Why A Maternity Photoshoot is Key

A maternity photoshoot is something every expectant mother should partake in. It’s a very rare opportunity to capture a unique season of your life. I don’t think you ever have to have a reason to partake in a photoshoot. Life moves by lightning fast and that’s reason enough to have photos taken just because. However, if there was one occasion that I believe everyone should have photos taken, it’s during pregnancy. 

Pregnancy is one of the most beautiful phases of life, and is worth having photos captured. Here are some reasons why everyone should consider a maternity photoshoot.

Maternity is Worth Celebrating 

Maternity used to be a 9 month period where women were all about hiding their stomachs as much as possible. Maternity clothing followed the baggier the better trend. Not many woman at all were confident in their bodies. Nowadays that has all changed, and thank goodness!

Being pregnant is one of the most miraculous stages of life as a woman. Believe it or not, one of the most important, if not the most important role of a woman on earth is to bear children. Children are a blessing and a miracle worth celebrating in your womb.

Pregnancy looks very different for each and every woman. Some woman have a really tough pregnancy, with a lot of mood swings, weight gain, you name it. Other woman, it’s more a breeze and they don’t necessarily mind being pregnant. Whatever the case may be, I believe that it’s worth celebrating, and remembering.

Pregnancy isn’t about covering up and pretending like you aren’t creating a human inside your stomach. Once you have your first child, you realize there aren’t many things out there that can top that moment.

You Are Still Beautiful 

Just because you’re pregnant does not mean that you aren’t worthy of being in front of a camera. It’s just the opposite. I believe that you are even more beautiful when you are pregnant. 

Not only are you simply beautiful, but have you ever heard about that natural glow? It’s true. What causes this glow? When you’re pregnant your body produces extra blood, as well as extra hormones, which naturally leaves your skin plump and rosy.

Not only are you glowing, you have additional curves, which are worth celebrating! Maybe this is the first time you’ve heard this, but ask your significant other. Lots of men are all about curves, especially if you are carrying their baby.

During pregnancy you may feel irritable and sluggish, but committing to a photoshoot, getting a cute outfit or lingerie set, and putting on some makeup will make you feel all the more powerful in this season of life. It may be the last thing you feel like doing, but let me tell you, you will be so thankful you did it.

Even if you need to hire some sort of glam squad or a friend to come over and help you out, whatever strings you have to pull, it is worth it.

It Is Only Seasonal

Don’t ever just think, oh well, maybe I will just get the photos done next pregnancy. Every pregnancy is different and therefor it won’t be the same. Also, becoming pregnant is the ultimately blessing because not everyone can get pregnant when they want to.

As majority of people know, pregnancy lasts nine months, so it’s not something you can just decide to keep putting off. It may sound like the last thing you want to do, but when this season is all said and done, and you were hiding behind the cameras all year long, you are going to wish you stepped in front of the camera so you can remember what you look like.

Pregnancy is a period of time where you may be thinking I will never forget this stage of my life. But, the truth is you do! That is why a lot of people keep pregnancy journals. It’s interesting to look back and see what foods you craved for what kids and how different children gave you a different pregnancy experience.

A Photoshoot Brings Confidence 

It’s time to embrace your pregnancy and get excited! This is a photoshoot that can be really fun and exciting. I think every pregnancy is worth celebrating, but first time mothers, it’s even more special. 

Day after day of looking at yourself in the mirror, you may not be as confident and feel as beautiful as you once were, but this type of photoshoot can restore that confidence.

What you can expect from a maternity photoshoot, is really similar to other photoshoots, except the focus will be on your belly. I suggest wearing clothing that draws attention to your stomach while flattering the rest of your body.

When I take your maternity photos, I make sure to shoot from angels that highlight and draw the eye to your mid section while flattering the rest of your body. The more confident you are, the better the photos will turn out.

It is your option if you would like to have a maternity photoshoot with just you and I or if you would like to make it a family affair.

If it isn’t your first child, it’s fun to have your other kids in the photos. If it’s your first child, I like to get a good bunch of solo shots from the expectant mother, with some shots of the father in their as well. As much of a moment this is for the mother, we will give the dad some credit as well. Heck, he has to put up with us during this time and his first child is just as big of a deal for him.

Final Words

To sum it up, becoming pregnant is exciting and worth celebrating, you are still beautiful and a professional photoshoot can ultimately restore the confidence you’ve been lacking. After your maternity photoshoot, it only makes sense to continue getting pictures taken of your newborn.

I offer two newborn packages to choose from. Option one allows you to get new photos of your newborn taken everything three months and the second package allows you to get photos of your newborn done every 6 months through their first year.

4 Tips For Newborn Photos In Your Home

When you have a newborn baby, it can be a hassle and a bit stressful taking your baby out of the home. For those of you who can relate to this, I wanted to give you some practical tips to help you create and capture your own memories of your newborn from the comfort of your home.

Create your own mini photoshoot or have a photographer come to your home and have professional unique photos without having to go anywhere!

Find Inspiration

Whether you decide to go with a professional photographer or not, it is still up to you to find inspiration. Photographers can point you in the right direction and provide you with inspiration of previous photoshoots, poses, and props they’ve used, but it’s up to you to make it your own.

This is what is fun about planning and prepping for the photoshoot! You get to tie in any significant props or attire that may be unique to your family. Maybe you’re thinking, well we don’t have anything unique. Does your family have a favorite sports team? Throw on a little onesie or hat and show your home team pride in the photoshoot. Or maybe, your parents gifted their grandchild with a homemade blanket. That would be a great prop to use in the photoshoot. 

There are so many different directions you could go with your newborn photos which makes it all the more fun. You also have the option of being involved in the photoshoot, perhaps swaddling your child or kissing them on the forehead. If you liked to stay behind the scenes more, we can keep the spotlight on your child! No worries at all.

My favorite spots to look for inspiration are Pinterest and instagram. There are extremely cute ideas on both platforms. Feel free to copy someone’s idea and then make it your own!

Decide a Theme

After finding inspiration, naturally this will help you decide your theme. Like I previously suggested, you can go the sports route, you can go the girly route with floral incorporated, you can go to the uber cozy route, with just tons of blankets and fuzziness or we can do a little bit of both.

