Newborn Photography – meet baby Ashley

Hadleigh newborn Ashleys photoshoot 

I am sharing some images from special little newborn Ashley’s photoshoot, Ashley travelled from Hadleigh Suffolk – literally four minutes down the road from my studio. Now Ashley was a much older baby as there were some health issues and so Ashley was born early, I got all the images Mum wanted plus more even though he was a much older baby. I’m going to explain about newborn shoots a little more in this post.

So what are some of the frequent questions I’m asked about newborn photography?

WHEN IS THE BEST TIME TO HAVE A NEWBORN SHOOT?

There is so much advice out there, it definitely is easier most of the time if a baby is under two weeks of age. I like photographing babies at around day 9-14 when baby has a really good feeding routine, and their cord has dropped off. I am however a baby whisperer and photographed babies up to the age of 5-6 months in a newborn style because of health issues the parents really wanted newborn style photos. So it can be done, but ideally you book in your due date – I leave room to move you around when baby arrives and if anything goes wrong don’t panic as we can still get those newborn images.

DOES THE PHOTOSHOOT TAKE PLACE IN A STUDIO OR AT YOUR HOME?

Dependant on the type of images you want, most shoots take place at my studio in Polstead Heath, which is near to Colchester and Ipswich, although home shoots can also be arranged. On the day of your photoshoot you arrive and settle down on the sofa, whilst I pose your baby once they’re happy and warm and settled. I am super hot on cleaning and everything is cleaned, steamed, disinfected before and after every shoot so you be assured your baby is in the best environment for their first photoshoot. When baby needs a feed I’m happy to leave the room if you’re breastfeeding if you wish, or make you a cup of tea or coffee. You are free to pick items and colours for your newborn shoot and if you’ve booked in plenty of time it also gives me time to order in any additional props. 

ARE YOU TRAINED IN SAFE NEWBORN PHOTOGRAPHY?

Absolutely! I am passionate about newborn safety and although I have been a photographer for 30 years now and always photographed babies and families, many years ago when the posed style of newborn photography began in the states, I initially had training with another photographer, namely for poses like frog pose, as I was already adept at positioning babies, I have since undergone hands on training, and regularly update my skills and invest in training and safety so you know your baby is always in the safest of hands. Yes parents frequently say I’m the baby whisperer and can they take me home! I love being able to pass on tips to new parents that are struggling with their new baby sleeping, I’ve handled hundreds of babies over the years and so know a huge wealth of information about winding babies, settling them, startle reflexes, milk coming in or not and signs baby isn’t hungry. So I’m really happy to help if you would like advice.

WHAT ARE THE PRICES AND WHY IS IT SO EXPENSIVE?

I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised if you book in with me, I’ve reduced my pricing this year to help with the cost of living crisis in this country, newborn photography tends to be expensive because it takes time to set up your session, time for the session, photographers can spend years collecting beautiful props, I particularly ensure I use products that have been produced ethically, I never buy cheap props from China where maybe they’ve hurt a rabbit sourcing its fur, or workers are underpaid. On top of this the wear and tear on a camera, insurance, heating – the list goes on, so it’s a very fair price that you pay. Sometimes a photographer can be out of your budget, what you need to weigh up is that these photos will last a lifetime, long after the newborn stage has zoomed past, your designer pram has been sold on or put in the loft, you will always have perfect pictures of your beautiful little new baby, with their little wrinkles, flaky skin, milk spots, little tiny fingers and toes.

If you can think of more questions please get in touch, not only is it great for you to know but I think it helps you appreciate the special experience of having your babies first newborn shoot taken by a highly trained and experienced newborn photographer.

Harry Potter newborn shoot

Back to baby Ashley’s newborn photos. Every family chooses the images they like for their session. I have a vast portfolio of all the hundreds of babies I’ve photographed over the years so it can give parents ideas for what they’d like for their photosession, or I can create something special for every image. As I’ve been doing this job for so many years, I am extremely versatile so if you love plain and simple or lifestyle newborn images then that’s what we do. If you’re a Star Wars fan or fan of the Office or Harry Potter or a Disney Princess then that can also be done, or a mix of images.