Best Ages for Baby and Infant Professional Photography

A baby’s first year is an important time to start documenting their life with professional photography. Even though the parents may be snapping away, a portrait professional can capture the baby in unique, artistic ways and produce professional archival prints that will last for generations. Understanding the importance of the task, many parents wonder when are the best months in the first year for professional infant photography. The following are some guidelines that identify what can be expected at the different stages of the baby’s first year or so.

Newborn - Newborn photography session should ideally be done in the first three weeks - particularly the first 10 days. In the first 10 days, the babies are easier to work with as they are less fussy and they will not have their baby acne yet which usually sets in around day 16. Beautiful images of naked newborns laying down or in their families arms are an incredible beginning to documenting a person’s life, and should not be missed.

2 to 3 months - This time is still considered newborn, but the babies are often much harder to work with at this age as they tend to be very fussy. They will have better head control than in the first month, and they usually can smile at this point, but do not count on getting a smiling portrait at this age. Most posing will involve the baby laying down on back or stomach, being propped up, and being held in arms.

4 to 5 months - By this time most infants have really filled out and they look very different compared to their newborn images. This age is much better at smiling, but still not totally reliable. Still not able to sit up on their own, these baby’s are much better at interacting with people and toys. This is a good time to capture close up’s of facial expressions, hands and feet in mouth, and bare bottoms.

6 to 7 months - Around this age the infant is able to sit up, and there are many more options for photography posing. Outdoor sessions are now possible for six month old portraits, but remember that babies at this age love to put everything in their mouth, so choose the outdoor location carefully. This is a great age for portraits with pets, and siblings as the infant is usually not mobile yet - just able to sit up, laugh and smile!

8 to 10 months - Often by this age, the infant is crawling and the sessions get very active! Consider a white background session in studio for a clean, classic look - but be ready to bring toys to distract the baby to stay in the area of light and continually reset the baby to the right spot. for very active babies a better choice for professional photography may be at the home if these is plenty of natural light so that the baby can roam and the photographer can follow.

11 to 14 months - Pulling up, standing and then walking - these all are typical of these ages and should be documented as a major milestone in the infants development. Now the baby is really able to move in their environment which would make it a great time for a location session, including other family members as well.

OK - so what are the best ages for professional infant photography? As an experienced baby photographer, I would say all of the above are great for documenting the baby’s stages, but you can skip the 2 to 3 month session as they just tend to be so fussy. If you can only do three - make sure to do the newborn session (5 to 10 days), the 6 month session (sitting) and the One Year Portrait. When ordering your prints, make sure to get professional archival prints so that they will last for generations, and the grand children of this baby will have these pictures to treasure. This is the gift of professional photography.

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