Maybe Christmas time is coming up and you want to focus on a holiday type photoshoot. We will incorporate a festive holiday onesie, Christmas lights, fur blankets, candy cane props, maybe a mini sleigh and you’ll have Christmas photos you’ll never want to forget.

Perhaps you don’t want to really have a theme or celebrate anything specific. Maybe you just want to document your baby’s growth.

Maybe your theme isn’t revolved around a holiday or specific attire, but it’s a certain color. Perhaps you want to match a certain room in your home, or add some cute photos to your baby nursery.

I also offer the option of an in home styling photoshoot or the use of my professional studio space. In home styling offers the impression of a “candid” type photoshoot. Essentially a very natural and authentic photo capture of your everyday lives to an extend. It gives the impression of you doing what you do without even realizing that there is a photographer there. 

A studio photoshoot, gives that more formal and professional feel. The lighting and the setting are staged, but that’s the point! Everything looks perfect, including your child. With a studio space there is a little bit more flexibility involved when it comes to changing themes and studio settings.

The nice thing about a studio space, you as the parent don’t have to do any work! It’s set up and ready to go before you even get there. No need to worry about if you home is clean enough, or decorated well enough. This takes a lot of pressure off of you! As a busy mom or dad, the best option is usually going to be what makes your life easier, I get it.

Create a Cozy Space

Crank Up The Heat

Whether you decide to do an at home or in studio photoshoot, the most important part of getting great photos from a newborn is to make sure they are cozy and in a restful state. One thing you can do to make this happen, is crank up the heat a little bit or grab an extra heater for the room you are taking photos in.

We’ve all been there before, after you’ve eaten and are in a warm cozy spot, you’re bound to fall asleep. That is the goal for this photoshoot! The deeper the sleep the baby is in, the better.

Not only is the temperature of the room important, we want the baby to be swaddled or atleast cozy to an extent.

Warm Up Your Hands

Not only should the room and setting be cozy and warm, make sure your hands are warm as well. Whether that means running them under warm water before the shoot or using gloves when you pick up the baby, this is a step that is crucial and oftentimes overlooked. Imagine if you were taking a warm nap and someone with cold hands touched you, I’m sure we would all be a little caught off guard.

Use Blankets & Baskets 

In addition to a warm setting, what is going to make the baby comfortable and the newborn photos to turn out so fantastic is a photogenic setting. Specifically for a newborn photos, the key is to get the baby to cuddle up like they were still in the womb. I suggest using blankets of all different kinds of textures to keep the photos dynamic.

In addition to blankets, I love to use baskets or small spaces to encourage the baby to curl up. The cutest part of newborn photos is when they naturally get in this position. Once they start to become a month or two old, they naturally start to stretch out and are less likely to do this. This is why scheduling your professional newborn session or planning your own in home photoshoot is crucial to do within a few weeks of birth.

Use A Letter Board For A Touch of Fun

One of my favorite trends recently, has been the use of letter boards. Letter boards are a great way to add communication and direction to a photoshoot. Just by looking at a baby you may not know their age, or weight, but using a letter board is a cute way to document that.

Letter boards are commonly used during newborn photos as well. Not only is it important to document your newborn, but it’s super fun to document mom during her pregnancy. If you’re documenting moms progress or the babies progress a professional photoshoot can get expensive if you’re wanting to document once a month. I suggest getting a professional photoshoot done at least once per year, if not twice, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be taking your own photos in between.

Not only can you use the letter board for documentation, but if you wanted to add some humor or charm to a photo, adding a little saying like this one is bound to get a lot of a laughs.

The greatest part of letter boards is that they come in handy for so many different occasions or decorations around the house. This little investment is beyond worth it. I suggest checking out Letterfolk’s instagram page for cute inspiration for different ways you could use the letter board.

Final Words

Whether you can afford a professional photoshoot or not, everyone is capable of creating their own little mini photo session with their newborn baby. Find your inspiration, get creative, crank up the heat, gather everything cozy in site, and add a letter board for a touch of fun and you are good to go.

It isn’t realistic to solely rely on your professional photoshoots to document your baby’s growth. Part of being a mom is having thousands of photos of your baby just taking up all of the storage in your phone. But instead of just taking a bunch of thoughtless photos, make it a goal once a month to plan a little photoshoot. If you aren’t sure what kind of theme to go with, think about what month it is and what season it is and if there are any holidays worth celebrating!

I hope this helps inspire you to take on the photographer role more often in your daily lives and encourages you to seek out professional photoshoots at least once or twice every year! 

FAQ’s for Family Portrait Sessions

Scheduling a family portrait session can often times be more overwhelming than it needs to be. I believe a lot of people just keep putting off their session because maybe it’s their very first time using a professional photographer and they just aren’t sure what to expect. I don’t blame them, the unknown is always scarier than the known.

Here are a few questions that I commonly get asked and my answers to help you have a fun and exciting family portrait session.

Should You Coordinate Your Outfits?

There is something special that just brings pure joy when we look back on family portraits. Family portraits are moments that will be cherished forever, and this is why we need to make sure everything is planned ahead of time including coordinating outfits for the entire family. Whether you are taking your annual photoshoot or trying to replace the current photo you have above the mantle, you need to make sure that your family looks their best.

There are many things to consider and keep in mind when coordinating outfits for family photos. This process may seem overwhelming at first, but it shouldn’t be very difficult. Start by focusing on outfits that will allow your photo to have a timeless feel. For example, Spring or Fall photos are recommended because those two seasons are more nuetral and as opposed to photos on the beach or decked out in winter coats. We have come up with this tips to help you coordinate your family photo shoot outfit:

Coordinating Colors Not Matching

Your outfits should have colors that coordinate well, however every family member doesn’t have to wear the same outfit. Although families represent a bond, each family is made up of individual family members. It’s important to be cohesive while also letting everyone share a bit of their personality through the photos. The last thing you want your family photos to portray is that you all are twins or almost robot looking. You can achieve a more natural look across the board by choosing two primary colors and then adding a simple tone to complete your color scheme.

