The Great Debate
Life comes with lots of important choices.
Some commonly encountered ones for me include:
- Do I let our 2-year-old take the late afternoon nap? (Sure, it's peaceful now...but what about bedtime?)
- "Real" pants or leggings?
- Is today an "ice cream" day? (...The answer is yes - it's always an ice cream day).
I'm two years out of the blur that is the newborn phase of life, but I not-so-fondly remember trying to dress our new babies up in sweet little outfits while they were soundly sleeping and rushing them outside during the perfect evening light to snap a few photos. In each case, I was fresh out of a c-section and I'm certain my husband thought I was absolutely insane - especially with the third one, when I hauled her - in a picnic basket - with my camera bag and her two toddler-age siblings half a mile up a hill to the nearest field filled with daisies (never doubt a woman with a camera fueled by 800mg of ibuprofen and postpartum estrogen).
When it comes to picking a location for your newborn's first photos, the decision can seem overwhelming for a new mama. After all, these are the first real photos of you and your new nugget as a family! You want to make sure they're perfect. It doesn't help that different photographers all offer a variety of viable options to capture these first moments - all of which can make for beautiful photos: Fresh 48? Lifestyle? Posed? In-home? In-studio? On-location? Among all the other decisions new moms have to make before their baby comes home, it can make your head spin.
When I first started photographing families and babies, I watched the in-home photographers from a distance with both envy and awe. I loved the sweet little moments they captured over the baby's crib or with mom rocking their little love in the meticulously decorated nursery. I loved the bare toes, tiny bums, and authentic, unplanned moments that the in-home sessions yielded, but I was intimidated by all the unknowns of clients' homes: Would there be enough light? Would the rooms be large enough? What about clutter? Pets? Wild siblings roaming free in their natural environment?
Well in recent years, I made a concerted effort to intentionally shoot indoors and learn how to find and use natural light in even the tiniest, darkest rooms. I learned to shoot around the clutter and even embrace it for the purpose of storytelling. I found that even the wildest of siblings actually photographed better and more naturally in their own element than when carted off to a studio set or location. And most importantly, I developed a real love for the quiet moments I seemed to be able to find within the four walls of an in-home session that just couldn't be replicated anywhere else.
Why Choose In-Home?
Convenience: Above all the other factors that make in-home newborn photos appealing to new parents, convenience would have to be numero uno on my list. As a mom of 3 kids ages 6 and under, I know all too well the effort that goes into going ANYWHERE with children - especially a newborn. There's packing of the diapers, wipes, extra outfits, burp rags, bottles, breast milk or formula (in a cooler, nonetheless), binkies, blankets, and snot suckers, to name a few. And that's just for the littlest babe! Don't forget the pump parts, breast pads, and "personal care" essentials for mama; and snacks, drinks, diapers, toys, lovies, and extra clothes for siblings. Getting out the door in and of itself is difficult (that's without doing your hair!). Add in sleep deprivation, raging hormones, and the constant threat for blowouts and baby spit-up, and it's just a ball of stress. In-home sessions bring ME to YOU! You're not fighting to get out the door on time or worrying about if you packed all the supplies. I come to your house where you've already got the whole arsenal of baby "stuff" ready to rock and roll! Baby poops through their outfit? No big deal - you're at home! The closet is full of new outfits ready to go. Big sister has a meltdown because she's approaching naptime? It's fine - sit and read her a story while she settles in for a snooze: I'll capture that, too! Mom's running late because she had an unexpected feeding and still needs to do her hair? All good: I'll get pictures of Dad and baby while you get ready. With in-home sessions, we've got the flexibility to make it work for you, your family, and your baby without being a stressful experience.
Comfort: It's no secret that pregnancy and birth are hard work: Hard, relentless, painful, exhausting work. They leave our bodies stretched, swollen, torn, sliced, stitched, depleted, and forever changed. But they also yield the most amazing, miraculous gift! That being said, the weeks after birth can be difficult for everyone in a family, but particularly physically difficult for mom. I gave birth to all 3 of our littles via c-section. The first few weeks after were rough - basic movements and even breathing were painful. Recovery was a struggle by itself, but add in the demands of caring for a new baby and toddlers...ughhh. Electing to have an in-home shoot means we capture your family in the comfort of your own home. We move at your pace. We take breaks. We aren't racing the sunset or hurrying to meet a certain window of time at a studio. We make the session work for you no matter what stage of recovery you're in after birth.
Authentic Moments: When I started photographing my own babies, I mimicked the images I saw all over the internet: The posed, themed pictures that everyone had of their babies in perfect little swaddled-up positions, in baskets, buckets, bowls, boxes - you name it. And they were cute and sweet pictures. But as I grew more comfortable in my own space as a photographer and started capturing our "every day," I realized that the photos I truly LOVED of my kids were the authentic, sweet moments that were unposed and unplanned. There's something about taking photos in a family home that seems to allow everyone to take a big breath and relax. I can capture those awkward, but sweet, moments when Dad is changing a diaper for one of the first times; or those little naked baby legs that pop out of a loosely wrapped swaddle. I can catch the baby sleeping quietly in their crib, or a sibling peeking over mom's shoulder during a feeding. And don't get me started on fursiblings! A pup giving a little sniff or kiss to its newest buddy holds a special place in my heart.
Facts are: The rooms and spaces of your home have real meaning to you. Whether it's the blood, sweat, and tears that went into the renovation of that nursery, the history of an old home that has spanned generations, or the realization of a dream finally come true in a newly constructed place of your own, I assure you there's no better background than your home to capture photos of your family and newest addition!
Questions about in-home sessions? Reach out! I'd be glad to chat and share all the details.
