(This is a blog post from 2016 –
hop on over here for an updated version for 2017!)There is so much beauty in the emotions and the mess that follows from having a new little human being in your life. The images will show your kids what their first home was like, how you cherished them right from the start as well as how utterly exhausting it can be to have a new "roommate" move in.Here's what to expect from an in-home newborn session with me:
I'd love to talk to you on Facetime/Google Hangout, or meet you for coffee. I will be documenting an intimate time of your life, and I want to make sure you are comfortable with me.
You'll sign a contract and pay a retainer to hold your spot. We won't do either of these things until you are in your third trimester, but it is a good idea to contact me before then to hold a spot incase your due month is busy for me. I will send you both the contract and the invoice electronically.
You will text or call me when you've had your baby. Then we can plan your session date!
You may be tired. And baby will be tired, hungry and grumpy. Don't worry about baby sleeping and not being awake for pictures – the sleepy squishy phase is just the best! If baby is already around a month old when you want your pictures done, he/she may be more alert.Preparation? The only thing I want you to do is open up curtains and blinds. If you want to clean it is up to you, but I’m there to capture how your life is at this very moment which means I'm not scared of clutter!
Moms and hair. I recommend doing your hair in a way that keeps it from falling onto your face when you're looking down at your little one.
How you dress matters. To have an honest record of your family, you should dress like you do every day. Too match-y outfits are not real, and are best reserved for formal portraits. Neutral colors are best, since bold colors might reflect color onto your baby. Avoid solid white and black as well, since they might look unflattering because of the amount of contrast I use in my post-processing.
Be you. Almost all of my moms feel self conscious especially after having a baby, but what I like to bring up is that these pictures are keepsakes for the kids. Thinking back I never cared about how my mom physically looked in our childhood pictures (or in real life); it's the expressions, the action and the connections that are most important.
I will show up in comfy clothes and take my shoes off. I have to be comfortable enough to be able to move around you guys while taking pictures.
I might talk to you every now and then. I want to get to know you so I can get a feel for what is important to you.
Don't mind me! I'll be climbing on chairs, crawling on the floor and getting close up and personal with my camera.
There may be gaps of time when I don’t take pictures. This means I’ve already taken some great shots of the scene, and am now waiting for a moment to happen – maybe a delicious yawn? I might also be listening or watching for clues about what would be important to document.
You'll pay the remaining balance by the day of the session. Then I can start editing your pictures right away – high five!
You'll get your digital files asap. Unless something very dramatic happens, I can edit your files in 2-3 weeks. If you need an image or two for an announcement, I can crank a couple of them out within 24h. I will let you know if I have any plans that may change the delivery time.
I can’t wait to hear your reaction about your photos. I’m checking my email every seventeen seconds while I wait for a comment from a family I’ve sent pictures to. I pour so much love into the pictures, and hope they make the family as happy as they make me.
Let me know if there are images you do not wish to be shared online. Usually I'll write a blog post, or post some images on social media. It is very important to me that my clients can trust me, and are comfortable with anything that I would share online. Situations where families might ask me to not share could be breastfeeding images for example.
You can choose to order prints or photo books from me. I use an amazing print spot for pictures and am obsessed with their museum grade paper quality. A photo book could make for a cherished coffee table read.I can recommend you a spot for printing, if you want to DIY it.
Recommendations and reviews are important. There are few things that make me feel better than a client who raves about their photos enough to encourage their friends to book me for a session of their own. A written testimonial or a review on
Yelp/
Facebook helps me book future clients, too, and is greatly appreciated.
We are done! Until next time.
*Bonus! When someone you refer to me books a session, you can choose an image of your own to be printed (on that glorious museum grade paper) as a thank you from me to you.