For example, for the Fall family photoshoot, I would recommend blue jeans, a burnt orange color and some olive green. Or maybe you want to do khakis and a pop of red plaid.

Look At Your Home Decor

If you plan on hanging the photos in your house make sure that the color of the clothes you wear in your shoots go well with the color scheme of your home. If you want to add color to your home maybe coordinate more pops of color in your outfits. If you want to match the neutral shades of your home than choose more subtle colors.

Think About Accessories

Accessories and the small details in the outfit will make your photo look so much more fun. So, when coordinating accessories, you can have the kids play with hats or necklaces and have the father wearing a scarf or tie.

How Often Should We Do A Family Photoshoot?

Having a family portrait session is often on everyone’s mind but gets left off the to-do list often. We always want to take the time and money to get our family all in the same shot, dressed nicely, everyone smiling for the camera, but we also come up with excuses. “My kids are too wild; they’d never sit still for a picture.” “We can do it next year, no harm in skipping it again this year.” “My kids haven’t changed that much.” “I’d love to have them, but it’s too complicated to find a time, schedule and locate a photographer.”

So, the answer to this commonly asked question is – as often as you’d like. There is no rule of the socially prescribed norm for how often you should engage your family photographer. However, there are basic thoughts to be taken into consideration concerning this; for instance, you need to

1.  Take Into Account Things Like The Age Of Your Kids.

They are only this age now. Soon they will be grown up or perhaps unwilling to have their photo taken. Taking family photos at several different developmental milestones throughout each child’s life are quite recommendable, such as the newborn stage,  pre-school years, grade school and of course at the attainment of teenage years and maturity. This allows you to reminisce at your family’s development over the years.

2. Take Photos For Notable Events and Seasons

For example, any first days of school, finishing school, Christmas, birthdays, family vacation, awards and presentations, weddings or even a family reunion are all great reasons to schedule a family portrait session. 

Most of these events encourage families to get together, so it’s an excellent opportunity to include everyone, especially distant relatives and close friends. This also allows the younger ones to enjoy time and memories spent with cousins, aunts and uncles and grandparents. However, the case may be, through pictures taken at such occasional gathering and events, later in the future.

3. Take The Weather Into Account

If you are still confused about how often to take a family holiday photo shoot, taking a family photograph during different seasons is pretty cool. Winter photos are vastly different from Summer photos. Autumn is my personal favorite because it’s a great chance to catch some colourful images like the leaves changing and include the beautiful landscape in the photos.

4. Time Doesn’t Repeat Itself, So The Best Time Is Now

Take random family portrait sessions during unexpected moments to capture precious memories.

In all, there is no limitation as to how often to take a family photo. Every one to two years would be a fantastic record of your family’s growth. It does not need to be an expensive exercise, and a good family photographer can guide you well.

What Do I Need To Know Before Booking a Photoshoot?

 

The million dollar question. It can be a tiring process, booking a photo shoot. There are a lot of things to be considered when thinking of booking family photos. This article is meant to help you with the right questions to ask before booking a photo shoot. You have to have answered some of these questions yourself before diving into the whole thing. The first thing you should look at is:

1. Your Budget.

How much you are planning to spend on this is going to determine who you choose to shoot with. Fact is, you probably have no idea how much you’d like to spend – which is understandable. It is hard to know how much a photographer will cost. What you should do is find a photographer whose work you truly enjoy and ask how much they will cost. Then, from there, think of how far you would be willing to go to pay for quality.

2. Imagery

What kind of imagery do you want? All that matters is your satisfaction with the style of imagery the photographer uses. If they show you a series of photos, and you like their style, then go for them, even if it means you have to spend more. Quality, not quantity, remember? Also, find someone whose images connect with you. It is a bad idea to invest your money into images that you won’t end up liking.

3. Purpose

What is the purpose of your family portrait session? Family holiday photoshoot? Christmas photo shoot? Most photographers have a photo shoot they do best. It’s the specific field where their creativity pops out. Choose a photographer who you think will get the moment exactly right before you book them.

4. Time-frame

How long will it take them to get everything done and sent to you? Every photographer has their different workflow. What might take someone a day to finish, might take another a month or two to finish because they have different projects to finish. Before booking a photo shoot, find out how fast they can get your pictures back to you if you need them by a certain day.

5. Studio or Location

Find out which is more comfortable with the photographer. However, it depends on the one you’d like to go for. If you want a home studio, and your photographer doesn’t have space, it might probably cost more if you’re hell-bent on a home studio photoshoot.

Top 5 Ways To Use Your Family Portraits

One of the reasons I started my photography business is because of how important portraits are to me. Often times pictures can be overlooked and underrated. You may just assume you can snap a shot on your iphone and instantly upload it to Facebook and you’re good to go. I think if used correctly, portraits can make a powerful difference in your home. 

Facebook and social media are great places to store your photos because they are automatically time stamped and easy to access no matter where you are. However, what if something were to happen to Facebook or Instagram? The same can be true for physical copies. What if something happened to a physical copy of a photo? Either way I suggest having multiple copies of photos stored in various locations just in case.

The message behind this post, isn’t to make sure you never have to leave your photos behind, but more so, to inspire you to use your new family portraits in a way you may never have thought of. Here are five great ways to get the most out of your family portraits.

Blow It Up

If you have a great family photo, why not get the most out of it by blowing it up. Bigger is always better, right? Okay this may not necessarily be the case, but if done right, a blown up picture makes a great statement in your home.

Most people get their photos printed to put in a 5×7 frame, but I think there is something so great about going above and beyond and blowing the photo up. Artwork, and mirrors are very popular when it comes to filling up blank spaces, but you can only have so many mirrors, and why not use your family portraits as a piece of art?

I recommend hanging the picture on a giant wall either in your family room or your living room. I believe that what often times makes a house feel like a home is when there are family photos. A home becomes a home when there are memories spent there with loved ones.

If you know ahead of time that you are going to blow up this family photo, I would pay special attention to the clothing that you choose to wear for that photoshoot. Make sure that the color scheme of your outfits also coordinate with the color scheme of your home decor. For example, you most likely wouldn’t want to blow up a holiday family portrait because red sweaters and fuzzy coats may not look the best hanging on your wall in the middle of June.

