Behind the Scenes – Capturing Relaxed and Natural In-Home Newborn Photography
Baby Oakley was born on 24th November 2022 and was just a week old when I visited his home in Yeovil for a newborn photoshoot. This is the perfect age for newborn family photos – babies still have that newborn look and they’re more likely to have their eyes closed and be sleepy and settled. So, let’s find out how it went…
Settling in and seeking natural light
Our photo session began with a cuppa and a chat with Oakley’s mum and dad, Joe and Emily, about the birth experience and the joys and challenges of being new parents. Some pre-session prep really helps a newborn photoshoot to go as smoothly as possible. Before the session I asked Joe and Emily to open all the curtains and turn off lamps and lights to help us seek out the perfect locations for natural light.
After our cuppa, we had a look around the house to find the best photo spots. It was a dark, wintry morning, but we found the nursery, the master bedroom and the second floor landing were the ideal locations.
However, I knew I wanted a photo where the light glowed between the new family and the windows in these rooms were a little low for framing Joe and Emily. Instead, we opted for the kitchen where some double doors gave us a lovely, soft light.
Time to get clicking
We then headed to Oakley’s nursery for some cuddled poses in the nursing chair. This is where I played around with levels, height and perspective. I love the contrast of Joe’s hands with Oakley’s little head, it just reminds you how dinky and delicate babies are at this age.
The master bedroom had big velux windows over the bottom corner of the bed, so we used this corner to lay Oakley down and get some shots of him on his own. I’d asked Emily and Joe to turn the heating up a bit to make sure it was nice and warm for Oakley when we got some photos of mum undressing him.
A simple way to capture emotive images is to encourage touch points, so I asked mum and dad to kneel and put their hands on Oakley. Not only did it soothe him and help him know they were still near, it framed him in the shot and looked really intimate and cosy.
A quick break before the final photos
We took a little tea break for Oakley to have a feed and then tried wrapping him in a swaddle, which can look adorable if a baby likes being swaddled. But Oakley wasn’t a big fan and was quite alert at this point. Instead we went for some open eye shots and I managed to get some where he looked towards the camera. Mum was holding him the whole time and he was soon back snoozing.
Earlier, I’d spotted a blank wall on the hallway on the way up to the master bedroom and I knew we could get some really simple but striking black and white images using the light here. This was the perfect spot for some beautiful images of the new family together.
At this point Oakley needed a quick nappy change (deftly handled by Dad) and we decided on our final location, which was the master bedroom again. This time, all three of them (and their dog Lulu) cuddled together on the bed for some family photos.
Holding on to newborn memories
And that was a wrap. It was time for me to go and leave the family to enjoy these precious early days with little Oakley. It was a privilege to play a small part in creating memories at this special time.
I hope you enjoyed this little glimpse into in-home newborn family photography.
I’m available for newborn photoshoots in Yeovil and the surrounding area. Please get in touch with any questions and to book a photo session.
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