P#10 Q3A: How Soon Can You Photograph a Newborn Baby?

The Early Bird...

Carrie Sandoval: It is never, never too early to photograph a newborn. I joke on my website that I'll meet the moms when they're coming home from the hospital.

Audri Lanford: That's not too early?

Carrie Sandoval: I'm kidding, of course. I do try to remind them while they're still pregnant that the first week is my favorite time. The newborn is so oblivious to what's going on around them that they typically sleep through the entire session.

Not all newborns will sleep through the session, but most of them will. I would say my most popular age is six days old for sessions.

Of course, for the listeners, you have them from day one!

Audri Lanford: How long do you photograph babies? What's the oldest baby you will photograph?

Carrie Sandoval: Any age. I photograph them up to one year. When are they not babies anymore? My two-year-old is still my baby! If you mean newborns...

Audri Lanford: No, I just meant babies in general.

Carrie Sandoval: Any age. I love photographing children in general.

For newborns I try to get in before they're two weeks old. They're still sleepy, but they're more aware of what's going on and they'll wake up when I try to pose them.

Audri Lanford: That's a really great tip. So our readers should try to do it in the first week?

Carrie Sandoval: Yes. I know it's hard because you just had a baby! It's the last thing you feel like doing. I highly recommend hiring a photographer if you've had a C-section or you just don't feel like doing it yourself because you will regret later that you don't have those early newborn pictures.

Wait For Full Tummies

One other tip that I have is if the mother is nursing, wait till her milk comes in before doing photographs. A full belly just keeps the baby much more content and happy.

I had one session where the mom's milk hadn't come it. The baby was only four days old. She just wanted to nurse the entire time, which is natural. That was my only regret about getting them in too early for a session.

Audri Lanford: So, you want that full tummy?

Carrie Sandoval: Yes. Babies with full tummies are happy babies.

In Conclusion

It's never too early to start photographing a newborn. In fact, it would seem the earlier the better -- unless, as Carrie shared with us, a nursing mother's milk has not yet come in. Full tummies make for happy babies. In cases like these, be sure to photograph the newborn as soon as the little one is nursing regularly.