5 Tips to Nail your Maternity Portraits!
You’ve entered your second trimester, and hopefully have a new burst of energy and you’re starting to feel better than you did during the first trimester. *Goodbye morning sickness!* There are so many exciting things will be taking place during this trimester! You will learn who is in there, boy or girl, and be able to start calling baby by name! Your bump will also start to look less like “did she eat too much” and more like an actual baby bump. This is the best time to reach out to your photographer to discuss your maternity session! While scheduling, here are my top five tips to ensure your maternity session is a breeze!
Tip #1 – Schedule your session for a day when you are between 28-34 weeks along.
This is the best time frame to have that sweet baby bump photographed, you’re literally glowing! The discomforts that follow the third trimester are not present yet, and your bump is at the peek of roundness before beginning to drop. If you book after your 34th week there is always the possibility of missing your opportunity for maternity pictures all together.
Tip #2- Choose a maternity gown from the client closet that matches your home decor!
Keeping your home decor in mind is essential for ensuring that your beautiful glowing self looks absolutely stunning on your walls! If you unsure what color you should go with, ask your photographer for some suggestions. It may even be helpful to send your photographer a few cell phone pictures of the place in your home that you wish to decorate along with the surrounding decor.
Tip #3- Go Pro! Treat your self!!
By hiring a professional hair and makeup artist, you are eliminating things you have to worry about taking care of, yourself. You are also giving yourself a well deserved treat! For crying out loud, you’ve been busy growing a whole little human, you deserve a break and to feel a little pampered. Maybe even treat yourself to a mani/pedi! You’ll feel great and look even better after a relaxing treat!
Tip #4- Bring the Family!
While maternity pictures do focus on mom and the bump, it’s also a great opportunity to take some family pictures before the new baby is born. Even if this is your first pregnancy, take advantage of having those romantic couples shots to commemorate your pregnancy. Trust me, you will love looking back at these memories!
Tip #5- Schedule your Newborn Session Now!
How can you schedule your newborn session, if you don’t even know when baby will actually be born? I’m glad you asked! Newborn sessions have the most limiting time frames. Scheduling early will ensure you get baby photographed while they still look and act like a newborn. Babies grow and change so rapidly, the golden window for newborn pictures is between three days to 14 days old. When booking a newborn session your photographer will schedule you for a “soft” session date. Meaning they will reserve a window of dates surrounding baby’s due date. This will give some wiggle room if baby decided to arrive earlier than expected or if baby decided to hang in there a little longer. Once you are home from the hospital, shoot your photographer a message to solidify your session date!
