Maternity

• Do your hair and makeup as you would if you were going out for a meal or similar event.
• Consider loose clothing before the shoot, as elastic marks take a long time to leave the skin.
• Think about showing your belly – button down shirt or cardigan. We recommend bringing a white and black buttoned top.
• For partners we suggest white and a black top. Always nice to have partners wearing the same colours so the focus is on emotions.
• Avoid bold stripes or multi-coloured outfits.

Babies

• Ensure your baby is well fed and slept prior to the session. There will be some time for a ‘top up’ feed if necessary.
• During a newborn session (within 10 days of birth), we work with how the baby is on the day. We never force certain poses so it’s a good idea to be flexible with your expectations. Babies will be babies and we aim to get the best from how they are at that moment.
• Expect to ‘top up’ your baby with extra milk. We usually hear ‘they are not due for a feed now’ or ‘I just fed him’, but posing and moving them during a session is unfamiliar so they seek comfort, and to them comfort is milk (or a dummy) so have these ready.
• The most beautiful photos are those where parents show love and affection to their newborn and one another. Don’t be afraid to get close to each other. We usually ask you to cuddle your baby close to your face to create an intimate feel.
• Ensure mittens are used in the days leading up to the photo shoot to avoid scratches.
• Keep the nappy loose to prevent nappy lines on your baby’s skin.
• Wash faces and trim nails. Moisturise dry skin with sorbolene rather than an oil so there is no shine left on the skin. It’s especially important that the area around the eyes is clean.
• Keep a face washer on hand for baby dribble.
• A couple of clothes changes and/or nappy/nudie shots. You can use nappy covers to hide disposable nappies.
• Light pastel colours create a soft feel for babies so jumpsuits/onesies look lovely.
• Have items such as hospital wrist bands, beanie/bonnet/hat, favourite blanket, christening necklace, stuffed animal or their first pair of shoes packed if you would like them photographed.

Toddlers / Children

• Wash and clean eyes, faces and hands.
• Clean and trim finger nails.
• Dry skin cleaned especially around the eyes.
• Keep a face washer on hand for sticky fingers or dribble.
• Wear and bring, bright colourful clothing. Avoid logos, excessive pictures and loud patterns. Bring any fun or unusual clothing like cool sunnies, first pair of shoes, favourite toy, funky boots, bright wellies, kids umbrellas, trendy jackets, braces, ties, jewellery, hats etc.

Adults / Families

• Do your hair and makeup as you would if you were going out for a meal or similar event.
• Remove all watches and hair bands from wrists.
• Try to ensure clothing is freshly washed and ironed and free of pet hair and avoid pilled tops.
• We recommend that you wear clothes you feel comfortable in.
• Wear classic accessories. Eg: wear classic earrings instead of coloured plastic fashion earrings as these ‘date’ photos.<
• For mums, we suggest wearing a top that covers your chest well as when you hold your baby, low cut tops tend to get lower! It also allows us to take photos from above as you look down at your baby.