5 Reasons to Have your Newborn Session at Home

If I had to choose a favorite type of photography between a lifestyle newborn session and a lifestyle family session, I would have a really hard time. I love both. Both sessions include multiple family members and both use the same lifestyle approach to show the family’s connection. Most of the families that I’ve photographed have included an on-shoot location, meaning an outdoor location. We go to the park, we go to an urban location, or whatever location is meaningful to the family.

When families book a lifestyle newborn session I find it easiest to have the session at home. There are a few reasons for this and I decided to write a little bit about it.

Thinking about why having a lifestyle newborn session at home is a good idea? I’ll give you 5 reasons to have your newborn session at home!

1. you don’t need to leave home

Okay so first things first - I come to you and you don’t have to think about leaving home or going anywhere! I find that getting used to a new baby and new family dynamics can be a little challenging to navigate at the beginning, so why add to that? As soon as you decide you want to schedule your newborn session, contact me and we will schedule it and I just have to show up! No planning transitions, getting everyone in the car to go anywhere- I keep it easy and photograph you at home!

2. you waited 9 months to meet your baby

You have been loving your baby for many many months and the day has come and he’s here! It’s the perfect time to schedule that newborn session because you’ll want to remember all of the details and moments you had when your baby was this tiny. It was all you wanted and waited for over the last 9 months. You definitely need to hire a newborn photographer!

3. your home is the perfect backdrop

Newborn sessions allow me to be creative and use the family’s home, which I find makes a great backdrop. Most of the areas in the home that I use during newborn sessions are the nursery, master bedroom, kitchen, and living room. It really all depends on light. I have quite a few photos of me when I was a baby but I can only think of a few where I was a newborn. I don’t know that many of the photos really had a lot of detail about what my bedroom or home looked like. I am honored when families let me into their home for these special newborn sessions. I start off by noticing the light in all of the bedrooms and using color, textures, and angles to add to the photo when I photograph you.

4. your baby is only this little once

Babies grow so fast, especially when they are newborns and I strive to photograph those little moments and body parts that soon you may forget. Those baby hands, toes, and the way they curl their body are all things I want to photograph during your lifestyle newborn session. I pretty much let the baby guide our session, when he’s sleeping we cuddle and photograph him. When he wants to be held, we get those photos when he needs to be soothed. I love using hands to tell the perspective and show the size of baby.

5. you need to be in the photos - for your children

If you leave keeping one of these things in mind about why to schedule a lifestyle newborn session (whether in your home or on location) PLEASE do it for your children. My mom looks back on photos of herself when I was a baby and cringes at her perm, but guess what - I get to see how beautiful she was when she rocked the curly big hair. My dad actually was a hobbyist photographer and I definitely got this interest from him and am glad to carry it on.

Your children will thank you for it.

Never mind that you think you need to lose a few pounds or you don’t feel pretty after having your baby. I will focus on capturing connection and you, your baby, and your family in a way that you will love and cherish.

So thankful you’re here!

Differences between posed newborn and lifestyle newborn sessions | DC Family Photographers

I’m always looking for ways to be able to share images from Atlanta and Washington DC family sessions and I just realized that I hadn’t written a blog post sharing images from this lifestyle in-home newborn session yet! I met this family as they welcomed their second child and figured it would be a good time to write a little bit my session with them. Big sister was so helpful and she wanted to be involved with the session. She played with mom and dad, spent some time showing off her big sister book, and it was adorable to see how she was helping out with her baby brother. They are a couple of years apart and I loved spending time with them.

The family contacted me about wanting a newborn session and I loved that we had the session right in the comfort of their own home.

Having your family session in your home allows me to be able to photograph the natural elements in your home and be able to have a laid back session.

I’ve written a little bit in this blow post about what else you can expect from your lifestyle newborn session.

There are really two main types of newborn sessions - posed newborn sessions and lifestyle newborn sessions.

How do you know if you want a posed newborn session or lifestyle newborn session?

Posed newborn sessions are perfect if you want your baby in one of those cute little poses where they are typically sleeping and laying in some sort of curled up position. When scheduling this type of newborn session, it is ideal to schedule when your baby is younger and more sleepy, and it tends to make the posing easier.

Posed newborn sessions focus more on the baby wrapped in a swaddle or newborn outfit and may include some kind of backdrop.

