Your birth plan has changed and now your hospital isn’t allowing any visitors, including the newborn photographer that you had planned for months.
COVID-19. It’s all we talk about, think about, worry about. The anxiety is raised to a crippling degree when you are days or weeks away from your due date and had grand plans of the perfect birth story. You had plans to have your doula, your birth photographer, your spouse with you while your entire family waits in the hall to meet your new baby with smiles. In many hospitals around the country, that birth plan is no longer an option. Support people might be limited and visitors might be banished. As a newborn and fresh 48 photographer, I am bracing for this wave of obstacles to hit my town and my business. As a mom, myself, who is due within a few weeks and planned to have a doula, photographer, spouse, kids and all kinds of visitors; my perfect birth story is already crumbling beneath me.
If you have hired a photographer to come document your brand new family and are no longer allowed to have them with you, you can still take beautiful photos of your family, I promise. Just a few of my favorite tips for taking beautiful photos of you and your newborn in the hospital.
1. Open all the windows. Turn off all other lights.
Pull back any curtains and shades to reveal as much as from the outside as possible. Make sure you allow the natural light to fall on your face, so be sure to face the window. All other lights and TV should be turned off - don’t forget to declutter the background. This will allow you to embrace the shadows and allow that window light to highlight just the important parts of your baby without distracting background elements.
2. Keep clothes simple and light in color.
My favorite clothes for a fresh 48 session are either naked or the given hospital shirts, white or cream onesies/sleepers/gowns and a simple and non-busy swaddle. I especially love when we use the hospital’s hat and swaddle.
3. Plan the photos right after a feeding (& during!)
Newborns eat, poop, sleep. They’re happiest when their belly is full and they are good and sleepy. I love photographing a new baby nursing with mama or drinking from a bottle with dad.
4. Details, details, details.
Ears, nose, tiny fingers, tiny toes, eyelashes, baby wrinkles, hair, baby lanugo. All the tiny details that will grow so fast, you’ll forget just how tiny they are. Place yourself just above the detail you are photographing. You want the nostrils to barely be seen, instead of photographing right up the nose.
5. Be IN the photos
I realize you just had a baby. Your face might still be puffy, your eyes scream for sleep and you can’t stand for longer than a few minutes, BUT there is no better time to be so proud of yourself and be in the photos with your newborn. Photographing this time with your baby is all part of the story and you, my friend, are the key person in this story.
I am so sorry the end of your birth journey may not be what you had planned, but know that this baby will have a story so crazy you’ll be telling them for years to come. As emotional as this ride is, don’t forget to take a breath and spend a few moments photographing your baby. Whether it’s with a camera or your phone, you can still take beautiful photos of your new family and cherish these quiet moments amid the emotional rollercoaster you’re going through.
Sending you all the new mom love and support from one pregnant mama to another.
xoxo
