What to wear
For the baby: nothing, a plain wrap, or a simple sleepsuit. Anything with slogans or hard fastenings dates the photograph and leaves marks. For…
In short: For the baby: nothing, a plain wrap, or a simple sleepsuit. Anything with slogans or hard fastenings dates the photograph and leaves marks. For parents: plain mid-tones, sleeves rolled, no busy prints — you are the background for the baby.
Colour. For the baby: cream, oatmeal, soft grey or nothing at all. Strong colours reflect onto newborn skin, which is already blotchy and red in the first fortnight, and the correction is difficult.
Fabric. Stretch jersey wraps and plain muslin. Anything with hard poppers, elastic or embroidery leaves marks on skin that stay visible for the whole session.
For the parents. Plain mid-tones with sleeves you can push up. You are the background: patterns pull the eye away from a face the size of an apple.
The thing that ruins frames. Slogan babygrows. They date the photograph instantly and they are the first thing anyone reads in the frame.
In the bag. More muslins than seems reasonable, a spare wrap, and a room thermometer — a newborn settles at about 24 °C and not below it. Hand sanitiser, short nails, and nothing scented on your hands.
Parents in the first two weeks, when a baby still curls and sleeps through almost anything — and after that, when they do not.
Location changes the answer: Home, in the room with the biggest window, on the floor or a bed pushed towards it. Heat the room several degrees above comfortable for adults. Turn every artificial light off; mixed light is the reason so many home newborn photographs are orange.
Planning pressure to account for: Booking too late and expecting the curled poses. Shooting under ceiling lights. Attempting propped poses seen online, which are composites. And scheduling only an hour — a newborn session runs on the baby's timetable and needs two to three.
Bring each proposed outfit as a complete look, including its shoes and accessories. The final choice is made against the actual background and light rather than from a generic colour rule.
For the baby: nothing, a plain wrap, or a simple sleepsuit. Anything with slogans or hard fastenings dates the photograph and leaves marks. For parents: plain mid-tones, sleeves rolled, no busy prints — you are the background for the baby.
For a one-hour session, plan one complete look and one quick variation such as a jacket, shoe or jewellery change. Two hours can normally support two or three resolved looks. More changes reduce shooting time, so photograph the most important outfit first and treat extras as options rather than promises.
Choose colours that separate clearly from the location and suit the intended use of the pictures. Solid tones and controlled texture are reliable; very fine checks, tiny stripes and reflective logos can distract or produce moiré. Send phone photographs of the options with the brief if you want a decision before the shoot.
Bring the garments on proper hangers, matching underwear, the shoes for every full-length look, a lint roller and simple touch-up products. Pack one neutral backup layer. Steam everything beforehand, but keep a small steamer nearby for travel creases and final adjustments on set.
Send the date, location and what you need photographed.