Photo Album or Book

If you wanted to keep your family portraits more private and personal to you, a photo album or printed book is a perfect alternative. Photo albums have been around for a very long time and I believe they aren’t going anywhere. Even with the popularity of Facebook, having all of your photos kept in one special spot and decorating it if you choose to do so, is irreplaceable.  

I remember how much I valued the photo albums that were created for me during my childhood and since then I have tried to carry on the tradition.

I feel as though decorating and creating photo albums is definitely becoming more of a past time, and simply because they are time consuming. Picking out the background paper, cutting the pictures, adding labels or stickers and all of the additional things you can do to it takes a lot of effort.

It’s definitely much easier to simply click the upload button on Facebook, but the thought and personalized touch that goes behind creating a photo album speaks volumes. If you just simply aren’t impressed with your decorating or crafting abilities, there are multiple other ways you can create a book or photo album without touching a pair of scissors or tape.

Companies like Shutterfly have made your lives as easy as possible. All you have to do is still click that upload button but instead your photos are printed into a photo album type book. This alternative gives you the best of both worlds.

Wall Decor Photo Collage

A photo collage is a great way to display your family portrait collection. A photo collage is a great way to get representation from multiple family members. If you have a large family or extended family and it’s important for you to include everyone then this photo collage will be your best bet.

A photo collage takes a little bit more effort in terms of design, and picture frame hanging, so make sure you are up for a little bit of a challenge. If you know that you are interested in a photo collage, but aren’t sure where you should begin, I recommend heading to Pinterest and finding inspiration.

Are you going for the random but organized look or do you want all of the your frames lined up symmetrically? Do you want to have all matching frames or do you want to have all different kinds of frames? Do you want to have all of the same size photos or a variety?

And maybe you have no idea the answers to any of these questions, but once you check out Pinterest and find your inspiration, that should clear up any of your uncertainty.

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Picture Frames

If you’re more of the traditional type, then stick to your guns and go that route. Print your 5×7 photos and frame them, however make sure these photos are high quality and strong family portraits. If these photos are going to be displayed, they should be the best of the best photos.

If you don’t think that you have any high quality photos, I encourage you to contact me to schedule a photoshoot. High quality photos are irreplaceable and they capture a moment in time that could otherwise be easily forgotten.

Holiday Cards

Tis the season! Family portraits aren’t just for home decor, but for sharing the holidays with your friends and family. A Christmas card is one of the best ways to wish everyone close to you a happy holiday and keep in touch with people you may have lost regular connection with.

Christmas cards are fun to receive every year and see how much certain families have grown and changed over just one year. A Christmas card is another great way to timestamp moments.

The Benefits of Holiday Family Photoshoot

Some people say memories made with your family are the very core of a person’s being. I share this belief. See, a person’s family is what shapes a person into who they will become. It’s the time spent with them that fine-tunes an individual. And what better way is there to make these memories and moments than to go for a holiday family photoshoot.

Although said lightly, this idea has over the years been a highlight for a lot of families. Family holidays are breaks from our everyday busy lives. They are reliefs to the human soul, body, and mind. For children, these family holidays make some of the “fondest childhood memories”. The excitement, the love, the experience and the getting to know each other better are just some of the small benefits.

Below are a few reasons why you should consider booking a family photoshoot for the holidays.

1. Create Memories

This is usually the number one reason people will book a family holiday photoshoot. You create moments and memories that bring you closer. Such memories that once the holiday is over, and you’re back to your everyday hectic life, you can go back to those moments by checking on those photos. In the wider sense, memories can transport us back to that time of feeling; the smell, the touch and sound, and ultimately put us back in that time of life. Especially having children who grow up so quickly, it’s important to capture those memories together.

One of my favorite parts of a family photoshoot is seeing families reunite with their family members who may live out of state or went away to college. Everyone comes together, leaving all their work and worries to focus on this holiday. Happiness radiates around this point in time. If you’re with them, you get to see beautiful sceneries, like say, you were in Cincinnati, Ohio.

2. Relaxation

The benefit of a family photoshoot, unlike when you’re with your friends, you don’t need to put up appearances. Since they’re family, I’m assuming you all know each other well enough; the journey, struggles and joy that have been met, passed through, and experienced. I’ll tell you this. There is something about being understood and accepted. It does something to you. It provides you with comfort and acceptance.

I love being able to capture the different personalities and relationships among family members.

3. Nurturing Family Relationships

Going on a family holiday photo shoot allows you and your family to build and grow your relationships. Sure there is social media now. You could use FaceTime, but nothing beats being with your family in the car, at the photo shoot location talking, sharing stories, and recalling family moments. These moments are to die for. The laughter that comes from remembering something ridiculous that your mom, your dad or your child did at a certain point in time.

4. Knowledge Will Be Gained

Spending time with your family means everyone gets to learn more about each other. You get to catch up and discover new things about each other. It creates a feeling of understanding, connection and, belonging.

Where Can I Use These Photos?

The question remains, where is the best possible place to put the photos you took on your holiday family photoshoot. Where would be the perfect place where everyone would be continuously reminded of the moments you’ve shared together. There are many places a person can place pictures in a home. It’s endless really. But I’ll only be talking about a few below.

1.  Living Room

The living room is the primary place in a house. Do you get the point? It’s where your visitors sit while they wait for you. It’s where you and your friends talk about the stress of work or the latest gossip in town. It is where your family photos should be. Stick them on the walls. Just a few will lighten up your living room. They would also make the atmosphere more intimate and the room cozier. I recommend using a sleek wall shelf and placing them asymmetrically, at different heights.

2. Kitchen Gallery

Family photos shouldn’t be limited to just your living room alone. Think of it. Why not put reminders of the moments you’ve had with your loved ones in the kitchen as well?

If you still enjoy having some decor on your refrigerator, there you go! Everytime you go to grab a bite to eat you can be reminded of how thankful you were to get to spend that quality time with your family members.

3. Dining Room

How about the dining room? Place some photos on the wall adjacent to the dining table. That would turn the atmosphere into an intimate one when the family is all gathered around to have dinner.

