Kate McCord – Central PA lifestyle newborn photographer
Gone are the days where everyone wants to take their squishy newborn to a photography studio and capture naked photos or swaddled photos of their baby in a bucket. While these photos remain timeless and beautiful, many people prefer the relaxed and natural look of lifestyle photos.
What are lifestyle newborn photos you may ask? The photos are unposed, “day in the life” type photos taken either in your home or in a lifestyle studio set up to look like a home. According to Nations Photo Lab, “The best type of lifestyle photography is a planned version of candid (“plandid,” if you will). You want to capture the art of the everyday in someone’s life, but you still want it to be visually appealing.”
In Home Lifestyle Sessions are a perfect way to capture precious photos of your new baby in the comfort of your own home. While we will still capture all of their tiny features and perfect squishiness, we will also be able to curate beautiful moments between you and your new baby that you will have to treasure forever.
These easy tips will have you and your family ready for your photographer to capture beautiful photos of your sweet, squishy new addition.
- Dress comfortably in neutral tones.
These sessions are meant to capture who you are as a family. However, while keeping that in mind, you also want to choose clothing that is comfortable and coordinates easily with your home decor (hello, we are framing these beauties!). In addition, the focus should fall on the baby and your connections and not on the clothing you’re wearing in the photos. Trends change so quickly, but neutrals remain timeless.
A comfy, flowy dress for mama. Or leggings and a loose top. Khakis or jeans for dad and a nice neutral toned henley or t-shirt. *chefs kiss*.
2. Tidy your space, (but don’t go crazy cleaning)
You just had a baby. The last thing you want to do is clean your house. I get it, seriously, mom of three here!!
Hear me out though, I am not recommending that you scrub the toilets or wipe down the baseboards. HARD PASS. Just pick a few places in your home that you think you’d like to take photos (think bedrooms, nurseries, and living rooms) and tidy them up. I am a pretty amazing magician when it comes to hiding things in your photos, but the easiest way is to hide it from the get go versus trying to remove it after the fact!
Hide things in closets. Shove them in drawers. I am not here to judge you or your home. I am just coming over to take amazing photos of this perfect tiny human you’ve created!
Don’t feel like even hiding the ever growing pile of things you have accumulated now that you’re a parent? NO STRESS. Bring yourselves to my lifestyle studio in downtown Mechanicsburg and snuggle your baby on my cozy bed or sit together in my big comfy chair. No cleaning. No guests. Doesn’t get much better than that!
3. Feed & change the baby just before your session
Babies are always hungry it seems. And feeding a newborn can sometimes be time consuming. So about an hour before your scheduled session time, try to feed your little one to fill up their tummies and get them cozy and ready to sleep. A full belly, a fresh booty, and a sleepy baby make for a very relaxing session.
Baby doesn’t want to sleep? No worries. Baby gets hungry mid-session? No problem. The baby is the boss here and I will wait for you to take care of their needs. Whether that need is to go into a quiet room and nurse/bottle feed your little one or to take photos while you feed your little one…the session is completely flexible to fit whatever baby needs.
4. Take a deep breath & relax
The best part about a lifestyle session is that it’s meant to capture life as it is right now. So don’t stress about your baby being awake, crying, fussing, or wanting to eat. I’m a mom too, so I’ve seen it all.
There’s no ticking clock. No stress. Just you, your spouse, and your baby. There will be lots of snuggling. Lots of admiring your cute little human. And maybe some baby cries here and there. But I’ve got some tricks up my sleeve to help keep baby calm and sleepy. To create beautiful moments. And to be sure I get all those perfect tiny features frozen in time because some day you will have a hard time believing they were ever this tiny!!
If you had a lifestyle newborn session, what was your favorite part of it?
