Newborn session preparation tips for parents:
1. Feed your baby around two hours before arriving at the newborn session and then do not feed baby again until after you arrive at the studio. This helps baby get in a good, full feeding right before photos.
2. Keep baby awake from just after the full feeding until you arrive at the studio. This will help your newborn to be extra tired for the shoot. Baths, playing and un-swaddling work well to keep newborns awake.
3. Slightly loosen baby’s diaper about two hours before your session. This helps prevent red marks.
4. Wash or sponge-clean your baby’s hair on the morning of the session. This will help make sure the hair is fluffy instead of oily in the photos.
5. You may want to have extra pumped milk or formula prepared in a bottle. Overfeeding helps baby stay really sleepy and we may bottle-feed several times with baby in various poses/positions.
6. Have baby’s pacifier handy (if you are comfortable with giving baby a pacifier). Even if the baby isn’t usually good at taking one, it can often be very helpful while they are settling into a pose.
7. I recommend not putting lotion on the baby the morning of the session (it ends up making them look shiny).
8. The photo room will be hot (probably around 25 degrees by Celsius) for baby to be comfortable naked, so you might be more comfortable wearing a tank top or t-shirt when we are not doing family/parent/sibling poses.