4. Facebook

Facebook is also an excellent place to keep your memories. It is one of those places where you get to keep your memories for as long as you possibly can. Sometimes myself, I still go to my Facebook page and look through my photos. It reminds me of what has been, the emotions at the time, the sound, the touch etc. Putting these photos on Facebook also lets your friends and family have an idea of what you and your family have been up to – the fun and experiences everyone had.

5. Christmas Card

Another way of saving your memories is to put them in Christmas cards. Say you wanted to send a Christmas gift to your grandparents, or a family member who has been asking of your own family. Send them a Christmas card with your family photo in it. Seeing that will make them happy. Christmas cards have been a tradition for a very long time and I really hope it doesn’t go anywhere. I personally, love receiving Christmas cards from friends and family.

Cincinnati Baby Photography: Age Matters

I will always say that every age is the perfect age to get baby photos taken, and no matter how old your baby is, I guarantee you will go home with stunning images that capture your baby’s beautiful self. So no need to stress out if you didn’t get on board in time for newborn photos, it’s never too late to capture the moment.

However, if you haven’t had your child yet and you’re hoping to plan ahead, there are certain things you may want to pay attention to. In order to nail that dream, most likely, Pinterest inspired photoshoot and make sure your baby will hold those specific poses you had in mind, it helps to have them be in the right age group.

During the first year of birth, your baby will go through so many physical changes and growth at the blink of an eye. If you are looking to get photographs of your child before they turn one, this is not a stage you want to procrastinate in.

Newborn Photography (Under 2 Weeks Old)

As many of you know, newborn photography is one of my absolutely favorite infant stage to photograph. The tiny infant that is extremely sleepy and cuddly is my dream come true when it comes to baby photography.

If you want a super snuggly newborn photoshoot where your baby is still curled up like it’s in the womb, then it is absolutely ideal to schedule that photoshoot within the first two weeks of birth. After these first two weeks, it’s not the end of the world, but your baby will naturally be awake longer, move around a lot more and it’ll just be a bit of a challenge to keep them all curled up.

You may be wondering, how do I schedule it within those two weeks if I’m not exactly sure when the baby is coming? I recommend all mothers who are expecting to schedule the photoshoot about a week after the mother’s due date. This allows your photoshoot to happen within that two week mark, if your baby comes early or if it comes late.

I also am pretty flexible with my clients, because as much as we would love for it to be up to us, and for us to be in control of the pregnancy, it doesn’t always happen on our terms.

3 Months Old

Babies who are older than two weeks old are just as absolutely stinking cute as the newborn babies. They are just awake more often, prefer to have clothing on, and won’t be resting as curled up as they once were. Some people even prefer infant portraits over newborn photographs, it is definitely a personal preference.

As your baby gets older and older, they start to develop more and more personality, which can definitely be a plus! Infant photography also allows you to relax for a longer period of time and truly enjoy your time spent home with your newborn.

At three months old, babies can now smile, laugh and hold their heads up steadily. They are starting to roll, recognize the sound of their parents’ voices and have more regular sleep patterns. Babies at three months old are overall more animated and engaging than a cuddly, and sleepy newborn baby.

6 Months Old

This age is a classic age for family portraits. The babies have grown and changed a lot of the past six months. They now enjoy playing with their hands, so they will love to explore different toys and objects which is ideal when it comes to a photoshoot.

At six months, your baby is also likely to be sitting up which is another great bonus for photoshoots. If you prefer to have your baby laying down more, schedule your portraits for around three months old.

9/10 Months Old

This is one of the best stages of your child’s first year because oftentimes at this point, the baby is crawling and can hold themselves up standing if holding on to someone or some type of furniture. Now that the baby is more active, they can take over the photoshoot with their spunky personalities.

At this age, the babies being more active allows me to add in some props and furniture, which always make for a very fun and creative photoshoot.

12 Months Old

At this point, your child will be ready to start attempting to take their first steps, if not already walking. Your baby is able to respond to instructions and suggestions which will help you direct and engage with your child during the photoshoot.

This is one of the cutest stages to capture as your child wobbles around trying to keep their balance as they walk and sometimes run.

Final Words

There is not one perfect stage where you must have you baby portraits taken. Whether you prefer the cuddly, womb-like newborn, the spunky toddler, or the rebellious teenager any time is a good time to get your child’s photos taken.

You know your child the best, and if they’re going through a season of teething or not getting enough rest, I encourage you to wait a little bit longer before you schedule your pictures. If you are completely sold on newborn portraits, then wait no longer! As soon as you know your due date, feel free to contact me and schedule your photoshoot, there is no such thing as too soon.

For your baby’s first year, check out our photography packages. If this is your first baby photoshoot, find all the information you will need here.

Cincinnati Portrait Photography

Another photographer once asked me a question that has stuck with me through the years. It’s this: Say your house is burning down and you only have 10 seconds to grab something, what would you make sure to get above everything else? People’s first instinct is to get something invaluable, an item that they can’t buy or get back with home insurance money, and that’s their family pictures. I think that answer is extremely telling, because although the pictures aren’t the most expensive item in the home, they hold the most value to people and symbolize a special moment in time that you can’t get back.

With Facebook, printed pictures aren’t as crucial as they once were, but it’s like reading a paper book versus. a Kindle. There is something different about having a hard copy photo and being able to frame it in your home. The same can be said about how everything’s different when you work with a photographer who understands how to capture these moments in time that you can look back on forever.

When I embark on a new photography session with a client, my goal isn’t to just capture this one moment of your life and wish you the best. I love to create lasting relationships with my clients and “go through life” together capturing all of life’s biggest moments.

Engagement Portraits

 

Where many families start their journey in the pursuit of marriage and being together the rest of their lives, an engagement photoshoot is one of my favorite moments to capture. Whether it is in the literal moment of the engagement happening live, or if it is an after the fact photoshoot, it is an honor for me to see the excitement and sparks between these two people madly in love.

With the rest of their lives ahead of them and the dreams and passions the couple’s start to pursue together there is nothing more memorable to capture! Although most couples have been dating for a considerable time before getting engaged, the engagement is truly the beginning of forever together.

