One of the most common questions I hear about a photo session is – what should we wear! Here are some hints and tips to help with what to wear for newborn photos with me!
As a lifestyle newborn photographer, I aim to capture relaxed natural moments with your newborn. So you don’t need fancy and uncomfortable clothes! The first thing I’d say is, wear something that you love, don’t go and change your whole style because a photographer says so!
What should my newborn baby wear for photos?
For clothes keep it simple. I suggest first of all a short sleeve, legless vest, to show off those cute arms and legs. A babygrow is also good, best without feet to see those cute toes. Both these items in the right size have the advantage of holding the clothes away from baby’s face. Dungarees are best avoided, as they don’t seem to suit the newborn shape, and regularly ride up and cover the face. Dresses can do the same, but if you’d like a dress make sure it’s not too frilly around the neck and have a nappy cover underneath.
What about hats, hairbands and hairclips? Many babies really don’t like to wear these, and just when you have got it arranged they wiggle out of it! So I would advise only a few images with these accessories, or rearranging them can take over the whole time!
Using blankets and wraps for baby photos?
I often take most pictures with baby simply wrapped or swaddled, as often clothes can overwhelm such tiny babies. I can bring a few simple wraps, but I love to use your own blankets, wraps and swaddles to make your pictures unique. Below you can see examples of plain wraps, handmade patchwork quilts, bright fabrics and knitted blankets, all adding that personal touch to baby’s photos.
What should the rest of the family wear for newborn photos?
For yourselves, first of all wear something you feel good in! Baby is the star of the show here, so I suggest plain clothing for parents. Plain colour tops without logos work well. Try and coordinate the rest of the family so that the colours are either all pale or all dark, or have the parents coordinating and siblings matching baby. But there is plenty of scope for you to include your own style too!
Mum please don’t be disappointed if you don’t fit right back into your favourite clothes – your body just spent 9 months growing an amazing baby, and it’s quite normal to take more than a couple of weeks to recover! So have some looser outfits in your plans so you can wear what feels best on the day.
Wardrobe changes
One of the great things about doing your lifestyle newborn photo shoot at home is you can change clothes easily! So if you have some special items to includes, such as the big brother/little brother outfits, it’s easy to pop them on for a short time.
With your newborn, it’s best to limit changes as it can unsettle baby. So changing clothes when you have to change the nappy anyway or before feeding is best. Layers are flexible, start off with baby in a vest and babygrow. Then we can remove the babygrow, take some pictures in the vest too, then add a wrap to keep cosy.
If you can, prepare in advance, check that any clothes you really want to use ready and clean. Try and have at least 1 change for everyone available in case of baby drool or worse!
