Top 8 Tips for taking baby photos at home
Jess, is a small-town mum in country Victoria, who is a Professional newborn photographer and educator for parents at Jessica Jane Photography.
Jess’s journey first began over 10 years ago when she tried DIY newborn photos of her firstborn. Not only was the experience stressful with a crying baby, the results were disappointing. This is what lead her to studying with world-recognised newborn photographers to master the art of newborn photography, and has since become known as the baby whisperer herself.
Jess helps parents all over the world with quick, easy to follow trainings for parents to take gorgeous photos of their baby at home.
Learn to take beautiful everyday photos of your baby at home with our tips and training below.
TIP 1 - Preparation for Success!
Safety, feeding + awake time
I recommend beginners start with simple but beautiful poses that can be easily and safely achieved. E.g have baby on their back or on their side.
Avoid advanced poses you see on Pinterest! For example, to safely curl your baby up and hang them from a hammock or to position them into the 'froggy pose' where the baby holds their head in their hands up on their elbows, photographers often have a trained assistant and the help of Photoshop to make the baby look like they are actually holding their head in their hands without assistance.
Please, never leave your baby unattended during the shoot.
Image by Jessica Jane Photography
Ensure your baby is fully fed, then afterwards leave them unwrapped for awake time for at least 45 minutes before you start the session. Ensure the baby is burped to avoid an upset tummy. Let baby kick around and move to let off some energy which will help them settle easily into sleep.
TIP 2 - have the room toasty warm
Ensure the room is super warm! Have the room at 27 degrees. This will ensure the baby is nice and warm to settle into a sleep.
TIP 3 - use natural window light
Use natural sunlight by making use of a window that has no direct sunlight/beams coming in (think in the shade or on an overcast day). This type of light is soft and beautiful and will result in beautifully exposed images. Ensure you take photos during the day when the natural light is bright enough. e.g. NOT taken at dawn or dusk and definitely not at night!
TIP 4 - swaddle/wrapping
Babies feel safe and secure when wrapped firmly. Not too tight, but enough for them to stop wriggingly out of the wrap or it will frustrate them until they are out of the wrap. This does not mean they don’t like the wrap. It may mean you need to warm them a little more firmly if they wriggle out of it. Wrapping is a MUST if you want to have a happy, content and sleeping baby and most importantly a relaxed confident mum!
Jessica Jane Photography
Wrap and Moses Basket from The Young Folk Collective
SAFETY TIP: Always ensure there is space away from the baby's neck so they can easily breathe when wrapping.
TIP 5 - Settling Tips
White Noise: If your baby is upset, try putting on white noise and play it LOUD! Babies are used to being inside the womb which is loud and white noise is a very close resemblance to the sound inside the womb. Your baby will feel at home. This is why white noise is so comforting to babies. So turn up the noise and watch your baby settle almost instantly. The Louder the better - the same volume as a vacuum cleaner is PERFECT.
Dummy: This is another amazing tool to help settle your baby. Even if your baby doesn't use a dummy, I recommend using one if only for the photo session if needed. If all the other settling tools aren't working, this can often be the last tool that brings all the other techniques together.
TIP 6 - Styling & Colours
Styling your photos can be made easy by using the items you already have in your home. If you have time to plan your styling (e.g. your baby hasn't arrived yet), you can get delicious drool-worthy wraps and hat/headband sets and Baby Announcements from beautiful Aussie Brands, like, Snuggly Jacks, PopYaTot, Little Kin and Co, Blue Daisy Wares, Winter and Mae, Little Palm Co, Wattle & Wildflower
Try using your favourite scarves to wrap baby in and use your favourite linen, blankets and quilts as a backdrop. Make sure your background is uncluttered so the focus remains on your beautiful baby.
Use neutral and earthy tones in your styling. DO NOT use bright colors e.g. red or bright/florescent colours as it will reflect a colour cast on your baby's skin. A colour cast is an unwanted colour shift in the image which is caused by reflected light from a nearby object. E.g. if baby is on a bright red blanket, the light would reflect red onto the baby's skin. This is not a natural or flattering look!
TIP 7 - make the most of each pose
When baby is settled and sleepy and adorable, make the most of each pose! Pull back the camera to get a full-length picture of the baby, then pull in closer to get a closer shot e.g. showing their face and half their torso, then pull in further again and get a shot where most of their face fills the frame. Then take Macro shots (close up shots) of their eyelashes, ears, lips, and feet.
The more images you take from one pose the better because when you move baby or put them in a different wrap, if they struggle to resettle you can feel good about the process in knowing you have at least 6 images as opposed to only one.
TIP 8 - Unwrap baby
Follow all these tips as described and you'll have great success taking photos with a calm and sleepy baby.
Wrapping is a crucial part of settling your baby, but when you've finished taking photos, unwrapping baby is a fabulous opportunity to get more variation in your images.
PLEASE only do this AFTER you've taken beautiful sleepy/settled shots of your baby wrapped first.
When you unwrap a baby, this is often when they wake up and become unsettled because the safety and security a wrap provides was taken away. When you unwrap them, its the perfect time to take action shots of them stretching, yawning and moving around.
For more great free tips and training be sure to follow us @Jessica_Jane_Photos
Learn more with our Free Video Tutorial | https://vip.jessicajanephotography.com.au/the-jjp-method-freebie
Or deep dive further, with our amazing and affordable Photography Course specifically created for tired and busy parents.
Jess xx
Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/jessica_jane_photos/
Webpage | https://www.jessicajanephotography.com.au