Engagement photo shoots are some of the most interesting and playful photoshoots I get to take a part of. I love getting to hear the story behind how the couple met and even sometimes including those special places in the photoshoot. For example, if there is a favorite coffee shop between the couple, or maybe they met at the college they went to, being able to include those special memories and moments in the pictures makes all the difference.

I hope that these photos help capture all of the emotions, feelings, and memories associated with this special moment in time. After the engagement, comes to the wedding and then for some people, the beginning of a family.

Maternity Portraits

 

Maternity Portraits are another special moment in time, that are always worth capturing. Pregnancy is the beginning of your bond and forever relationship with your child. The importance of maternity photography is to capture the excitement and anticipation of the entrance of a new family member.

From gender reveals to capturing different growth stages through trimesters, these nine months are nothing short of an extremely exciting time, especially if it’s your first child.

Just like newborn photoshoots, there is a lot of growth going on within the womb during pregnancy and for mother’s, a maternity photoshoot is a fun way to capture those stages of change. Different woman respond different to pregnancy and therefor it makes it a very unique experience and truly a one of a kind moment for you and your family.

In the past, I feel like women tried to avoid cameras and documentation due to the fact that they had gained weight, and were no longer confident in their bodies. You can notice a change in the way maternity clothes have shifted as well.

A decade or so, maternity clothing was typically big and baggy, you were almost trying to cover up your belly. In terms of swimwear, pregnant women always opted to wear a one piece swimsuit or a tankini if they even have the nerve to wear a swimsuit, and now woman are choosing to rock bikinis despite how pregnant they are (I love it!). In addition to bikinis, woman are confidently rocking body-con dresses, and really anything that shows off that gorgeous baby bump.

I absolutely love that our culture has decided to take a brand new approach on pregnancy. Pregnancy is now considered a beautiful stage of life, no matter how many extra pounds you have packed on during the process. The reason it’s beautiful is because it’s natural.

The natural aspect is definitely a goal of mine when capturing maternity photography! You don’t want anything too staged or “photoshoot like” however, the goal is to capture you in your natural element. Maternity portraits don’t all have to be just about you as the mother as well. This is another great time to bond with your partner and be excited about this life stage together.

Naturally, after the maternity portraits, I would love to schedule your next newborn photoshoot within two weeks of the delivery date or birth of your child, and this is why.

The natural aspect is definitely a goal of mine when capturing maternity photography! You don’t want anything too staged or “photoshoot like” however, the goal is to capture you in your natural element. Maternity portraits don’t all have to be just about you as the mother as well. This is another great time to bond with your partner and be excited about this life stage together.

Naturally, after the maternity portraits, I would love to schedule your next newborn photoshoot within two weeks of the delivery date or birth of your child, and this is why.

Newborn Portraits

 

One of the reasons baby photography is so important, is because their bodies are rapidly changing and growing during the first few years of their life. We can all agree on that!

According to the Mayo Clinic, this is how much your baby can grow just in their first year of life:

From birth to age 6 months, a baby might grow 1/2 to 1 inch a month and gain 5 to 7 ounces a week. Expect your baby to double his or her birth weight by about age 5 months.

From ages 6 to 12 months, a baby might grow 3/8 inch a month and gain 3 to 5 ounces a week. Expect your baby to triple his or her birth weight by about age 1 year.

So just in one year, your baby has tripled their weight and grown a few inches (that’s crazy!). This is why getting your newborn portraits (and scheduling them ahead of time) is crucial to capturing these important stages of growth.

I recommend getting your newborn portraits taken within the first two weeks of birth. This ensures that the newborns still curl up in that womb-like position, don’t mind be unclothed, and stay asleep and restful longer to ensure the best photos!

Children Portraits

Newborn and infant photography is for those “cute” moments. You’ll never get those tiny fingers and toes back, and that soft baby skin, but the great thing about children photography, is that it begins to really capture the personality of your child, which makes it so much fun!

When I work with children during photoshoots, I don’t want this to be a dreadful moment for them where I am forcing them to “say cheese” behind a camera because their parents paid me too. I really want this to be a fun experience for the children, where they can be goofy and show their personality through the images.

No matter the age of the child, I think every stage in life is worth capturing. Whether it’s their first day of first grade, or their high school graduation pictures, all moments are big moments and you never want to regret not taking the time to document those achievements or celebratory moments.

Family Portraits

 

My true passion and heart strings are pulled during baby portrait sessions. It also gets good when the entire family gets their picture taken at the same time and you see different personalities come together.

You may think as an adult or as a teenager, you just kinda look the same! Unless you get a dramatic haircut, or have some weight change, there is no big dramatic image change. Everyone seems to think that about themselves, however looking back at old photos will prove you otherwise (assuming you take pictures).

I think it’s so important to not only get pictures of your newborns, but have pictures to look back as a family in general. And trust me, when that child grows up they’re going to appreciate the fact that they can look back on those infant pictures of them as a child, and they are going to appreciate being able to see what the rest of the family looked like back then as well.

“Did Dad have a beard?”, “Did Mom have bangs?”, “Did my brother Michael lose his front teeth yet?” I know for me, that is one of my favorite parts of looking back at old pictures, just noticing different style changes and appearances. Not only looking at how you looked as a child, but the rest of the family, helps you recap certain memories in your mind and paint a better picture of your childhood.

Final Words

Hopefully this post has helped you get a sense of my photography and the value I hold on creating relationships with my clients. Especially when it comes to family portraits, if the children have worked with me before they tend to be comfortable and confident in front of the camera.

Life is not just about the “big” moments of engagements, and pregnancy and high school graduation, but life is just as much about capturing all of the “small” moments in between. So whether you have something worth celebrating and capturing or you just want to get your family dressed up to take some cute and cozy fall attire shots, then that’s great too!

I try to consistently convince people that you don’t need an excuse to capture life. I think everyone should do it regularly because the only regret that comes is having too little of photos, not too many.

What To Expect When Booking a Newborn Photography Session

If you’re a first time parent, or just new to the world of newborn photography, the process of getting everything organized and ready to go to capture high-quality photos of the most precious new person in your life can too often be a source of stress and confusion.

