5 Best Reasons to Have an In-Home Lifestyle Newborn Session

The 5 best reasons to have an in-home lifestyle newborn session

from a Chattanooga lifestyle newborn photographer

The in-home lifestyle photo trend has become pretty popular in the last several years. This is true for newborn sessions as well as regular family sessions too! There is just something special about capturing photos in your home where so many memories are made. This in-home lifestyle newborn trend is in contrast to the more traditional newborn photos you’re probably familiar with already. You know, the super posed newborn photos of soundly sleeping babies wrapped perfectly into little egg shapes and balanced gently in a basket or surrounded by flowers. Those are typically done in a studio and definitely have a special place in my heart. (I was an Anne Geddes fan before I even knew what a camera was.) But if that’s not your style or you’re looking for something more laid back, maybe an in-home lifestyle newborn session is perfect for you!

So what exactly is an in-home lifestyle newborn session?

An in-home lifestyle newborn session features generally unposed photos of baby and family in their own home using the family’s decor and home as the backdrop. The photographer typically uses your own baby’s blankets and things to capture natural moments between baby and family. The session typically follows Baby’s lead and Baby can be sleeping or awake and generally has periods of both throughout the session. Some of my favorite photos are these I captured of the baby crying while her father wraps her in a special blanket.

Like the blanket? You can get that blanket and similar blankets here! The brand is Aden + Anais

5 Reasons to Have Lifestyle Newborn Photos

1.

The entire session takes place in the comfort of your own home! This is perfect if you’re worried about taking Baby out into the world so young. You also don’t have to worry about gathering and remembering all the things you and the baby might need for an outing, not to mention all of the extra things needed if older siblings are involved. Especially a long outing like the typical 3-4 hour studio newborn sessions. It’s also easier to change outfits or touch up makeup and hair when all your things are right there.

2.

In-home lifestyle sessions are typically more relaxed and laid back. At your home, you have the space to take a break away from everyone if one is needed. As a mother myself, I sympathize with the intense emotions that you deal with immediately postpartum. Not to mention most people feel more at ease and comfortable in their own homes. This is true especially if there are older siblings involved and I’ve personally found it’s easier to get kids to open up and be their genuine selves for the camera and with their new sibling when at home. 

3.

In-home lifestyle newborn sessions typically take less time than a traditional studio newborn session. This is because there is less time spent making sure the baby is deep in sleep for each photo. Other than changing and feeding breaks, the session tends to move quickly and smoothly while still ensuring you get a wide variety of genuine emotions and natural images from your session.

4.

You don’t have to clean your house. No, seriously! There is no pressure to have your house look perfect. Only a few small spaces will be used for photos (unless you want to take photos of every room and corner, in which case I’m game) and you can discuss with your photographer which spots in your home you’d like to use or what they recommend.  I personally like to use windows and cozy corners. Even then, you don’t have to worry about everything being perfect before your photographer arrives. I’m more than happy to rearrange any items or move things to another spot in the room if they are not necessary or will be distracting for the photo and then put everything back when we’re done. I know what it’s like to have a newborn so there is definitely no expectation of perfection here! For these photos, we moved the coffee table and didn’t even pick up all of the toddler’s toys but you’d never know unless I told you.

5th reason below.

5.

The fifth and possibly the best reason to have an in-home lifestyle newborn session is that because the photos are taken in your home, you'll get to relive all of the memories made during that time when you look back at the photos in the years to come. This is special whether the home was yours for only a short time or your forever home.

What do you think?

Is an in-home lifestyle newborn session for you or do you prefer the perfectly posed studio newborn look? No wrong answers here! I love and offer both! Maybe you’re like me and you’d like a little of both! A lot of my equipment is portable and in addition to a simple in-home lifestyle newborn session, I also offer a hybrid model where we can add on a few posed photos as well - all done from the comfort of your own home! Message me below if you’ve got any questions or comments about in-home lifestyle newborn sessions.