cole’s Classroom with this graphic. Thank you so much for this post!

I too am trying to “learn” newborn photography, just did a shoot of my friend’s 10 month old daughter (they turned out beautiful!), but the little one month boy was another story! I am shooting another one month old little girl tomorrow, hopefully I will learn from my mistakes I made today! I am doing the pictures for free to learn, but this is so hard! I wish I knew what I was doing wrong, or do I just need to practice?

Any tips would be greatly appreciated! Oh, I was raised in San Diego, my whole family is there, will be visiting for Christmas this year.

Will be there for 2 weeks to pack up my mom and move her! Maybe I can get in on a photo session??? Hopefully I will have it figured out by then! As with most things, there is no substitute for practice and experiencewith each shoot you will get better and better, just keep your head in the game!

A fellow “kinda” San Diegan?! Cool 🙂 We actually are working on a Newborn Photography Online Course/Workshop teaching everything you need to know, start to finish, including an actual on location photo shoot so you can see exactly what its like and how to deal with common pitfalls when shooting on-location! Make sure to subscribe to Cole’s Classroom so you’ll be in the know when we release it in a few months 🙂. Hi there, My name is Sherry Garcia and I am a beginner in the world of photography.

I was just wondering about how you felt about some of the online editing sites such as PicMonkey.com, BeFunky.com and Fotor.com Being as I am just started out I figured it might be a good idea to get my feet wet in those editing programs before I take the big leap into Photoshop and pay it’s ungodly price!! (lol) anyhow, if you can think of a better site where I might get a little more practice editing pictures please let me know. And please let me know your honest opinion of the aforementioned websites.

Happy Shooting, Sherry. Thanks for stopping by & saying hello! I am not familiar with those editing websites (although I did just visit the homepage to check it out)I CAN say however though, you should forget about the high price of photoshop and get yourself a copy of Adobe Lightroom 5. Lightroom is an amazing program for not only editing but easy storage/file/folder handling of photos and most important it is very easy to use. In fact, I have quite a few tutorials on our YouTube channel. It is “only” $150 or so, and I gotta say, whether someone is a pro or just hobbyist, that $150 will be among the best money you’ll spend on your photos head over to the adobe site and try it for a free 30 day trial and see for yourself if you’ll like it or not 🙂. Thank you so much for this post.

I’m also a newbie to the world of professional photography, but I’ve been a photographer for most of my life. I would usually simply do shots with friends and their families, or just my own, but I’m actually starting to get paid for it now.

I had the privilege 3 days ago to shoot my friends newborn son and her older 2 kids. It was my first newborn shoot, and I was thrilled at how the pics came out, but I felt like I could have done better. Fortunately, I get to try again tomorrow, because Daddy was working last time! Your list and examples are fabulous, and I can’t wait to put then into action! Thank you so much for this article! This past weekend I did my 3rd newborn session which happened to be my grandson. It took 4 hours and I had such difficulty getting him into the poses that I had planned in my head, that when the session was over with I felt totally defeated.

I experienced everything you mentioned, including overwhelming myself with too many props. I started doubting myself and wondering if I was even cut out to be a newborn photographer. Your article was very helpful and encouraging at the same time.

Thank you so much! Without knowing what camera body you have right now it is sort of a guessbut I’d look into the Nikon 60mm macro. Brand new (newest versions) are around $500 which is about 1/2 of the 105 macroyou can find used for even cheaper. If you aren’t using a full frame camera I’d actually RECOMMEND that 60mm length over the 105 anyway 😉 The class allows you, the viewer, to tag along on a professional shoot in which you will certainly see and hear Chrystal work throughout the shoot, including when she is getting the close details vs other shots/poses. Give it a shot!!

I think it’ll be perfect for you. Hi there fellow San Diegan and fellow Charger fan;-), I don’t think there’s anything I can say that hasn’t been said already. Wonderful tips and insight especially for newbies like myself. I can’t even call myself a photographer considering I’m still getting to learn my camera. But I will say that after reading your post, it definitely seems more doable and less scary. Not saying that it will be easy. I’m hoping to get together with a photographer and go on a “ride along” so to speak and maybe get some hands on experience before I venture out on my own.

I literally came across your post about an hour ago and I’m looking forward to reading and learning more! Hi there I have been putting off starting up on my own for over a year simply because the photoshopping (editing) involved with newborns. It is worrying for me to get that quality afterwards. I have photoshop but find it so time consuming, fustrating and mind boggling I just need something easy and straightforward to edit the images. Lightroom and the ‘soft and creamy’ etc list of presets you use, seem to be all I need? Is that correct? How much would I be talking for the the lot?

Enjoyed the video Many thanks. Dears, I am a long-time passionate about dslr photography and having 2 little kids myself I know how difficult it is to take perfect shots when you need to take care of the baby and at the same time you Re the one behind the camera. I experienced a newborn session in an atelier twice with a photographer lady which I adore and now want to go this way too and give it a try. Was waiting for a girl friend newborn in order to get some training first but after I’ve read this I am going to post a note about searching a newborn model and don’t worey about the whoke thing. Thank you guys for this great list that I do not have to figure it by myself. Also, I am thinking to get some of the materials/presets you sell, I consider them worthy.

Safe Newborn Posing

Chrystal and Cole, I truly loved this Intro to content. It really grabbed my attention and I look forward to seeing more. I’ve recently set up my studio in my home but I’m seeing that there may be a lot of great ‘take-away’ info from your ‘On-Location’ Guide. I’m using a Canon 60D atm, My love is creative photography and master editing which I have gone from freelance photo editing for professional photographers to dabbling into my own visions and creativity after 7 years of the latter.

Newborn Posing

Once again great article guys! Amanda Amanda.