What to wear to your newborn photography session

Having trouble deciding what to wear to your baby’s newborn photography session? Here are some helpful tips!

Tips for parents and older siblings:

1. Wear clothes that don’t wrinkle easily. This one doesn’t need much explanation. You’ll all be holding baby, which could cause wrinkles. One less thing to worry about!
   

   

2. Avoid clothes that you’ll have to keep adjusting.  If it doesn’t lay properly, your bra strap keeps needing to be tucked away, or the shirt is too short to stay tucked in, reconsider those options.
   

   

3. Don’t worry about shoes. The only newborn session photo I take where your feet would show is of everyone sitting on the bed (if you choose to do photos in the studio bedroom). Of course, you wouldn’t wear shoes on a bed anyway! We usually have everyone go barefoot for those.
   

   

4. Wear solid colors or small prints. Keep the attention on the baby and keep your photos timeless by avoiding distracting prints.
   

   

5. Wear white/cream, black, neutrals or pastels.
   • White is timeless and complements the newness and innocence of the baby.
   • Neutrals work well to keep the attention on the baby and away from your clothing.
   • Pastels also have that “new baby” look and are great if you want to coordinate your outfits with the nursery.
   • Black is best for moms who are worried about hiding their post-maternity belly, but I do shoot at angles that avoid showcasing that part of your body, so this shouldn’t be much of a concern.
     

     

6. Do not wear clothes with words on them. Our eyes are immediately drawn to words in photographs. Keep the attention on your faces and the baby by avoiding clothing with company/brand names and with words like “big sister” for family photos (save the “big sister” shirt for a sibling photo where we can do a quick change).
   

   

7. Dress for the warm studio. I keep the great room around 74, but the smaller newborn studio is closer to 80, no matter the time of year.
   

   

8. Pack a change of clothes, especially if you want to hold your nude baby in photos. There’s a 50% chance you’ll get a mess on you for those. Otherwise, we keep a diaper on the baby under a swaddle (95% of my clients choose the swaddle).
   

   

 

For the new mom:

1. Wear clothes to your newborn photography session that you are comfortable in. If that means one of your favorite maternity tops, wear that. If you want to wear a dress, wear that. Your comfort will show through in your photos. Remember the photos are more about you snuggling your baby and less about your clothing. Sometimes the simplest pieces photograph best.
   

   

2. Avoid clothes that have too much extra room around your middle. I know you may want to hide your tummy, but having loose-fitting clothing that gapes at the sides and around your waist will make you look larger than you are.

3. Just reiterating my point above about the color black. It can camouflage a lot if you’re worried about your belly area.

Have any other tips on what to wear to your newborn photography session that you’d like to share? Comment below!

More inspiration for your newborn photo session can be found on my Pinterest boards.

Ready to book your Northern Virginia newborn photography session? Contact me today!