When is the next important stage after newborn to be documented? what changes are we expecting to be captured at this stage? and why the time matters so much at this stage?
6-7 months-old photography is one of the most exciting, adorable, rewarding and surprising milestones to be documented.
It has been my most recommended session to all the newborn parents and unfortunately the most to be postponed.
So why 6-7 months-old?
Why not 5 months or even 9 months ?
what do we really miss if we skip to one year-old?
Planning for a sitter stage photography experience?
you won’t regret a minute of it after seeing the photos!
Did you enjoy your newborn photography experience? How does it impress you now after 4-5 months going through those photos? Or you may have missed the newborn stage and are aiming to plan for it at some point soon! Isn’t it that time flies by with lots of new explorations happening every day, and even a lot more to come?
Have you thought about documenting your little one’s first year and wondered when would be the best next stage to invest in some new photography experience? and maybe thinking: there is still time, no rush! we may even skip to his/her first birthday!
But what characteristics are the most important at this stage and what do we really miss? How long do we have to plan for it and why the time matters? Let’s see if I can answer some of your questions.
“Waiting until 8 months and he is now crawling all over the place! just started to be shy and is interested in everything around to grab and put in his mouth!”
“The photoshoot gone quicker and easier than I thought it’d be! She was in her best mood after the nap, smiling and interacting with us all the time and loved being in the center of attention!”
While children at every stage have their own special characteristics and new explorations,
to me the sitter session is one of the most rewarding and joyful stages to be documented.
So what are the main reasons of documenting our little one's life specially at this stage?
Here are my 5 most important reasons:
Interaction
After all the recent changes you have experienced through last few months, you have finally come to a point of getting more interactions. Babies start to interact, smile and have a conversation with you more and more (in their own way). From around 2-3 months when they surprisingly smile once they see you when your face is close-by, to an exciting stage around 5 months when the smile gets bigger and more often. That is when you see smiles and laughs every time you interact with your little one!
(The fun has just begun! a lovely reward to all your hard work!)
At this stage, babies interact much more with the strangers and everyone loves to talk to them and so do they!
Yes of course this interactions stays and grows to the later stages of their life, so why 6-7 months-old? And not later
This brings us to the next reason:
Sitting confidently,
not yet Crawling
Babies start to sit up confidently around 6-7 months, a bit earlier or later. This stage begins with a bit of cute wobbling (so funny) until they sit with confidence and you can clearly see their satisfaction of “Look at me! I can sit up now”.
So that is a good reason for waiting until that confidently sitting stage and not having the shoot while they are still wobbling when we may be worried all the time of whether or not he\she may fall back!
Next question, the child starts to sit up and carry on being sit so why not to wait more?
Mobility
That cute sitter, constantly smiling bundle of joy, will soon start to move and crawl so fast that you cannot believe! Yes, that very comfortable sitter stage, when you can happily leave them sit somewhere and doing your chores, while all they do is smiling and talking to you, won’t last long and your little cutie pie will soon start to crawl towards anything to grab and put straight to their little mouth!
So that explains a very important reason to have the photoshoot at this stage! they are cute and so interactive with people as they have not started to enjoy the excitement of moving yet! They stay where we put them and get excited with all we do/tell them!
Exploring the world
Babies, start to explore their surroundings soon after they learn how to move and crawl. That is when everything is a new exploration for them, and they do all their efforts to touch and chew on. That is when their curiosity to interaction with people is partly replaced with “let me see what is that? Does it fit in my little mouth?” so Things are now the priority to them and while they are still interacting with us, they get bored quicker, start to move towards everything around them and pay less consistent attention to people (means their head is mostly down playing with something!).
Not that is impossible to have beautiful shots at 8-9 months, it may just be more tiring to grab their full attention, keep going back and forth bringing them to where we want and shouting and singing load so they look up! It even comes to a point that we are making all the noises, acting as crazy as possible and singing any song we know by heart and your 9-10 month-old do not pay any attention and carry on doing what they want!
Tummy time
The best age to capture the tummy time is usually around months, when baby stared to enjoy holding their head up and looking around. Having said that, you may prefer to combine this stage with the sitter stage. At around 6-7 months, babies are not yet crawling, therefore they stay a bit longer on their tummy compare to a few months later that the moment you put them down, in a blink of an eye !!!! they have rolled up and back on their feet, trying to stand! So if you like to have some cute tummy photos, the time matters!
Did you have your newborn photography with me?
Are your interested in the sitter photography experience?
you are entitled to
an special bundle
sitter (6-7 months-old)
and 1 year-old
photography experience.
Get in touch to receive more details
When should we think, decide and plan for
a sitter stage photography experience?
As It is mentioned above, the sitter stage and the time span for this age can be a little limited. This stage usually starts with baby sitting confidently and last for a few weeks, varies between different babies. Some may start to crawl a bit later around end of 7 months, beginning of 8 months and some may even start to crawl first before sitting up confidently!
So the best is to get in touch around 5 months and start planning for your photoshoot. We will keep an eye on your baby’s progress together and book an appointment for you in a few weeks after they start to sit but still wobbling!
Every child is different so we will plan specifically considering your little one’s growth.
Family and Baby Life Style Photography Experience, is best to be a combination of indoor and outdoor moments. So we can document your daily cosy moments at home, including some nappy shots as well as a family outdoor fun in a beautiful outdoor venue.
What if your little one is already 7-8 months old?
If you have gone past that stage, it is not yet late and with a bit more patience, planning and time we can still document beautiful moments for you. But if your goal is to capture different stages of your baby’s first year, it is better not to wait much more as they grow fast into a 1 year-old baby! With all the specifications at that age, so a very important stage will soon be missed!
What happens next?
Having a family life style photography is an emotional and personal experience. Every baby and family is different so as the photographers! The best is for you and the photographer to know each other better so you both know what to expect and how to be prepared. To do so, there are a few steps before your photoshoot, including filling a simple questionnaire about all you have in your mind, your home style and all you like to do with the photos afterwards. A pre-session consult, to chat about all your final questions and concerns, review your daily routine and confirm all the details will follow after I receive your booking confirmation and the questionnaire.
What to expect from your baby/family lifestyle photography experience?
How do I plan, photograph and style?
My style is simple, natural and relax. My aim is to capture your simple, daily life at this stage, with all the details, special corners of your home and the simple family habits you have. These memories are captured for you to remember all these precious moments in details in future and for your little ones to be able to come back to one day of their life and see how would a day look like in their childhood.
I usually start with photographing you and your family as you are, cuddling, feeding or simply playing and giggling together as warm up time to help you get used to the camera with a photographer around so you can be more relaxed for the rest of the shoot.
Time of the photo-shoot is usually planned considering your little one’s sleep routine. The best time to start is right after your baby’s nap time in the morning. This way they are at the happiest time and we’d have more time to cover lots of family moments. If you’d like to have more time, we can have a break while they have their noon nap and recap again in the afternoon for the outdoor part of your photoshoot.
What corners of the house would look better in the photos?
The best answer to this question is the corners you’d spend more time on, sit together more and spend yoru family time together.
For example what I would always suggest to document, are some playful moments on the bed in the master bedroom, in their nursery, on the kitchen table ( we can include their favorites ingredients too, like flour, pasta and etc), staircase and by the window.
About the outdoor photography
Then we head to your favourite outdoor venue. The place that reminds you of lots of memorable family time so to bring back these memories in the future.
I hope all these information has answered your questions to find out when is best for your next photography experience. Do you still have some questions? Give me a call, text or email me so we can talk more about your next family photography experience.