How to Take Your Own Hospital Newborn Photos | Southern Indiana Newborn Photographer
This blogpost is long overdue and I’m mad at myself for not thinking about it sooner!
The pandemic has taken so much from so many. I’ve heard from many new parents how different their pregnancies and births had to be because of Covid precautions and it breaks my heart that so many weren’t able to experience the “normal things” most get to when having a baby.. One of those being missing out on photos taken at the hospital, whether birth photos, Fresh 48, or simply a family member taking some snapshots of you with your newest addition.
Pandemic or no pandemic, everyone deserves sweet photos of the earliest moments with your new baby. Some hospitals are beginning to adjust their visitor policies which means things are slowwwwwly getting back to normal. I hope to be back in the hospital capturing growing families soon, but until then I’ll just cheer you on from here and offer a little bit of guidance so you can feel more confident when you pick up your camera to document your sweet little baby. :)
Let’s get started!
1. Turn off the lights and open the blinds
This one is simple enough! Overhead lighting, especially hospital overhead lighting, can be really awful for photos. It can create harsh, unflattering shadows as well as mess with the colors and tones in your photograph. To get the most flattering, true-to-life lighting and colors in your photos, turn off all the lights (overhead and side lighting, if possible) so that you only have one light source for your photos - window light!
Next step - open up the blinds! Hospital rooms can be small and dark, so it’s really important that you open up the blinds to give you as much natural light as possible. If you’re stuck with an extremely dark room and have to leave some of the side lighting or lamps on, that’s okay. However, if you’re able to get enough light with ONLY the window light, stick with that!
2. Get near a window and face the light
Opening up the blinds is often not enough to fill the entire room with tons of light. That’s okay! If you’re limited with light, move close to the window. If you pay attention, you’ll notice pockets or areas of light around the window. You can stand in that area, position a chair to sit in, or move the baby’s bassinet in that area for the prettiest, most flattering light.
Once you’re positioned in the best lighting area, make sure you or your subject is facing the light source. When you’re facing the light source, the light will brighten you or your subject’s face. If you’re facing away from the light, you’ll have more shadows and an overall darker image.
You may be lucky with a hospital room with big windows and plenty of light. If so, you’re probably able to place yourself or your subject anywhere in the hospital room and be okay with lighting. If that’s the case, you’ll still want to face yourself or your subject towards the light source to ensure the best photo. For example, if you’re sitting in the hospital bed, make sure you are angled towards the window rather than facing away from it. Or, if the baby is laying on the bed or in its bassinet, turn his or her face towards the window instead of away from it.
*If you have a DSLR camera and are faced with the challenge of a really dark room, increase your ISO and set your aperture as wide as it will go (lowest aperture number your camera will go). This will help your camera bring in more light.
If you aren’t very comfortable with manual mode, you can set your camera to Aperture Priority mode (AV mode). You will have control over the ISO and aperture and your camera will take care of the shutter speed. For example: (1) set your camera to AV mode, (2) increase your ISO (probably to 500 or above - you may have to increase this if you still need more light once your aperture is set), (3) set your aperture as wide as possible (lowest number your camera will go - f/2.5, 2.0, or lower if your lens allows it)
3. Shoot from varying perspectives - get creative!
This is the fun part! Think like a storyteller. What will you remember (or want to remember) from your time in the hospital? Be like a fly on the wall and take photos from varying perspectives. Get close up to capture the small, sweet details. Get far back to get a wide view of your surroundings. Observe your spouse or your children with the baby and take candid, documentary style photos of them (avoid saying “look at the camera and smile!”). Taking photos from a variety of perspectives will help you remember some of the sweetest memories and details with your new baby that you may forget otherwise.
4. Document the special moments and memories
What will stand out most when you look back on the early days with your little one? What little details do you not want to forget? When big brother or sister got to meet their new sibling? Watching your proud new husband hold his new baby? How small he or she felt in your arms or how tiny their fingers and toes were? Try to notice the little things that melt your heart and if you can, capture it.
5. Avoid outfits with oversaturated colors
When considering outfits, try to choose clothing pieces that aren’t overly saturated. This can mess with the color tones of your skin and make for less-flattering photos. For example, a bright solid red or pink shirt or swaddle blanket could make your skin look more red. However, if you have a clothing piece that has some details or patterns of a more saturated color, that’s usually okay.
Choosing clothing pieces that are more neutral or soft tend to photograph really beautifully in the hospital setting. If you want to incorporate brighter colors in the photos you can do this through the patterns or details in the clothing or accessories you use.
I always encourage my clients to stay away from solid black or really dark colors as well, since this can also effect skin tones in photographs.
6. Get in the photos!
I know you may not be feeling your best after having a baby, but make sure you get in the photos too, Mama! Trust me, you will treasure these photos for life no matter how you looked or felt. The photos will also be such a sweet gift for your child to have one day.
I know it can be hard to get in the photo when you’re usually the one taking them, so here are a few tips:
Ask a nurse! From personal experience I know nurses are usually always more than happy and willing to take some photos for you (during delivery and during your stay at the hospital). When I was in labor with my daughter I didn’t even realize that a nurse had taken my phone from my husband and took photos of our first moments with our daughter. Some of the photos are a little blurry and may not be “perfect” by other people’s standards, but they are some of my very favorite and most cherished photos. I’m so grateful for that sweet nurse that did it without me having to ask! So if you think about it, hand over your phone or camera to a kind nurse and let them capture your little family.
Hand your camera over to your spouse and ask him (or her) to snap photos of you admiring your brand new baby. Direct him or her to take photos from varying perspectives, capture the little details, and don’t forget to follow the lighting guidelines discussed above!
Use a tripod. You can get these for an affordable price on Amazon, or if you think you’ll use it often you can of course get a better quality one. You can also get a remote trigger so you can tell the camera one to take the photo versus having to set the timer and running to your spot before the shutter goes off.
You can also get a tripod for your phone, which makes it much easier if you aren’t really familiar or comfortable with a dslr camera. I’m linking the one I have below.
7. Use what you have - don’t worry if you don’t have a “fancy” camera!
Most importantly, use whatever camera you have! You will cherish these sweet photos of your most important and favorite memories whether you took them with a fancy dslr camera or your phone. Some of my favorite photos were actually captured with my iPhone and they mean more to me than others taken with my dslr camera. Photos capture a moment frozen in time, and these early moments with your new little love are worth documenting, no matter what camera you have. :)
I hope you’ve found these tips to be helpful! You can find more Fresh 48 work and ideas here. If you have any questions you can drop them in the comments section below or email me. I’m always happy to help!
If you’re interested in booking a newborn session I encourage you to look over some of my recent work here to see if I may be a good fit for you. I’d love to chat with you about documenting this sweet time in your family’s life!
Thank you for reading! Feel free to save or share this post with any expecting mama friends or anyone you feel may find this helpful. :)