Many posed newborn sessions are offered in a studio, but there are some photographers that will bring all of the props and posing items to your home. These sessions can take up to 4 hours to get your baby happy and posed and get those images just right, but the result yields beautiful images!

Lifestyle newborn sessions typically include images of both the newborn and family members.

I prefer the lifestyle newborn sessions for a variety of reasons, not only because everyone can participate, but also because the baby can be awake or asleep. And if the baby gets hungry during the session, we take a break. I actually continue photographing those moments of comfort as well as when the baby is nursing images if the family would like nursing images.

Lifestyle newborn sessions take place right in your home, so you don’t have to worry about packing up your belongings and driving to an unfamiliar studio. I’ve always gravitated towards lifestyle sessions because they tend to give more of a peek into the family’s life and document the family’s routines bringing home a new baby. I love capturing the beautiful nurseries that families work so hard to create.

We really go with the flow of the baby during the session and we are focusing more on capturing the moments that they are being held if they are fussy or laying on the bed if they are content and comfortable. I love including all family members in lifestyle newborn sessions.

Lifestyle sessions are also laid back and we aren’t as limited with timing of these, which allows for more flexibility. I’ve photographed newborns when they’ve been 1 month old!

And because I offer all-inclusive sessions, you get to have all of the images that help to share this beautiful time and you don’t have to worry about having to choose your favorite 10. My hope is that you will love so many more than 10 of your images!

Think you’re interested in booking a lifestyle newborn session? I’d love to chat with you!

Related blog posts:

{adalyn brooke} | one day new | atlanta fresh 48 photographer

Mom and Dad reached out to me when they were a little over 20 weeks pregnant and knew they wanted a Fresh 48 Session. A Fresh 48 Session takes place anytime from birth to 48 hours. Typically these sessions take place in the hospital but can also take place at home, after a home birth. I was so excited about this session, Mom and I chatted a little bit about to expect during this session and how to document the natural moments of the time short after a new baby being welcomed into the world.

During this Fresh 48 session I really enjoyed getting to know Mom and Dad. They are first time parents and we talked a little bit about the pregnancy, cravings, and how things had been waiting for their beautiful baby girl! How healthy that Mom craved fruit during her pregnancy, which is not bad at all! We had a fun conversation about Chik-fil-a and I immediately hit it off with them when I realized we are all obsessed with their Cookies and Cream milkshakes. I mean really, why make another flavor? 

Adalyn was born at 8 lbs 2 oz and 21 inches long. Although she will probably be tall, it was fun to try her into her new clothes and hats that were actually a little too big for her during this session. She's just so fresh and new! Adalyn is such a sweet baby girl, with a great temperament! We would put her down to briefly change her, and she showed that she trusted us and she loved the camera so I had to get some photos of her with her eyes open! Adalyn was born with cleft palate and she is as beautiful as can be. Mom expressed to me how much she loved this session and I am so glad they will treasure these images of their sweet girl. 

Adalyn was such a natural model and worked the camera! How sweet that I was able to get some images of her with her beautiful eyes open, which can sometimes be hard to do during newborn sessions! After a couple of minutes of course when she realized she was cold, she didn't hesitate to let us know how she felt and let out that adorable, high pitched cry that was just the sweetest thing.  

I had so much fun during this session and I hope Mom and Dad enjoy these images as much as I did! If you are expecting a new little bundle of joy and are interested in a fresh 48 or lifestyle newborn session, I'd love to meet you! You can fill out a couple of questions on my contact page and we will chat! 

{yowler family} | two weeks new | atlanta newborn photography

I love meeting new families and learning about what makes their family special. Mom is a photographer and I am always excited to photograph another photographer because they get to actually be in the photos with their family! This was an in home lifestyle newborn session so the focus was capturing the newborn in her natural environment. The home makes the perfect backdrop for lifestyle newborn photos! 

I loved how natural the family was and baby girl got all the love! How cute is her older brother being so loving and giving her all of the kisses! 

I always like to spend time with not only the family for photos of the newborn and the family, but also the little things like the sibling playing with blocks in his room. Mom and I chatted for a while and just let him do his thing. If you're interested in a lifestyle family session, head on over to say hello and we can chat about booking a session!