Preparing For Your In-Home Newborn Session
Preparing for your in-home newborn session can feel so overwhelming. You’ve just brought this new little human into the world and you’re just starting to adjust to life with them. No matter what their birth order, there’s always an adjustment period. And sometimes it can feel like preparing for your in-home newborn session is insurmountable. But that’s the beauty of them — they’re as lowkey as you are! The point of an in-home newborn session is to capture the beauty of this new time altogether. Whether this is your first or your fifth baby, an in-home newborn session is always a great idea. This time with this new little person passes so quickly, and I always encourage families to capture it. In this post, we’ll go over how you can plan for your session from preparing everyone to the session itself to commemorating your session through albums and prints.
Not sure what in-home newborn photography is or not sure if it’s right for your family? Check out my post on why you should do an in-home newborn session!

Preparing For Your In-Home Newborn Session: The Process
Preparing Yourself
I remember the newborn phase all too well. Or rather, I remember how much of a blur it was. That time when you first come home with babe is a time of adjustment. It’s also a space in which linear time doesn’t exist. The fourth trimester is a trip. And maybe the last thing you might feel is picture worthy.
But let me stop and remind you that you’re beautiful just as you are. And you’ll never have this time again. If there’s one thing I’ve learned from having kids and photographing hundreds of families, it’s that they really do grow up too fast.
And the beautiful thing about doing your session at home is that you truly don’t have to do too much when preparing for your in-home newborn session.
Hydration
This ties into skincare but the most important thing you can do for yourself (always! Not just when getting photos done!) is hydrate. When you’re properly hydrated, not only do you feel better, but you look better. Your skin is already gorgeous and glowing, and proper hydration will make it glow even more. Stay as hydrated as you can, but especially in the week before your session.
Skincare & Makeup
If you’re not a makeup person, don’t feel like you have to do too much. Even if you are a makeup person, don’t feel like you have to put on a full face of makeup! You’re already doing so much caring for yourself and this new little love. Let’s make this as easy as possible.
For skincare, the number one thing I would recommend is a good moisturizer. This moisturizer from La Roche-Posay is a miracle worker on my combination skin. It goes on so light and doesn’t leave your skin feeling greasy. It also helps even out your pores! In addition to making sure you’re getting plenty of water, using a good moisturizer will help your skin look and feel more even and hydrated.

When it comes to makeup, again: don’t feel like you have to do a ton. Don’t even feel like you have to do much at all! Keep it simple: skin, eyes, lips.
Skin: a simple foundation will go a long way. If you don’t already have one you love and you really want to wear some in your photos, get colour-matched for a foundation at a place like Ulta. They can also help you choose one that will work with your unique skin type so it won’t feel caked on or greasy! Brands I love that are accessible and affordable are e.l.f., Nyx, and Tarte.
Eyes: Focusing on simple mascara and brows will help accentuate your natural features without you having to do too much. My favourite brands for mascara are Benefit and Urban Decay. Both go on easy, don’t clump, and last for hours. For brows, Benefit’s Gimme Brow is the gold standard for me. If you need something you can pick up at Target (and your Target doesn’t have an Ulta inside), Nyx makes a perfectly cromulent brow gel.
Lips: Again, hydration is key and less is more! Making sure you’ve been using your ChapStick is huge (and if you haven’t, use this vegan lip mask from Pacifica, it’s incredible!). We’ll be doing lots of photos with your partner and with babe: snuggling them, giving babe little kisses on their face and hands and toes, so make sure whatever you choose to wear on your lips won’t stain their face or clothes too much. If you’re worried, I always recommend a finishing spray, like this one from Urban Decay.
As you can probably tell, I’m big into makeup and skincare. At any time in the planning process, I’m always available for consultations on stuff like this! And every session comes with a planning guide with all this information so you can easily reference it!
Outfits
Stop me if you’ve heard this one: less is more. No, not less clothing — less ostentatious clothing! In-home newborn sessions are all about capturing the raw, the real, and the true-to-life. Whatever you’re most comfortable in is what you should wear.
