Welcome
Hi, I'm Sandy, newborn and family photographer for real families for 10 years. My job is to create heirloom moments in time for your family to treasure in the future. Newborn photography is my specialty, I absolutely love babies, I can watch them for hours, to me they are all different, the faces they pull, the noises they make, their little fingers and toes and the little burpy smiles, gorgeous.
Don't let these memories pass you by, they are fleeting, believe me before long they are running around and leaving you behind, - school, traveling and marriage - you get the picture.
Booking your session
You are going to have a baby, now is the perfect time to plan your newborn photography and pre-book around the time you are due, these dates can be changed as babies arrive on their own time. Within the first 10 days is preferable to get those sleepy poses, but older than 10 days is just as beautiful, baby is more awake and enjoys more cuddles with parents. Some babies are the exception to the rule, as I have photographed babies a couple of months old and they have slept through the whole session. Take the time to think about what you want from the session, do some research and contact me to have a chat.
What do I need to know?
- If you can dress baby in an outfit that is easy to take off at the session this will help keep baby asleep.
- If you are happy to bring a pacifier, even if they haven't used one before it can make a huge difference to keeping baby calm while doing different poses.
- Baby will usually fall asleep on the car ride to the session. When you arrive bring baby in the car seat to keep them settled and asleep.
- If breastfeeding, watch what you eat 24 hours prior to the session, this makes a huge difference to having a settled baby at the time, bland non spicy foods and no coffee as a suggestion.
- The room will be kept very warm as baby loses body heat very quickly, so wear layers yourself so you don't get too hot.
- During the session we will do a few different poses, I will start with a few in what they are wearing or change into one of my many outfits, with wraps.
- I use a shusher machine which can help keep baby calm and sleepy and soft music in the background.
- Be prepared to feed baby during the session, we like to keep baby happy and settled. Getting rid of wind is also pretty important to keep baby comfortable for longer.
- Please do not book your appointment within 24 hours of their immunisations, babies can be quite unsettled.
- No cameras are allowed in the studio, no cellphone pictures please.
Baby Safety
Photographing your newborn is quite a privilege, and I take it very seriously. Your baby is very vulnerable at this age and safety is paramount in my mind. Babies blood flow, keeping airways open, their spine and bones are all forefront in my mind. Some poses are fine while baby is asleep but not when they are waking and alert, a babies natural reflex is to startle with arms flung out, and they do this out of the blue, so they must be spotted at all times. There are some very cute poses being done, and a lot of these poses require more than one pair of hands, and also baby needs to be completely asleep so they don't jump out of the pose and hurt themselves. You are very welcome to bring me images you wish to replicate but I am completely baby led and if baby is not happy to do it, we won't be doing it. If I feel it may be unsafe for your little person I will let you know. The most important person in the room is your baby :)
The Studio
My new studio has plenty of room for the family, warm in the winter and cool in the summer, and with a good supply of props, backgrounds, blankets, and all sorts of things to make every session a little different each time. I'm constantly adding to these all the time, making many of my own props, scouring antique and second hand stores, ordering local and overseas to bring something special to each session. I now totally use studio lighting to keep my images at a consistent standard.
After the Session
After the session, I will spend quite a few hours hand editing the photos, to make sure they are shown in their best light. Skin will be cleaned, pimples and flaky skin smoothed out, but kept natural. I will endeavour to get your photos ready within 12 days. Normally during a session I can take quite a few photos to make sure I get some nice art pieces for you, from these I will pick out the best 20-40 photos for you. They will be hi-resolution for good quality printing, there will also be small low-resolution photos for posting on Facebook and email, the smaller photos will have my logo on them for copyright purposes. They will be put onto a beautiful wooden keepsake USB. I truly urge you to print the photos out, it's much nicer to flick through hard copies in the future, timeless treasures.
Contact me at smilebabynz@yahoo.co.nz or 0272014769
Credits:
Smile Baby Photography