I have so many clients return year after year as their children grow or they add another baby, and this family is no exception. I LOVE getting to see the newest addition to families and seeing if they look like their siblings or not. I first worked with Adrienne and Dave when they were expecting their first child for their studio maternity session, then again for newborn and his First Birthday, then for his second birthday…and then heard from Adrienne that they were expecting baby #2! She scheduled both maternity and newborn for their second baby, opted to add on hair and makeup services with Margaret as she always has for previous sessions.
You can see their studio maternity session when expecting their first by clicking here, the newborn session of their first child by clicking here, fall family photos at the field by clicking here, and their park maternity session with their second child by clicking here. Whew, that’s a lot, right!? I don’t think I ever blogged Logan’s First Birthday session, so I should probably dig that out and post it sometime since it was such a cute one! That list doesn’t even include all the Santa sessions they’ve come to as well. What can I say? We have lots of long term clients and we LOVE it!
On the morning of their session, Adrienne and Dave arrived at the studio with baby Aiden! They had waited until birth again to find out if they were having a boy or girl (just like I did with all three of my own children) and were so excited that Logan was a big brother. As soon as I looked into the car seat carrier I was amazed at how CUTE Aiden was, but also at how different he looked from his brother as a newborn. There were definitely some similarities and time will tell - but I think they’re going to look pretty different from each other!
When I took Aiden out of his carseat, he was sound asleep, so I got to work right way with his solo portraits. Adrienne hopped into the hair and makeup chair, and Dave took the time to relax on the couch. Mamas - adding on hair and makeup doesn’t extend the length of your session time in the least bit. I’m going to be photographing your baby solo for the first 90 minutes or so of your time here, so if you’re worried that it’s going to make your session longer, don’t be!
Aiden slept for most of his time with me, but he did open his eyes to look around once. I always jump at the opportunity to photograph awake newborns as long as they’re calm and content. I love his quizzical expression in the photo I took, and then he drifted back to sleep. As I was finishing up with Aiden, big brother Logan arrived with his grandparents. Aiden woke up, but stayed really quiet and calm, so I kept photographing him while awake! Adrienne nursed him and then we got started with the family portion of the session.
We get a lot of requests for sibling photos. I want to address this because every older sibling is different. My first and foremost priority is the safety of your newborn. If I deem your older child too wiggly or too excited to calmly lie next to their sibling and follow direction, I will not put your newborn at risk by attempting it. We have LOTS of other ways to capture siblings together that involve a parent holding baby to keep them safe. Some older siblings are simply not willing to get that close to their sibling or don’t want to touch them. I always want my clients to have a realistic view on what to expect from their time with me and understand that sometimes the hope of a specific image just isn’t safe to create.
When we started the family portion, Logan was very excited and kept running back and forth between his parents and grandparents. Sometimes it’s totally fine for grandparents to remain in the studio, but in this case it was causing too much distraction. His grandparents were totally fine with stepping out and heading to our building lobby to hang out for a bit to see if that would help. It did - within minutes of their exit, Logan was participating and listening again. Sometimes having too many adults on hand can be overstimulating and distracting, so if I notice that happening, I will ask those not participating in the session to exit the studio for a bit to see if it helps. On the flip side, I’ve had so many kids do better with grandparents in the studio! Every family and kid is different, and we’ll play it by ear and see how it goes.
When I have toddlers involved, I get all of the family images and sibling images done first. That way they are free to go and enjoy their day and aren’t running around the studio or making their parents crazy. ;) Logan left with his grandparents to head home, and I ended the session with parent and baby images. Aiden was such a little squishball with the most delicious baby rolls - see for yourself!
If you're expecting a baby or already a parent and looking for a newborn, maternity, or family photographer, I would love to work with you to create images that you will love for a lifetime. Watch this video to hear about my philosophy and see how I work in the studio so you can determine if I'm the right fit for you. I can't wait to meet you!
Lily Sophia Photography specializes in newborn, baby, maternity, and family photography in Atlanta, Georgia and surrounding areas.
