I’d always loved the idea of having a newborn photo shoot but as a first time Mum I didn’t really know where to start. I’d seen countless Facebook ads of styled, posed babies wrapped in swaddles with little props or bows but didn’t feel that was our style and worried I’d feel pressured to make my baby look a certain way to achieve certain photos. The thought of spending hundreds of pounds to turn up to a studio and for my baby to cry for an hour really didn’t appeal to us! I stumbled across a collection of beautiful rustic portraits of a friend’s newborn and instantly messaged her to ask who had taken them.
At this point I’d never met Hannah but was certain, if we were to choose to have newborn photos (as a very camera-shy mum and dad), Hannah would be the one to take them. I quickly learnt that the shoot I had seen had been taken at the families’ home and was very much drawn to this idea. Hannah explained how the shoot would work, that she would turn up at a given time and somewhat let us carry on with life for approximately 90mins, snapping away as and when she could, taking opportunities to capture small moments such as feeding or sleeping to keep our baby as calm and in their normal environment as possible. Having recently come out of hospital after a stay in NICU with Albie we agreed we would give it a go and booked a date.
Prior to the day Hannah advised us to keep everything in our house as it would usually be, no cleaning and tidying or being ‘on ceremony’ for her arrival. She advised we wear comfortable everyday clothes in neutral, plain patterns and suggested the same for Albie along with having anything special to wear or photograph with him to hand (we chose a couple of knitted matching items my mum had made and a couple of teddies Albie had been gifted from special people). She suggested we aim to keep the lightest room in the house nice and warm and that she would bring blankets as neutral backgrounds, so we didn’t need to worry about this. We kept in touch via email, arranging the details/package and payment beforehand, with everything feeling very straight forward and organized.
On the morning of our shoot, Hannah arrived and quietly came into our living room where Albie had just woken. Initially we just chatted for a while, Hannah making us feel very much at ease and making friends with our over friendly dog. I knew I wanted some photos of Albie being breastfed, as I knew our breastfeeding journey was coming to an end and wanted to capture the moment. I sat in my usual armchair and fed my baby as I usually would, somewhat oblivious to Hannah taking beautiful shots next to me! We then went to our spare room, which is the lightest, for Hannah to take some portraits of Albie. She laid out fluffy blankets on the bed and suggested we change him as and when we liked into his different outfits. Before dressing him in a vest and dungarees, Hannah suggested we try a couple unclothed given the room was warm. He loved it! Hannah draped blanket over his bottom half and snapped away capturing stunning portraits of him awake and alert snuggled in the blanket, with the props we had chosen. We then took some family photos as Albie began to doze back to sleep.
Within a couple of days, I received our preview prints from Hannah, which made both Arnas and I very emotional. We were over the moon with every single photo! Hannah had captured so many beautiful moments, a little yawn, Albie and my husband gazing out of the window, my mum’s knitted pieces and many more in such a short space of time. A couple of the prints took pride of place on our walls very quickly, remaining a talking point among all our family and friends and even now, 2 years on, my now toddler Albie and I discuss the photo of mummy, daddy and Albie baby, every morning when we come down the stairs.