At Carrie Lynne Photography, what motivates us to do our best work is the immense joy that can come from the photos we capture. We know that we create treasured lifetime memories every day, so we try to prevent process that creates those treasured photos from being stressful as much as we possibly can.

If you have a little one on the way and are curious about booking a session, consider this your “cheat sheet”.

In this article, we’ll walk you through the ideal timeline for a successful newborn photography session, from our first contact to your final photos, and include our most useful tips to help ensure a session runs as smoothly as possible.

Two to Four Months Before Your Child Is Born: Booking Your Session

Typically, we recommend that clients book their newborn photography session between two to four months in advance of your child’s birth.

Why so early? Imagine the first days and weeks of your child’s life: your life will suddenly be overwhelmingly full of joy, excitement, nervousness, and a ton of new experiences. Managing photography logistics will probably not be particularly high on your list of priorities during this exciting and busy time — nor should it be!

Booking a few months in advance not only gives us time to manage any logistical hurdles we might need to on our end, but also ensures that our plans are solidified long and a rough date is established long before the joy and stress of being a new parent takes over your personal priority list.

When booking, you have plenty of options to select from, including our Baby’s First Year packages which include multiple sessions to create comprehensive memories of your child’s precious first moments. If you’re just looking for a one-off session, that works for us as well!

We’re also happy to work flexibly with parents regarding due dates. During our initial discussions, we’ll put together a rough timeline based on your most recent due date estimates. When your bundle of joy is born, just let us know and we’ll work with you to finalize the date for our session!

Right Before Your First Shoot: Coming Prepared

Taking the time to make a few minor preparations once the day of your shoot comes around is probably the most significant thing that parents can do to ensure their photography session runs smoothly. Fortunately, most of these preparations are pretty straightforward!

If you’re hoping to include any specific outfits or items like precious blankets or toys in your photos, make sure that they’re set aside and organized for quick access on the day of the shoot.

We recognize that your newborn’s sleeping and eating schedule can be a little unpredictable in the first few weeks of their life, but ideally, your newborn should be changed, fed and sleepy on the day of the shoot.

Sleeping newborns tend to take the best quality photos, so keep this in mind when preparing your little one for the shoot. One way to encourage sleepiness is to turn up the heat — if you’re running into problems ensuring your newborn is ready to sleep, this can be a quick way to get them to doze off!

Additionally, avoid applying any new creams or lotions to your newborn before you bring them in for your session in case of an unknown allergic reaction.

During The Shoot: Relax, Be Patient, and Have Fun

The shoot itself can be stressful for even the most experienced of parents. Watching someone else handle your baby can bring out your parenting instincts, and an uncooperative baby may bring up concerns that the session won’t turn out well.

During the shoot, we may also ask parents to leave the room if the baby is distracted by their presence. This can also be a potential source of stress.

Our biggest recommendations for parents on a shoot is to try and relax and be patient.

We book three-hour sessions for our studio to ensure that we have plenty of time to work around any potential issues, and our experienced team puts your child’s safety above all else.

During the shoot, we’ll follow your child’s lead and take as much time as necessary to ensure safety, comfort, and of course, quality. If you’re tense, your child will feel that energy and it will become harder for them to relax and fall asleep. By setting the precedent of calm peacefulness, you’ll be helping ensure that everything goes as planned.

After The Shoot: Enjoying your Forever Memories

Once the shoot is completed, we’ll take some time to make any corrections or edits that are necessary, and then reach out with your finalized photos!

This is the moment that makes everything else worth it: we know you’ll be so excited to enjoy such amazing photos for a lifetime.

We offer a variety of print options depending on the plan you select to ensure that you can enjoy your photos in whatever manner you prefer. Of course, full-resolution digital options are also available. However, if you have a special print option in mind that isn’t covered on the plan you select, we’re happy to work with parents to ensure your satisfaction!

Ultimately, with a little preparation and mindfulness, your newborn photography session will be low-stress and result in stunning family heirlooms to treasure for a lifetime.

Ready to book your session? Drop us a line and we’ll be happy to help get you ready to take some gorgeous photos.

What A Perfect Photography Client Looks Like

We know that the photos we create here at Carrie Lynne Photography hold a special place in the lives of our clients, and feel that it’s our responsibility to make sure that as few obstacles as possible stand in the way of capturing perfect moments for everyone who books a session with us.

We’ve gotten pretty good at this over the years, but what do you do if the obstacle standing between you capturing the best possible photos for your client is…your client?

When you’re a professional photographer running your own business independently, it can be easy to find yourself spending more time than you’d prefer solving common problems again and again.

Thankfully, with a little help and preparation from a client, minimizing these common problems is super easy and can maximize the opportunities to capture the best photos during a shoot.

Whether you’ve already booked your session or are still doing your due diligence, keeping this list of ways to be the perfect photography client in mind can go a long way toward making sure you get the absolute best possible photos out of your session.

The Best Photography Clients Do This

#1: Communicate Well in Advance

When you book your shoot, the more information you can provide our team, the better. The simple fact of the matter is that the more information we have about what specifically you’re looking to get out of your photography experience, the better we can work to meet your needs and ensure your satisfaction.

Just letting us know what you’re looking to get out of the shoot, what the photos will be used for, and a specific date or two that would work well for you goes a surprisingly long way. When the day of the shoot come around, we’ll be totally on the same page and ready to spend every minute of our session as productively as possible.

#2: Show Up On Time

This one is pretty simple, but absolutely bears repeating: please show up for your session on time! We do our best to accommodate late arrivals, but sometimes we have multiple sessions booked on one day and are unable to make up for lost time.

The more time we have during a session, the more options you’ll have at the end of the day, so being punctual and prepared at the established time is a really easy way to get the most out of your shoot.

#3: Have Outfit Changes Ready to Go

This one ties into punctuality and preparedness as well: if you’ll be taking photos in multiple outfits, having those organized and ready to go goes a long way.

Changing outfits in the middle of a session can take a surprisingly large amount of time away from taking photos, especially without proper organization beforehand.. You don’t necessarily need to be a quick change wizard, but eliminating unnecessary time spent here can maximize the usefulness of your session.

