“Is my baby too old for newborn pictures??” I get frantic messages from parents so often saying this exact phrase. Don’t worry! We can get beautiful photographs of your baby no matter how old they are. BUT if you want the sleepy curled up posed newborn photos, then you really need to get in to see a photographer as soon as you can.
When is the best time for newborn photography?
If you want the sleeping posed look – ideally you should have your baby photographed at around 1 to 2 weeks after birth (this can be a bit more flexible for premmie babies who usually tend to track to their due date instead of their actual birth date). After this tiny window of opportunity, newborns become more wakeful, less able to curl and stay asleep, and they often have more issues with their skin (baby acne, peeling etc).
I’ve been told my baby is “too old” for a newborn photo shoot. What can I do?
Some photographers have fairly strict requirements when booking in a baby for a last minute session. I photograph babies at all ages but do have a few suggestions depending on how old your baby is. Here is a rough guide to help!
2 – 6 weeks old: You can absolutely do a newborn session. The earlier the better! If your baby is approaching the 6 week mark you do need to be aware that they will be more wakeful and less likely to go into the sleepy poses. I do tend to let my clients know that I will do my best to capture some sleepy poses but that it’s likely that their baby will be awake and wrapped for the majority of their session. Click here for more information about my newborn photo sessions.
7 weeks – 2 months: your baby will be alert and awake and possibly quite fussy at this stage. For babies of this age I do wrapped-only sessions or more lifestyle images with parents and siblings.
3 – 5 months: this is roughly the age of my 3 month sessions for babies who are not yet sitting. Click here to find out more. As babies approach the 5 month mark I tend to encourage parents to wait until their baby is sitting for a Sitter session as we can get a lot more variety in the images. 6 – 10 months: at this stage babies usually start to sit confidently on their own. This the THE BEST time for baby photos in their first year (outside of the newborn phase of course) as they are usually very happy and smiley, and they are usually not yet on the move which makes taking photos of them a lot easier! Click here to find out more about my Little Sitter Sessions. 11 – 13 months: this is around the time that babies really start getting on the move – crawling, cruising, or even walking on their own. They are usually a bundle of energy and constantly on the go which can make getting them to sit still for any length of time for a photo much much harder. At this stage you might be interested in celebrating your baby’s birthday with a Smash & Splash Session – a cake smash or watermelon smash followed by a bubble bath in my mini clawfoot bath. Click here to find out more about my First Birthday Photo Sessions.
I hope this all helps! Please remember that your baby is never “TOO OLD” for photographs. You just need to be open to “going with the flow” and capturing your baby at whatever beautiful stage they are at.
I hope to meet you and your baby soon!