Orange County Newborn Sessions
Jordyn is the second youngest baby I’ve ever photographed in my studio. She was only eighteen days old and completely cooperative. At least that’s how I remember her {completely cooperative}. When photographing newborns they tend to go through a cycle. Newborns arrive at the studio totally asleep or a bit cranky with their photographic agent {typically mom and dad} in tow. We get set up, I introduce my self to the baby who is often sound asleep and then mom feeds them and finally after a bit of time they fall asleep again. Yes, there’s the typical, peeing or sometimes what looks like an innocent stretch really is just a ploy, a distraction, an opportunity to fill up the diaper. And hey, that’s better than going all Linda Blair. Yes, it happens.
But I always tell parents that in its worth the wait till they fall asleep. That’s when you get portraits like the one below.
The studio lights are dim and the studio is extra warm
I always prep my studio for newborn portraits in a special way. I make sure that the light is dimmed down low, a vanilla candle is burning, I make sure that the heater has been cranking for a while so that the studio space is very warm for the baby. I have some extra super soft blankets to swaddle and wrap them up in. Lots of paper towels and baby wipes just in case. And I make sure that there’s some soft music on too. All my studio lighting is already dialed in so that we can place the baby and just photograph.
Something that I feel is very important is that mom is within arms reach of her little angel. For two reasons. One, in case her little one needs anything she’s literally just out of the frame. The second reason is I want to make sure that Jordyn is 100% safe. I’ll always prep mom and let her know that she’s also right there to make sure that her baby does not fall. In between changes in the position I ask mom to saddle the baby in one of our or her blankets to make sure that she/he is kept warm. Babies are so sensitive, even when they are sleeping. Even though to me, it feels quite warm in the studio I’ll notice after only 2-3 minutes of shooting a naked baby she/he will shiver, that’s when I know its time to wrap them up in a blanket.
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