I love in-home lifestyle newborn sessions, they give such a sweet glimpse of those first few weeks with your tiny little newborn baby. For new parents and seasoned parents alike this newborn timeframe can fly by in the blink of an eye which makes it the perfect time to schedule an in-home lifestyle newborn session.
Doing a newborn session at home creates images that are laid back, comfortable, and authentically you. These are your spaces, spaces that you've carefully perfected in anticipation of your perfect new arrival. We'll take portraits of your newborn in the nursery you've spent months decorating, snuggling on your bed in the master bedroom, and prepping a bottle in the kitchen or nursing on the couch in the living room.
The Rutherford family did just that at their home in Lake Elmo, MN. Their little girl was so sweet and sleepy for most of the session but we did need to bribe her with a little milk at one point and that put her right back to sleep! They did a great job choosing light outfit colors within the green and blue family paired with a perfect pink bow for baby girl.
What an In-Home Lifestyle Newborn Session Actually Looks Like
If you have never booked an in-home lifestyle newborn session, I want to walk you through what that looks like from beginning to end.
I began the Rutherford's newborn session by saying meeting their sweet little baby and then getting a lay of the land. I like to do a quick walk through of the house so I can assess what locations make the most sense for portraits. I look for big and bright windows, rooms with sheer curtains for filtering light if needed, nursery lighting and cozy chair options, as well as the master bedroom if that's a spot my clients have expressed interest in being photographed in. My goal is to find bright spaces that create a beautiful natural feel for your portraits.
For this family, we started in the living room. They had bright windows that gave us a lot of natural light. We started with newborn portraits of baby girl, they had an infant lounger pillow that was very similar in color to her outfit so it created a nice soft tone on tone look. I captured full body and detail portraits including her little hands and feet. Then we shifted to family portraits in the living room, this is also when baby needed a bottle. From there we headed up to the nursery and photographed the sweetest portraits of baby all swaddled in mom and dads arms. We also got a few photos of mom and baby in their pink nursery chair while we opted for individuals of dad and baby on a leather office chair by the window.
Our last stops were the master bedroom for some cozy full family portraits as well as some candids of mom and dad admiring baby back in the office. I've found, when it comes to in-home lifestyle newborn portraits, we only need a 1-3 spots to get a really good variety of portraits.
Another important note is that your house does not need to be deep cleaned for your in-home newborn session, these photos tend to be closer to the subject leaving less detail picked up in the background. And, if I see something that might be in the way I'll just move it in the moment. So, don't stress out about cleaning before your in-home newborn session.
Booking an In-Home Lifestyle Newborn Session
The best time to book your in-home lifestyle newborn session is while you're still pregnant. I would recommend reaching out around the 30-34 week mark as this will give us time to touch base and schedule your design consultation before baby arrives. However, if you're ready to book your newborn session sooner I would recommend reaching out as my schedule does fill up. I schedule a design consultation with all my clients before their session to ensure we have everything planned out. From location, to outfit ideas, to portrait styles and poses you prefer, and how you would like to enjoy your images. From there, we can get your session on the calendar and have peace of mind we're all ready to go when baby decides to make their debut.
I serve families throughout Hudson, New Richmond, Somerset, River Falls, Stillwater, Lake Elmo and the greater St. Croix Valley area. I do travel for sessions so, if you're outside the St. Croix Valley area, I can definitely accommodate you. In-home lifestyle newborn sessions are available year round, so reach out if this is something you're interested in and I can help guide you in your memory capturing journey.
Next step is to visit my contact page to check availability. I can't wait to hear more about your newborn session!
