Worried about parent poses?

If you are like most parents you may be worried about the parent poses during their newborn session. I know you want these photos of you and your baby but you may also be feeling a bit anxious about it. You may be feeling uneasy in your postpartum body, and how clothes are fitting right now. You may also be exhausted and in pain from your delivery. I know that it’s hard to feel photogenic after having a baby but I promise you I will help pose you in a flattering way to capture images you love of you and your baby. One day you will look back and treasure these images so I encourage you to get in the photo!

What to wear

You’ve been thinking about what to wear and you feel like there is nothing that works. Most of your favourite tops or outfits don’t fit your postpartum body and your maternity clothes feel too casual. I want to start off by saying it doesn’t matter too much what clothes you wear for your session. Most of the images I take focus on you and your new baby and are taken from the waist up. You probably have something in your closet that will work well for your photos but if not I have options here in the studio as well.

Street shoes/ new shoes

You have no need for shoes in your portrait session as your feet are not in the photo. If you would like to include your feet I ask that you only bring unworn clean new shoes for your session. Please do not wear your street shoes into the studio because we have toddlers and babies who crawl on the floor.

Iron your clothes

One often overlooked detail is ironing your clothes. I recommend that you iron your clothes and put them on a hanger to avoid big wrinkles and creases.

Lint Roll

It’s also a great idea to use a lint roller to remove dust and bits stuck to your dark clothes.

Simple basics

Simple basics are always a great option for portraits. A simple black or white tank top, a simple strapless dress, a simple t-shirt are all great options for a classic portrait.

Texture

I love texture in portrait photography. Some beautiful textures are velvet, corduroy, pleated, pompom, tulle, taffeta, sheer, sparkly, sequins and knitted. Textures add interest but do not distract as much as bold colours do.

Fabrics

Using fabrics to wrap and drape are another beautiful option to create parent and child portraits. We can use flowing coloured fabrics to create a romantic mother and child portrait. Stretchy fabrics can be used to create a strapless top if you don’t have one that fits. We can also use loosely wrapped tulle to add beautiful texture. You can go skin to skin and dress up your image with fabrics or you can wear a strapless bra or spaghetti strap shirt. I have a variety of colours including black, white, gold, tan, red, green, pink, purple…

Light on light, dark on dark.

This is not a hard and fast rule but I do love the look of dark clothes on a dark backdrop or light clothes with a light backdrop. For example I like the look of a black dress against a dark backdrop and a white dress that is backlit. The reason I like this is similar to why I like to dress families in similar shades. The clothing blends in with the background and the faces are the main focus of the portrait.

Family Poses

You will also want to get a family portrait with the rest of your family and of course wondering what everyone else should wear.

Similar shades

I believe that family portraits look great when everyone wears a similar shade. This could be: that everyone is wearing rich jewel tones, everyone wearing earthy tones, everyone wearing creams, everyone wearing darks. In my opinion, wearing similar tones or similar shades allows all the outfits to coordinate and blend together. This to me means that the clothes don’t stand out and pull attention away from the real subject which is the faces. I also suggest wearing neutral nail polish or clean nails.

Hair and Makeup

Having your hair and makeup professionally styled can help reduce your stress and give extra confidence for your photo session. Let me know if you would like to book hair and makeup with your session. If you are doing your own I suggest that you do your makeup before you leave and that you bring what you want for touch ups.

TIP- Apply your lipstick here after you remove your mask to avoid smearing and lipstick on your teeth.

TIP- I suggest you don’t try a new hair style, new hair cut or new hair colour right before your session. People take time to get used to a new look and feel uncomfortable and insecure being photographed right after a new style.

I’m here to help!

I’m here to help if you need someone to help choose outfits. If you have a few options and you can’t decide between and you would like me to help go through your clothes that’s no problem at all. Many people send me photos of the clothes they are considering or they would like to do a video chat and go through the different outfits in their closet. Once your session is booked we can set up a time to video chat or you can send me photos of the clothes your considering.

Read this post for tips to get yourself photo ready.