#4: Have a Positive Attitude

This one might be the most important of all: having a positive, upbeat attitude during your shoot can absolutely transform the quality of your photos more than perhaps anything else on this list.

For many, having professional photos taken can be a stress-inducing experience — it’s easy to feel uncomfortable in front of the camera and worry about whether or not you’ll be happy with the results.

However, just going with the flow, responding well to coaching by your photographer, and overall having fun during your shoot will ensure you’re radiating positivity and happiness in your final photos. Just keep an open mind and enjoy the experience!

#5: Ask For What You Need

Ideally, you’ll have communicated with our team super effectively before the shoot date, but once the shoot has started, having the assertiveness to make any requests you might have can preemptively solve a lot of problems.

If there’s a specific background you’d prefer, or a specific pose you’d like to try, just let us know! We’re happy to accommodate reasonable requests and do what it takes to get you the photos you’re hoping for.

#6: Pay On Time

Finally, after your shoot is completed and you’ve got some truly amazing photos to treasure, timely payment is sincerely appreciated.

We’re an independent business that relies on prompt payment from our clients to pay bills and continue to grow. Not having to chase down payments for shoots we’ve completed frees us up to book new sessions and help our other clients get amazing photos as well!

Ultimately, if you can keep these best practices in mind, you’ll be ensuring as little as possible stands in the way of you and the best possible photos we can capture. Even better, you’ll also be saving both of us a bit of potential stress, which we sincerely appreciate!

Ready to book your session? Drop us a line and we’ll be happy to help get you ready to take some gorgeous photos.

Why Capturing Professional Quality Child Photography Pictures Is So Important

Now more than ever, we live in an era of constant documentation, communication, and media creation. Seemingly from the moment your new bundle of joy enters the world to the moment they ship off to college, every member of your family, no matter how old, is equipped with an increasingly powerful pocket-sized camera and ready to snap and share photos at resolutions and speeds that were impossible even a few years ago.

In leading tech publications, multinational corporations go to war over megapixel count, each trying to convince you that their smartphone camera is as perfect as smartphone cameras can possibly get. Some of these smartphone shooters have even started to mimic the aesthetics of hundred- or even thousand-dollar DSLR cameras, providing even first-time photographers with background blur and high dynamic range. Meanwhile, increasingly high-quality cameras are even being integrated into sunglasses and other wearable technologies.

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In short, it seems like it’s never been a better time to have photos taken of your family. As each of you grow and change over the years, the availability of multiple high-resolution cameras available to capture memories at a moment’s notice seems more and more like a safe assurance.

So, in a world where cameras are more available than ever before, why hire a professional photographer at all? Even further, why hire a professional photographer to snag pictures of your little one, whose incredible cuteness is sure to be documented extensively by a veritable paparazzi of fawning family members?

It’s a perfectly valid question. Here at Carrie Lynne Photography, since the dawn of the point-and-shoot, it’s one we’ve been asked more times than we can count.

And over the years, despite incredibly impressive advances in the field of child photography, our answer hasn’t really changed too much: we’re not in the business of simply capturing photos, we’re in the business of creating memories that last forever.

For us, “forever memories” mean a lot more than raw megapixel count or exposure settings: it’s about capturing our clients and their loved ones in a way that they can hold onto endlessly. We know that these photos are about more than “just another photo of the family”: these are the special moments that get cherished, hung on family room walls, sent to relatives near and far,  and pleasantly remembered for years and years.

Put another way, these photos become heirlooms. And creating an heirloom is about more than a set of tools, no matter how powerful.

Yes, smartphone cameras are more powerful than ever. And yes, the seemingly exponential rate of their improvement shows little signs of slowing down. It’s all but an inevitability that within a few years, everyday consumers will have access to cameras built into their smartphones that are at least able to emulate the aesthetics of professional child photography setups that are worth thousands of dollars today. In fact, for owners of the most recent iPhone and Google Pixel devices, this is already starting to become a possibility, as professional lighting presets and DSLR-esque background blur are already available to consumers.

The fact that these powerful tools exist, however, doesn’t necessarily mean that the results that they produce will be worth sharing with your folks, much less at the standard of “forever memories”.

When I say this, I’m speaking from experience: every year since I was little, my own family has tried to capture a professional-grade family photo as an heirloom around Christmastime. In recent years, we’ve tried to capture these photos ourselves, both with selfie cameras and the assistance of grandparents given a brief crash course on how to operate a DLSR. The results have been, well, less than impressive.

Ultimately, the eye of a trained professional who has spent years helping families create outstanding family photographs is itself an asset. When you take the time and the expense to enlist the help of a family photographer, you’re not just gaining access to high quality equipment, but also to the skills and talents of a hardworking professional who has devoted their life to creating beautiful family moments that can be cherished for ages.

And especially for families with little ones who seem to grow up faster and faster all the time, capturing these professional photos is so, so important.

It’s so easy to get lost in our hectic day-to-day schedules and not take time to cherish the individual moments that make up the fabric of our lives. Seemingly before we know it, we’ve looked up and everything is a little different: months or years have passed, our kids are suddenly so much older than they once were, and we can’t help but wonder where the time has gone.

Those moments aren’t truly lost: they’ll be with us forever in our hearts and minds. But the opportunity to have something tangible to recall them by, to see the face of a loved one as they were in a specific moment in time, smiling brightly and captured in pristinely high detail, is a gift whose value cannot be understated.

Every year, looking back on the photographic memories I’ve created with my family is a distinct pleasure and a huge privilege. It’s an experience I truly wish every family had the opportunity to share with their own loved ones. They really do last a lifetime.

So yes — take those selfies and those candid shots. Surround your growing kids with smartphone cameras and cloud storage solutions. But also find the time to make forever memories with the help of a consummate professional whose keen eye can help create priceless forever memories that you and your family will remember for the rest of your lives.

 

Looking for a professional photographer to create precious memories of you and your family? Carrie Lynne Photography has been creating gorgeous photos of families and children of all ages for years. Visit our website to view packages and pricing and book a session in our Cincinnati studio or at your favorite outdoor location.