What is a Lifestyle Newborn Session?

There’s so much love and excitement when it comes to adding a new baby to your family. It can also be filled with stress and anxiety, but there’s one aspect that shouldn’t be stressful and that’s newborn photos. You’ve spent months preparing for your new baby and you want his or her first photos to be perfect, but how do you ensure that? As a family and newborn photographer, I’ve found the perfect balance of beautiful yet relaxed portraiture: the lifestyle newborn session.

What I love most about lifestyle sessions the authenticity. It’s a privilege to be invited to photograph the real, raw moments of new parenthood, especially when there are siblings involved. (Don’t be surprised or embarrassed if your toddler is jumping on the bed for family photos, it happens! And it’s okay!). Having three kids of my own has taught me that children have short attentions spans for photos, which is why we do family and sibling photos first. After that, siblings are free to go play! It can be helpful to have a grandparent or extra set of hands to keep the toddler(s) entertained while the rest of the session takes place.

During a lifestyle newborn session, you’ll get to snuggle in with your family in the comfort of your home and create beautiful memories. You shouldn’t worry about your home looking spotless, but one thing you can focus your energy on is your wardrobe! Solid neutrals (think white, cream, pastels) are so flattering to the skin and help keep the focus on your and your baby’s natural beauty. For baby, plain onesies or solid muslin swaddles are perfect! If you want a little pop of color, a pastel floral dress can be a beautiful option!

Since you’ll be getting snuggly and cozy for photos, it can be helpful it have a neutral comforter for your bed. Solid white comforter and pillow cases are perfect and keep the focus on your faces versus causing distraction in the images.

Usually babies sleep really well for lifestyle newborn sessions since they spend most of the time held in their parent’s arms, but if your baby is fussing, don’t worry! While it’s really helpful to feed and change baby right before your session, there will also be plenty of time for feeding and changing if needed. A fed and happy baby is a sleepy baby, and I’ll never rush that process.

The most important thing to remember for your lifestyle session is to relax. Sometimes babies cry, sometimes poop happens, and it’s OKAY! Together we will create something beautiful and memorable!