How to pick the right newborn photographer part 1 | Style

It can be tricky to navigate different types of newborn and Fresh 48 photographers, so here's a little guide to find the right type of photographer for you.

Searching for a photographer

You can find photographers through Google, for example, unless you already have some recommendations from friends. Photographers that show up on the first 5-10 pages or so are probably are the most active in your area.Because every photographer is an artist with their own vision and way of working, you need to look at their portfolio, their blog, and maybe even their social media to figure out what they are about.

How do I pick a style?

What do you want to feel when you get your pictures? Do you want to savor all those cute squishy baby details? Do you want highly polished artwork to hang on your walls, wether it's pretty or dramatic? Do you want pictures of just the baby, or the whole family? Do you want to capture the love you feel? Do you want to love in your partners eyes as they watch you feed your baby? Do you want the pictures to remind you of what baby looked like, or how you felt during those first few days?There are a few main styles of newborn photography out there to choose from depending on what you'd like from your pictures. I've had some client that have done both a documentary session with me and a posed session with a studio photographer – pretty cool!

Posed sessions with props

The photographer will have a collection of props and lights to use. You may need to head to a studio, or they might come to your house – ask about that if their website does not give you this information. The photographer might be able to use some important items from your home as a prop, like a quilt made by grandma. These fine art sessions usually may not involve parents in the pictures.Google search ideas:city/area/town posed newborn photographercity fine art newborn sessionscity traditional newborn photographercity newborn studio photographer(insert which ever city or area you hope to find your photographer in)

Lifestyle

Lifestyle sessions are usually done in the home, or in clean and bright spaces with some natural posing of parents with their newborn. The pictures are meant to emulate the precious, beautiful, happy, and peaceful moments in life.

Google search ideas:

[city/area] lifestyle newborn photographer

[city/area] natural light newborn photographer

[city/area] lifestyle fresh 48 photographer

[city/area] lifestyle fresh 48 hospital sessions

Documentary

Documentary, storytelling, natural, honest – whatever the photographer calls it, this usually means observing and documenting real moments as your life with a newborn unfolds naturally. Moments that may never happen again, captured without interruptions. Nursing, changing diapers, curious older siblings, sleeping babies, and sometimes napping parents, all make for great pictures.

You can find DFP registered documentary family and newborn photographers over here.

Google search ideas:

[city/area] documentary newborn photographer

[city/area] storytelling newborn photographer

[city/area] storytelling fresh 48 photographer

[city/area] documentary fresh 48 photographer

[city/area] natural hospital newborn sessions

Check consistency

If the photographer's style seems to range between many things, they may still be in the beginning of their journey and are not sure about what they like to do. This means that you might not get the type of pictures that you are hoping for, because they are testing out different styles for different clients. If a photographer on the other hand has a consistent style that you love, go for it!

Bonus tip

When looking for a photographer, you could search for images in Google with your search words. When you see pictures that you like, hop on over to that photographer's website to nose around.I hope this has been helpful!You can read some of my thoughts on documentary sessions over here.