08/28/2026
My Journey in Newborn Photography 🤍
2012 → 2026
I don’t think I’ve ever really shared the story behind one of my absolute favourite milestones to photograph: newborns.
The photo above is from 2012, my very first year photographing newborns, compared to where I am today in 2026. And looking at these two images together brings back A LOT of memories.
I’ve always loved babies. I’m the proud big sister to six younger siblings — four brothers, including a set of twins, and two younger sisters. I spent my teenage years babysitting, and now becoming an auntie has somehow made that love for babies even bigger. 🤍
But newborn photography definitely didn’t start with the studio I have today, filled to the brim with wraps, bonnets, tiny beds, buckets, backdrops and probably more newborn props than any one person needs. 😂
I started in my mom’s basement, sharing props with her while she was also photographing newborns. From there, I spent years packing my vehicle to the absolute brim and bringing everything into clients’ homes.
I photographed out of the old Station 29 studio and eventually rented space at the Centre for Creative Arts before finally getting a studio of my own — something I never imagined I would accomplish so young.
And those travelling/rental studio days were HARD.
It could take me an hour just to haul everything inside and set up. I’d arrive extra early, pay for all that additional rental time, photograph the session, clean everything, tear it all down, haul it back to the vehicle and unpack it again later.
Some days, I was exhausted before I even picked up my camera.
There was actually a point when I almost quit newborn photography altogether.
The workload was one thing, but on a deeper level, I was struggling with posing. I couldn’t figure out how other photographers made these poses look so effortless. I questioned whether newborn photography was something I was actually meant to do.
At the same time, I was terrified that if I stopped offering newborns, I would lose the families who had trusted me to photograph their growing families.
I was pretty much ready to call it quits when one of my clients reached out for her baby boy’s newborn session.
I decided to do one more.
He was a precious little guy who happened to be colicky, but somehow that session went beautifully.
And I couldn’t quit.
Instead, I decided I needed to learn.
I dove headfirst into workshops and education. I learned techniques from photographers who became friends and mentors — some actively photographing newborns and others who have since retired from it. I practiced posing, wrapping, lighting, soothing, transitions and, most importantly, safe newborn handling.
Little by little, the thing that once made me want to quit became one of the biggest reasons I grew.
Newborn photography pushed me into getting my first studio because I desperately needed somewhere I could leave things set up.
Then I outgrew that studio.
And eventually I was able to move into the studio I have today, with an entire room dedicated specifically to my newborns and sitters. A space filled with all those props I once had to haul around in the back of my vehicle.
There is something pretty special about that.
Fourteen years separate these two photographs.
The photographer who took that photo in 2012 had absolutely no idea where newborn photography would take her. She didn’t know how many babies she’d eventually hold, how many families would return with baby #2, #3 or #4, how much she would learn, or that one day she’d have a studio and a newborn room of her own.
Practice didn’t make me finished — it made me better.
I’ve improved my posing, my lighting, my safety and handling, my patience and my confidence. Somewhere along the way, I fell completely in love with newborn photography.
And even after all these years, I still have things to learn. I hope I always do.
But looking at 2012 → 2026, I’m incredibly grateful that on the day I thought I was ready to quit…
I photographed one more baby. 🤍
And I’m so glad I did.
