This weeks gorgeous little bundle is the very beautiful 2 week old Arianna and her big bruv Jackson. They popped along to our studio to capture our signature black and white newborn photography after mum had seen some of the portraits we captured for her friend a few years ago. We love word of mouth!
By all accounts, Arianna had been nocturnal the night before her baby photoshoot keeping her parents busy in true newborn style, although she was fast asleep on arrival. By rights, she had some sleep to catch up on but the world is a curious place for a newborn baby, and she needed a bit of gentle persuasion to sleep although this gave us the chance for some wide awake portraits which we always love.
We always encourage our clients not to worry when baby’s sleep agenda differs to ours! A combination of cuddles, warmth, milk and time means we get there in the end and we always get those gorgeous sleepy black and white newborn photographs. (We can’t guarantee that parents won’t also feel lulled into a quick snooze in this heady combination! Please be our guest and make the most of the opportunity!) The trick is to stay nice and relaxed and let time run its course, which is why we allow a flexible three hours for our newborn photoshoots. Equally, its not uncommon for a baby to go to sleep and then to re-awaken after some nappy action and then needing to feed, with the cycle starting all over again.
Once the holy grail that is sleep occurs though, we work through our repertoire gently yet also quite quickly. Newborns are always the pace setter in these shoots and it would be foolish not to recognise this, and we always marvel at their tiny will power. Newborns might only be a few days old, but aspects of their character are always evident and they can actually be very funny to watch, with a variety of cute squeaks and baby noises as they drift off. Arianna made some cute dolphin like clicking sounds!
(Please click on an image to see it bigger)
Arianna has a very beautiful bow shaped mouth which Andy captured perfectly, set in a natural pout. She also has an amazing crop of dark hair which frames her features beautifully in our black and white photography. We particularly love the close up with the cute flicky up curl just visible at the back of her neck.
Big brother Jackson was a an absolute superstar, very proud of his little sis and aware that he needed to be careful moving around near her. He’s a credit to mum and dad as its a long time for a pre-schooler to be at the studio, and a quick trip to the nearby park with dad in glorious sunshine went down a treat. We love the tenderness of this image of the two siblings together, with Jackson’s adoring kiss.
Three hours fly past when we’re in these shoots and for tired parents we think it’s a worthwhile investment as newborns change almost by the day. Capturing these early memories is precious, and for us, a privilege. With thanks to mum, dad, Jackson and Arianna for a lovely shoot.