Before your Newborn Session

Thank you for choosing me, Maggie at Bebe Newborn Photography as your newborn photographer. I look forward to meeting your new addition and creating some wonderful memories for you.

In order to ensure a successful session, please carefully read through the following information and try to follow it the best you can: These are suggestions only.

*If you are planning on having your baby boy circumcised, please do so after the planned newborn session.

*If you have any fever, not feeling well, we’ll reschedule your session. I want everyone who attends the session to be healthy and well.

*Make sure your baby’s face is clean before you leave for the session, no eye/nose crusties, etc

*My studio is a no shoe area -Please wear clean socks

What to Expect

Newborn sessions generally last between 2.5 – 3 hours so please plan for that.

The studio will be VERY warm in order to keep your baby comfortable and sleeping.

Please dress in layers so that you don’t get too hot.

Bottled water and snacks will be provided but please also feel free to bring your own refreshments.

I try to emulate a ‘womb’ like environment for your baby to keep them calm and soothed so I will have white noise playing loudly in the studio.

Please know that babies pee and poo on everything and you don’t need to worry. Everything is washable however, I ask that you please bring extra wipes and at least 4 receiving blankets for such incidences. It is also a good idea to bring a change of clothes for yourself in case baby has an accident on you during feeding.

As my studio does not have a lot of seating room and is kept VERY warm, I kindly ask that you do not bring extra family members/friends with you to the session who are not involved with the shoot.

It is recommended that you avoid scheduling doctor appointments or any other appointments on the morning of your session as this can disrupt or agitate baby if they are in and out of the car, especially if they are being poked and prodded by a Doctor prior to arriving at the studio.

Please also avoid having visitors to your home before you leave. The more relaxed you can keep baby before your session the better.

What to do before you arrive

At least an hour before you have to leave to come to the studio please try to keep baby awake and alert as best you can via stimulation (baths work great). Interact with them as much as possible so that we are not spending too much time getting them to sleep when you arrive.

Let your baby fall asleep in the car on the way to the studio. Please don’t get your baby out of the car seat and feed in the car before you come in as it may disturb them from sleep.

Ensure baby has a VERY full belly for the session. It is advised to feed baby about 20 – 30 mins before you leave to come to the studio. Should your baby need a top up after I have gotten them undressed then I will have you feed a little bit more.

Please bring extra bottles of formula and/or pumped breast milk to help fill up baby faster and get them into a sound sleep even if you are not bottle feeding.

If breast feeding, please try to avoid eating the following foods 24 hours prior to the session as it may upset baby’s tummy:

Spicy or gassy food (such as broccoli, beans etc), heavy dairy, caffeine & chocolate.

Dress baby in a loose fitting button or zip up sleeper with nothing underneath to avoid any lines on the skin .

Please try not dress baby in a onesie or anything that has to be pulled over the head to be removed, it can sometimes unsettle them just before the session.

When you arrive at the studio please leave baby in the car seat. I will take the car seat from you and start preparing your newborn right away.

During the session I will take care of your sweet little baby if he/she gets fussy or starts to wake up as I have many soothing techniques that will help settle baby down.

I try to allow very little handling with the parents during the session as it can often make baby more irritable especially if they can smell mommy.

I will only hand your baby back to you if I feel he/she needs feeding.

I have a comfortable seating area for you to sit back and relax and allow me to work with your newborn while you catch up on emails, read a book or even take a nap.

What to bring

Please bring the following: Extra bottles, wipes and a soother. Even if you aren’t thinking you will want to use a soother I still suggest bringing one. The short amount of time we will be using one will not affect any habit-forming behaviors for your baby. My goal is to help keep baby happy and calm during your session and is only used if assistance is needed to capture certain poses.

If you do not have a soother/pacifier, I keep, new, unused ones on hand and sanitized for use if needed.

If you are wishing to have family photos done with your new baby, please wear a white/cream or black top or equivalent and have Dad wear a plain white or black or grey t-shirt (short sleeves please if possible).
Siblings should also wear a white, grey or cream top (Girls can wear a white/cream dress, keep as simple as possible). We will do family shots at the beginning of the shoot if there are siblings involved.
I have a variety of props, headbands and hats that fit within my style to use during the session. I kindly ask that you do not bring your own.
If you have something very sentimental that you would like photographed, then please send me a photo of it prior to your session to see if it something I can incorporate. I will go through various poses during the session. I will try my very best to get every pose and prop possible with your baby however some babies just don’t like certain poses.

Siblings

I will aim to try and get the sibling shots at the beginning of the shoot, sometimes depending on age, big brother or sister may want to warm up to me and the studio before we commence sibling portraits.

If you are bringing an older sibling to the studio is it advised that you bring someone who can take them out for a little while until after we have done the sibling/family shots. The studio is very warm and in past experiences, siblings, specifically toddlers, can be a distraction if they are running around while we are trying to settle an awake or fussy newborn.

If the sibling is under 4 years old I will shoot the image with him/her lying down on her back with the newborn swaddled next to them. If the sibling is older we can try to shoot the image with him/her holding the newborn in their lap. As toddlers are very busy and still adjusting to there being a new baby in the home, most will not want to lay down next to their new sibling so please be prepared for that.

If you have any further questions please do not hesitate to contact me prior to your scheduled newborn session.

Maggie