My Photo Session Wish List | Charlotte, NC Newborn Photographer

While every baby is different, following my tips for your newborn session just might help us keep your baby sleepy and content for a good long while. Brooklyn was a champ for her newborn session! That allowed me to check off many of the photos that are on my wish list for each newborn session.

Family photos. I usually try to get these done early in the session, in case any siblings are just ready to be done. I’m always very aware of how everyone is feeling. I can be flexible, but often knocking these photos out first works well. These also tend to be the most important images to the parents.

• Parents standing holding baby

• Parents seated holding baby

• Both parents’ hands on baby

• Both parents’ hands cupping baby’s feet

Baby with siblings.

• We’ll start sitting, if the siblings are old enough to hold the baby

• Then we can move to the floor or beanbag

• In some cases, we take whatever we can get!

Photos with each parent individually.

• Baby’s hand holding parent’s finger

• Looking at baby

• Holding baby up beside your face, cheek to cheek

• Baby on a shoulder

Photos with baby by herself.

• Swaddled

• Draped

• Curled up on beanbag

• Swaddled on fuzzy rug

The details!

• Ears

• Lips

• Eyelashes

• Hair

• Fingers and hands

• Toes and feet

• Creases, rolls, and wrinkles

Bonus images. If your baby is being particularly cooperative, I will keep shooting until I am satisfied with what I have. These images are a little more creative, and I always like to try them if I have extra time.

• Backlit family image

• Naked baby on beanbag

• Parents with hands on curled up baby

• Baby in a basket or bowl

Photographing Triplets! | Charlotte, NC Newborn Photographer

I’ve photographed my fair share of multiples. In the NICU alone, I’ve photographed 8 sets of twins in just the past year, 1 set of triplets almost exactly a year ago, and the Queen City Quints over seven years ago. 😮 The studio is a bit different than the NICU though! The Rileys’ triplets were born at 35 weeks. I was honored to be chosen by them to photograph their family and to have the opportunity to welcome triplets to my studio for the first time!

Naveya, Kaden, and Cosette were the perfect babies! I could not have imagined that this session would have gone as smoothly as it did. It turns out that everyone functions better on a schedule, and the Rileys have that down pat. 👏 The triplets were already over two months old by the time of our session, but it all worked out just fine. They were all fed just after they arrived, changed, and then I got to work on swaddling each of them. Then, it was finally time to pull out my camera!

Fortunately, we had lots of help behind the scenes, including two grandparents, and my assistant, Lauren. It was really nice to have an extra set of hands to help reposition heads and to convince Kaden to keep his eyes closed. 😆 This also allowed us to take good notes on what each baby was wearing throughout the session and who we had already photographed.

If want my advice on photographing triplets, here it is:

• Plan for best and worst case scenarios.

  • What photos are most important to the client?

• Make sure you have extra hands behind the scenes.

• Take notes!

Luca | NICU Portraits | Charlotte, NC Newborn Photographer

Luca weighed 2 lbs, 10 oz when he was born at 27 weeks and 4 days. His mom shared his birth story with me, “At 25 weeks my water broke while I was sitting in bed watching Netflix. We rushed to the hospital where they told us I had PPROM (Preterm Premature Rupture of Membranes) and would need to be transferred to CMC Main to stay until it was time for baby boy to come, with a goal to make it to 34 weeks.”

“We had our 20 month old daughter, Sella, at home, so being told I would be away from her felt tragic in itself.”

“We made it an additional 2.5 weeks in the antepartum unit at CMC Main when our baby boy Luca was born at 27 weeks 4 days at 2lb 10 oz. While we feel torn between spending time with our daughter at home and Luca in the NICU, we look forward to the day we can all be together as a family!”

Like many parents, Luca’s mom worried about capturing photos with him when the whole family couldn’t be in the NICU together. This is a conversation that I have often! Sometimes people don't want to be in the photos because their partner can't be there or the baby’s sibling(s) can’t be there. And sometimes there is a grandparent present who wasn’t prepared to be in photos. Regardless of the circumstances, I still encourage them to be in the photo. The baby will want to see THEM when they are older or when that family member is no longer around. Their child will simply appreciate seeing the love shared between them and whoever is able to be present!