The birth of a new baby is such an incredibly sacred and special time in our lives and one that deserves to be documented. The images I have of my children in their first two weeks at home with us are my absolute favourite images and the ones I cherish the most. So much of our world has changed due to the corona virus & currently it is no longer a possibility to hire a photographer to come and take your newborn photos but this shouldn't stop anyone from being able to capture those precious fleeting moments on their own so I thought I would create a little blog post to help parents do just that by sharing some basic tips. 

Whether you have a point and shoot camera, a dslr, or just your phone it doesn't matter, you will  be able to capture special moments with whatever equipment you have that you will be able to treasure for years to come. The plus side of taking your own photos is that there is no time restraint! You can take your time and wait for perfect moments to appear.

FIND THE LIGHT~ Probably the most important advice I can give you is to be aware of the light. I recommend turning off all artifical light because it can easily give you an orange or yellow colour cast which is never very pretty & finding a window to be close to. Even if it feels very dark after you've turned the overhead light off using the natural light that comes through the window will create much more beautiful images. The time of day also plays a role, you don't want to photograph in front of a window when you have direct sunlight streaming into it as it can cause harsh light and shadows although in some cases this can create some great images too (my youngest had jaundice and we needed to follow the winter light to sunbathe him and I managed to capture some great images using harsh light!)

Once you've discovered where & when the nicest light falls in your house now it's time to think about the moments you want to capture. Obviously the best time to do photos is when your baby has just been fed so that they are at their most content state and also make sure they are warm and cosy but I don't think I need to tell you that! It can feel overwhelming to know where to begin so below I list my favourite shots that I try to get during sessions.

1. Baby with Mama. Even if you don't feel like being in any images because you are exhausted, I encourage you to make yourself be in them. These are images that in years to come you will treasure. Have your partner take images from above you which is the most flattering and you just need to be looking down at your baby, you don't need to be looking at the camera. Capture moments of you feeding your baby. Even take photos yourself of baby asleep in your lap. I took a lot of these and even though you can't see my face it is me in them! 

2.Baby & Hands. These are some of my favourite images and really emphasise how little they are. 

3. Sibling photos. capturing moments of connection, the type of images you are able to create will depend on the ages of the siblings but try to have your camera ready when they are interacting. Candid moments are the best!

4. Skin to skin images are my absolute favourite and I tend to do a lot of these with the dads. 

5. Simple portraits with baby laying next to your face is another good position for some great portraits.

5.  Focus on their little feet, their hands, their lips, their nose you don't want to forget those sweet little details! 

6. Capturing their first bath is always a good one too! 

I know I didn't really share much here in regards to the basics of photography, I could have gone into aperture and shutter speeds and shared more technical things but I don't think any of that is too important and who has the brain to absorb all those things when you are in the midst of those foggy but delicous newborn days! The most important thing is to get that camera out and take photos!!