Busting some myths about newborn photos…
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You may have heard that newborn photos HAVE to be done while baby is 10 days old or younger. Or possibly less than 2 weeks. I’ve even heard of some photographers turning down clients whose babies were older than 2 weeks.
Huh?? Did I miss something? Is there some kind of magic 2 week window?
For some reason lately, I’ve heard from multiple moms worried that they’ve missed their chance to have their newborn photographed because they’ve either heard on social media (or from other photographers) that “newborn photos” can ONLY be done in baby’s first two weeks of life.
I’m here to tell you that’s not true.
In my opinion, babies can be photographed at any age!
What’s up with the first 2 weeks?
There does seem to be a “sweet spot” for newborn photography. I.e. an age where babies seem to be the easiest to photograph in the newborn “style.” I think the 2 week window probably came about because of this.
Younger babies (in their first or second week of life) typically sleep more so they’re a bit easier to photograph in that curled-up newborn style. For that matter, older babies may typically be more wide-awake and less… curly-uppy 😜 so they might take a bit longer to sleep or perhaps may not sleep at all.
And those common (though unsightly) occurrences like hair loss or baby acne – which are tedious and time consuming for photographers to retouch- typically occur after 2-3 weeks or so.
But since when are babies typical?? They are all so different!
Little Miss L here was 3 WEEKS OLD for her session.🫢😍
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And she slept like a DREAM!
And Baby Z below was 6 weeks old during his session. Seriously!
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Now, I don’t normally encourage parents to wait 6 weeks for newborn photos. But it just goes to show that if for some reason they had to, it’s really not a big deal. 😉
For that matter, I’ve had 7 day old babies that fussed, startled every second, and barely slept at all. 😆 🤷♀️
So I think in a nutshell, younger babies are usually less work for the photographer, but EVERY baby is different, and EVERY baby can be photographed! There’s nothing wrong with a photographer wanting to have consistent, efficient sessions with minimal editing, but I hate thinking that refusing babies after a certain age convinces SO many parents out there that their newborn is “too old” to photograph.
What to expect…
Now, for the sake of managaing parents’ expectations, please know that the “newborn” style photos of curled up, sleeping babies are unlikely to happen with a baby that’s, say, 8 weeks old. But that doesn’t mean that even an 8 week old can’t still be photographed! Granted, they’ll look chunkier and older than a fresh newborn, but If you’ve had a rough start for your baby’s first couple months, that’s OKAY! I’ve been there, too.
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With my firstborn, I struggled with breastfeeding and making enough milk… Long story short, it was 6 WEEKS (ugh) before I actually felt like we’d hit a groove. But if now-photographer ME had been approached by new-mother ME of 13 years ago, I would have told her, “Of COURSE we can photograph your daughter! She’s older, so I probably won’t capture her all curled up and sleepy, but I can absolutely make beautiful portraits of her! I’ll probably get a lot of bright eyes and even some grins, and you’ll still have gorgeous portraits of your little girl.”
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I just listen to their cues and capture babies however they’re comfortable. Regardless of their “pose” or whether or not they are sleeping, I will still make beautiful portraits of your sweet babe!
So PLEASE don’t be discouraged, moms and dads. If life with a newborn has gotten away from you and you fear you’ve missed that window for professional portraits, I guarantee you: you haven’t.
You just have to find the right photographer! 😉
PLEASE NOTE! Being able to photograph a baby at any age is not the same as having availibility on the schedule! It’s always best to reserve a spot for your newborn several months ahead of their arrival. I photograph only a small number of newborns every month, so booking early is best!
