Since launching the studio segment of my business last year, I have had the honor to work with many families and their newborn .  I always feel so privileged to be able to document those first moments for them. What many of my clients have told me about the studio is that they love that they were able to capture connected lifestyle inspired images with their baby as well as polished portraits.  I am thrilled that I can offer my clients such diversity in their galleries.

When I was pregnant with both of my girls, I had to find out the gender before they arrived. I am a planner by nature and the thought of waiting nine months to discover the gender of my baby always seemed daunting to me. In retrospect, I wish I had the patience to wait it out. Although I will not be having any more babies, I am able to share in the excitement of my clients, most of whom are patient and discover the sex of their baby at birth. 

It is always wonderful to see my maternity clients return for their newborn sessions.  What makes it even better is when those clients are local Long Beach residents. I know how busy new moms are and I am pleased to be able to offer the convenience of studio newborn sessions for them.  The session lasts 2-3 hours during which time I pose baby comfortably and gently into natural poses. 

When potential clients contact me about newborn sessions, I always recommend scheduling a family newborn session. This type of session allows the client to get a blend of posed portraiture, as well as some lifestyle images of the family interacting with the baby.  Many clients want to schedule in home family newborn sessions, but fear their home is too dark or does not have the "look" they want for their baby's first photos. Other clients have told me that they prefer the "polished" look and brighter aesthetic that a studio session provides.  

My first newborn session of 2018 was with this sweet baby boy, who was born just a few days after the New Year and promptly on his due date.  Baby P was wide awake for most of his session, which is always fine with me. I love images in which baby is awake and alert. Because my approach to studio baby photography is a soft and natural look, it is not a problem if the infant is awake; in fact, I tend to prefer those alert images because they always seem more authentic to me. 

My last session of 2017 was a newborn session that took place right here in my Long Beach studio.  It was a brutally cold day on the day of Miss K's session, but thankfully my newly installed radiant heating system really helps to keep the newborns cozy and comfortable during the session.  It is so important that babies feel comfortable during a session and I use a variety of methods to ensure their comfort such as white noise, rocking, swaddling, and various other techniques.  The length of a studio session varies based on how well the baby falls asleep and how she transitions between poses.

Clean Look for Classic Mom and Baby Portraits

Because my goal is to focus on the simple beauty of the newborn baby, as well as the love between family and child, it just makes sense to utilize a neutral color palette.  These colors utilized for the background of the newborn sessions' all me to place an emphasis on that beautiful simplicity of those first few moments with baby.  The scheme also enhances that gorgeous maternal glow that every new mom seems to radiate.  These recent images taken in the studio show exactly why I love the neutral palette so much.