When parents book a newborn photoshoot with me, they obviously don't know a few things. Like, when exactly the baby will be born (even with scheduled C-sections, babies can arrive early), how long it will take for Mom to recover, and if any special considerations will need to be made for the baby.

After Maren was born, her parents found out that she has hip dysplasia. Maren has to wear a special hip brace, basically 24/7 so her hips can grow into their proper position. This isn't something we planned for, obviously, and Maren was given permission to go without the brace for exactly one hour for the photo session.

And she was wonderful.

Because I don't pose babies, something like hip dysplasia isn't an issue. I don't try to get newborns to sleep before I photograph them, so having just an hour is no problem as well. And my flexible scheduling essentially allows Mom to pick whatever date she likes after giving birth, based on how she's feeling at the time.

Everything I do is for the family in front of my camera. We celebrate their new child together. We admire her as she kicks her legs and explores her world. We talk about her personality and her preferences. We make her comfortable and arrange for her to spend most of the time in her parents' arms.. because that's where she's the happiest.

I don't pose babies, because they don't need posing. They need a space where they can be themselves. Where they can be with their parents. And where I can capture that little piece of their childhood that will become so incredibly important many years from now. But not only that. The photographs, printed on the most incredible fine art photo paper and nestled in a gallery white mat (for easy handling), are crafted to last generations. Most parents don't think that far. They don't consider the need to preserve these images that far ahead.. but I do.

Maren will have an incredible record of the first few weeks of her life, and that is everything.