7 DIY Newborn Photo Tips & Tricks

One of the very few perks of COVID-19, is that it has many of us DIY'ing everything and discovering a few new talents and hobbies along the way!

I see you guys taking up baking bread, painting, or working out - but my newly discovered hobby is photography! A few months back, we did our own maternity photos and I think they turned out pretty nicely (oh, and we were able to save a lot of cash 🤑), so we figured it would be pretty easy to do our own newborn photos...and that could not have been further from the truth.

In case you've never tried it...NEWBORN PHOTOGRAPHY IS HARD.

But it doesn't have to be. Take a few tips from me and the hubby to make your newborn photo session a lot more manageable.

1. Do your photoshoot early. Seriously, come home from the hospital, drop your bag and start snapping photos. The earlier you can do your photos - the more your baby will sleep and the less they will poop (yes, poop needs to be taken into consideration here). The first week or so home from the hospital is best so that you can capture your newborn while they are itty bitty peaceful babies.

2. Sleepy babies = a quick photoshoot. Feed that baby. With a full tummy, your baby will more than likely sleep throughout the entire shoot and be easier to move in and out of poses and outfits making your photoshoot quick and easy.

3. Keep your baby warm and comfy. Often, some of the props we think are adorable can be cold or rough to baby's delicate skin. Add a heater to the space to keep your baby warm and add pillows, cushions, or blankets to your props to make sure your sweet baby feels comfortable.

4. Stimulate the womb as much as possible. Soft sounds and gentle movement will help newborns relax during the shoot. I personally love the Baby Shusher device because it produces the "shhh" sound over and over again at different volumes and durations (why didn't I think of this?!) and something about it really calms babies down.

5. Have your ideal photos in mind. It's a lot easier to shoot for a specific look or pose than it is to randomly snap pictures. Go on Pinterest for ideas and pick out a few options for your birth announcements so that you have an idea of how you'd like your photos arranged (portrait vs. landscape, room for text at the top vs. bottom, etc) before you even begin.

6. Have everything you need nearby. Pack a little basket full of all of your props, a pacifier, wipes, an extra diaper, and a snack or two for you because snacks. You don't want to pause your shoot to find little things and overall, once you start your session - you want to just blitz through it.

7. Don't be afraid to stop and try again later. It took us 3 days and 5 tries to capture Jett's newborn photos. Between Jett not cooperating, Clarke being a handful, and us not having everything we needed for the shoot, we had to stop and try again a few times before we got everything down. Morale of the story - if things aren't going your way after a few minutes - try again tomorrow. That's the beauty of DIYing this! You are on your own time and have a lot more flexibility. Don't force it.

Overall, we are really happy with how Jett's photos turned out andddd we were able to accomplish them for a little under $40. I'm actively trying to forget that we spent $500+ on Clarke's newborn photos 🥴. Doing your own newborn photos is seriously worth a shot just to save a few bucks (ahem, hundreds of dollars)!

Are you DIYing photoshoots in your home this season? Tag me in them @taaraj, I'd love to see how they turn out! & don't forget to share any of your newborn photography tips in the comments!