when is the best time for newborn photos?
If you are looking for a sleepy baby, book closer to their due date
Babies sleep a lot of the day when they are brand new so, if you are looking for those quintessential swaddled newborn photos with closed eyes and pouty lips, you may want to schedule closer to their due date
Looking for wide eyes and smiles?
Older babies tend to stay awake more and are more interactive during sessions so scheduling 6-12 weeks from babies due date makes it more likely we will see their little characters emerge!
This question comes up a lot in the inquiry process for booking in-home newborn photos and clients are often surprised by my answer.
Any session scheduled within 1-week to 3-months of life is considered a newborn session in my books and all sessions scheduled before birth receive a tentative date that remains flexible until baby is born.
As a mother of two, I know that the first few weeks of postpartum life can be drastically different for each family and that experience is going to inform when you are most comfortable inviting a photographer into you and your babies life.
The important thing to keep in mind is that if you are scheduling your newborn session ahead of time (which I strongly suggest), you do not yet know what kind of birth experience you will have. therefor, we always remain flexible with our date. Baby may be born early (or more likely, late), you or baby may need an extended stay at the hospital or you might just decide that you want to stay in your pajamas in bed for 2-weeks without any visitors. when scheduling a session with me, i’m ready for all scenarios! That is why the date we put on the calendar is always tentative, just like your due date.
All of those details aside, there are a few factors you can consider when scheduling that tentative date:
What kind of support will you have?
The village is so necessary in the first few weeks and months of life with a newborn. The more support you have, the more likely a newborn session in the first few weeks of coming home will work. If you are going to be doing this without external support, I suggest considering the idea of waiting until baby is a little bit older.Here is why I say that
You will be in these photos too—so most likely you will want to have time for some kind of ‘getting ready’ routine before hand. This can be a difficult task with a baby who has lots of needs. If you have extra help, someone can take baby while you shower, do your hair and take a few extra minutes to get ready rather than being rushed and stressed
Depending on the type of birth you experience, you may need assistance doing things like your hair or getting dressed in the days immediately following the birth
An extra set of hands can help rearrange things to prepare for having me in you house. there is NO need for a spotless home but having things tidy in the areas we want to photograph in helps us make photographs you will love
What kind of photos of baby are you looking for?
If you want sleepy, squishy, closed-eyes photos—the earlier the better! babies sleep a lot in their first few weeks of life so this is a great time to get those super sleepy, swaddled newborn photos
If you want the chance of smiles or eyes open, I always suggest waiting until around 8-weeks.
NOTE: I always suggest either the first 3-weeks of life or 6+ weeks. This is because around weeks 3-6 babies can have a lot of changes in their skin and hair. This is when baby acne is most prominent and sudden balding makes its unfortunate appearance (my son lost half his hair for our own newborn photos and looks like George costanza).
Keep in mind that your ideas of what you want now might change after baby arrives and that’s okay! As long as your session occurs before baby is 3-months, you are still in the “newborn window”.
Don’t know the answer to these questions? That’s totally okay! That is why I’m here. Reach out to (alice@alicephoto.co) and I can help you talk it out to find the best tentative date for you and your babe.
No matter when we photograph your baby, there is no doubt that we will create photographs you want to revisit time and time again.