For gowns, I always recommend something that’s flowy and offers lots of freedom of movement. That doesn’t have to mean a moo-moo! It can be an a-line sundress, or a slip dress under a flowy robe. A simple white tunic with a comfy pair of jeans or leggings is never a bad move. I always stress to clients that if you’re uncomfortable on camera, it’s going to show. So make sure whatever you’ve chosen to wear, you’ll feel comfortable in for at least 60-90 minutes. And make sure it’s easy for you to nurse babe if that’s how you’re feeding them. Having to completely change when they’re hungry is never a fun ordeal.
Preparing Your Kids
Preparing kids for photos can already feel like a huge undertaking. The good news is that for lifestyle sessions, and especially sessions with me, you don’t have to do too much! You’ll receive a guide that details how to prepare your kids, but the simple message is to talk to them in a way they can understand it. I’ll be coming to take some photos, we’ll do some games, I’ll have a big camera, and I’ll want their help from time to time. That’s it! Depending on their age, I may even let them take a few photos themselves. I genuinely love when kids get involved and interested in photos!
Preparing Your Home
About a month out, choose 1-3 locations for photos. This can be a nursery, a main bedroom, your living room; what have you. Whatever locations are most special to you and where you want to stage some photos. It can literally all be next to a big window in your living room.
The biggest thing is to watch the light. What I mean by that is to see which rooms get the most light and at what times of day. This will determine when we do your session and where. We want to maximize the natural light we have without having to add in a ton (nobody likes a camera flash in their face over and over).
So about a month out, start observing how the light passes in various rooms. Think about which way your house is oriented (north-south, etc) and how the sun comes through the windows in the rooms you’ve selected. And don’t worry too much if it’s a cloudy day. Bright clouds still mean we get good light (and less harsh light, too!).
If you want, you can also send me photos via text of how the light looks and where might be best. I’m always happy to offer my professional opinion!
The Night Before Your Session
Do any final tidying up. If you want to move some furniture, I am happy to help do that when I come! Or help put some toys in a basket. Again, just like with makeup and outfits, don’t feel like you have to do too much. The best photos are the ones that show what life is really like during this special time. So if there’s some dog toys on the floor, that’s fine!
During Your Session
Focus on your loves. You’ve done all the important prep work, now it’s my turn. We’ll cycle through locations, do some gentle poses and games with the kids if you have older kids. Most of all, we’ll go at babe’s pace. Sometimes they don’t want to be put down; we roll with it. If you need to take a break to feed them off-camera, that’s fine! I budget lots of time for newborn sessions precisely because they’re still operating on their own schedule.
Immediately After Your Session
Breathe! You did it! If there are any poses you’d like photos of as sneak peeks for birth announcements, please let me know and I can get those sent out quickly. Otherwise, you can expect to receive your images in 2-4 weeks, depending on the time of year.
Commemorating Your Session: Albums and Prints
Print your photos. Hang them up. Do it as soon as you get the images back.
My gallery software, Pic-Time, has a built-in print shop so you can easily choose your favourite images (and mark which are your favourites and come back to it!) and get them printed and sent directly to you! I also offer suggestions on where to print photos if you’d like to do it yourself (and where to avoid!). Every session includes full print right for your images. They’re your images, forever.
If you’d like an album, I always offer that as an add-on when booking or after you get your images back. Each album is custom designed just for you and I always recommend getting an album. If there’s one thing that we’ve lost in the age of having every photo ever on our phones, it’s the joy of looking through albums. Especially when your kids get bigger, they love looking at photos of themselves when they were little. And you’ll have all those images preserved forever instead of them just sitting on your hard drive.
If you’ve already booked your newborn session with me, I can’t wait to meet your little love!
And if you’ve been on the fence about an in-home newborn session, now is the time to book it! If you’ve got questions, I’d love to get on a consult call or have coffee with you if you’re local to the greater Missoula area! Feel free to head to my contact page or fill out the handy-dandy form below!