When I first starting photographing babies, I was under the impression that the ideal time to photograph an infant was the following: 3 month, 6 months, 9 months, and 12 months. The idea of this timing was to capture all their milestones over the first year. So, I blindly followed this pattern assuming it was right.

It didn’t work.

Here’s what I found:

• 3 months….most babies cannot hold up their head high enough to take a tummy time photo. So, 3 months typically looks a lot like a newborn session with a wide awake baby.

• 6 months….this is the session where most parents are praying that their baby sits up BUT most 6 month olds are not quite there yet OR can’t sit up without the use of both hands to keep them sturdy (not the best for photos). I had so many disappointed parents because their baby couldn’t sit.

• 9 months….very very good timing for a baby session. Super cute and very fun! Best part, no stranger danger!

• 12 months….looks identical to the 9 month session, but now there is stranger danger or they are walking and running away from the camera

So, something had to change! This quarterly system wasn’t working. On top of that, I had parents that did not want to do the 3 or 9 month session, so they were SUPER disappointed if their child couldn’t sit for the 6 month session. Then, if the 3 month and the 9 month session was skipped, and the baby started walking at 11 months, we totally missed the sweet sitting stage completely.

Fortunately, I have babies in and out of the studio all the time and I am able to watch development at this age very carefully. I found that with a minor shift (and eliminating one session entirely), there is a very successful plan for photographing your baby’s first year. Here it is!

The Best time to Photograph your baby:

1. Newborn (0-21 days). Obviously, right? You can never ever get this opportunity again, so just do it. You won’t regret getting the photos done, but you will regret it if you don’t.

2. 4-6 months old. Right around 5 months, babies can lift the top half of their bodies with their arms. This is an amazing and super cute to capture. They may also grabbing their feet at this time, which is also very cute. This session looks very different than a newborn session, but still captures that very little/first milestone stage.

3. 6-9 months. This is it. If you only pick one time to photograph your baby in the first year, this is the time. This age is PURE BABY. They sit, coo, laugh, love the camera, and are absolutely the cutest.

4. 1 year. You may have a walker, you may not, but you will definitely have a big kid by this point! It’s incredible to see the change from newborn stage to 1 year.

I have been using this 4 session system for years now and it is a win!

Are you ready to book your baby sessions? I’d love to have you to the studio!