Baby’s First-Year

Scheduling sessions for baby’s first year often depends on milestones more than ages. I have taken thousands of pictures of my kids and made dozens of albums for them, the story of a baby’s first year is truly special! My daughter loves to sit on the couch and flip through her own first-year album and says it is her favorite book!

Babies change so much (and so quickly) in the first year. I love being able to document that every few months and compile the story together in a beautiful album at the end of the year. Here are a few suggestions on WHEN and how often I recommend portraits for baby’s first year.

Maternity: 7 months pregnant

I find this to be a sweet spot for when moms are feeling excited and have more energy. You still look pregnant and glowing and don’t need to wait until you are huge and uncomfortable.

Newborn: as soon as possible after birth

Make sure to capture those tiny baby wrinkles and umbilical cord as quickly as possible. I know the timing is unpredictable. Thus, I only take a limited number of clients around your due date to ensure I can change my schedule if needed.

I prefer a lifestyle approach to newborn sessions and love a home session. I tell the story of where you are spending most of your time in the nursery or relaxing around your house. I take the perspective of what I would want for my children. I want sweet baby pictures we can use for a birth announcement yet classic enough still catch attention at a graduation party. I want sweet moments with adoring parents. I want to include any other family members or special friends if possible. Most sessions usually last an hour, but baby may need more time to get comfortable. What works best for you and the baby is always my first priority.

I am also available for hospital sessions. Just after the birth can be a fun and less stressful time. Maybe capture the first time your family or friends come to visit you? Or, you may want to wait until the next day to change clothes and put on makeup. Celebrating with a birthday cake at the hospital is also a fun tradition I started when I had my daughter and can make a “birth”day extra special.

Lifting Head and Chest: 3 months

It’s amazing how different babies look after only a few months. For three-month portraits, I lay down on the floor with the babies. I am looking for pictures of them holding their heads up and maybe their chest off the floor. They are becoming more responsive to sounds and people and smiling often, so I also lay them on their backs and stand over them with a little help from mom or dad to get those sweet smiles. Sometimes parents want to be included in the session and others want to keep the day more mellow and stick to baby pictures. Later on, these days all start to blur together for a new mom, so it’s nice to be able to look back at that sweet baby.

Sitting Independently: 6 months

Babies are becoming more social and use their hands to grab toys and interact. This is a fun age and the most important milestone here is sitting independently. If your baby can’t do this yet, it is better to wait a bit because the age isn’t as important as the story you are telling with the pictures. Babies may experience some irritable days of teething, but they find some respite around this point. If there are any siblings, I highly recommend including them because the baby is stable enough to get pictures of the kids alone but also easy to pose in one spot without being mobile. This is often the age of chubby baby legs that everyone loves later!

Crawling: 9 months

Your baby’s personality should be starting to show at this point. Maybe there is a certain expression he/she always makes or a special song that always gets a reaction. I also love to play with a favorite toy and read a special book. Babies should be able to stand with support, so this is a great time to get pictures that are full-body as a parent may hold up their arms or the baby may lean against something. The milestone I am looking for here is crawling. I get on the floor with them for some action shots too.

First Birthday: 12 months

Some babies are walking and almost running at this point. Others are happy crawling. One of my sons didn’t walk until almost 16 months, so just enjoy the time to not have to chase your baby if he/she isn’t walking yet. First-year sessions are so fun because every baby is different. I often play with the kids and see what gets the best reactions from them. This session should really capture personality. I highly recommend including other family members too. This age usually loves dad holding them in the air a bit too! I like to end the session with a fun birthday celebration. Some bakeries will give you a single-layer cake included with the regular cake for a first birthday for this purpose. I pretty cupcake also works well.

Heirloom Album

My favorite part of the process is telling the story of all your favorites in an album together! These books feature photographs printed and mounted to make extra thick pages that can spread across an entire page. My personal favorite option right now is a 10×10 album with an acrylic cover in a linen box featuring a photo cameo center on that as well.

I am offering a special plan for baby’s first year that includes four sessions, an heirloom album, digital files of your favorite images, and discounts on other wall art and print products. I also include my favorite 5×7 press printed cards for announcements in a custom design. Please contact me for more details!