Weddings & portraits
Newborn Photography Shot List
Newborn sessions are slow, warm, and led entirely by the baby. Plan for three hours to get an hour of shooting, and put the safety checks ahead of every creative idea.
The detail shots — hands, feet, ears, hair — are the ones parents look at most in ten years.
Shots
26
Groups
4
Format
Checklist
The shot list
Before you start
Practical, and all of it matters more than any shot on the list.
- 01Room warmed to 24–26°C
- 02Everything within reach so baby is never unattended
- 03A spotter present for any raised or supported pose
- 04Hands washed, nails short, jewellery off
- 05Feeding and settling time built into the schedule
Baby alone
- 06Sleeping on back, full length from above
- 07Curled on side
- 08Wrapped, close on face
- 09Unwrapped in a soft layer
- 10On a textured blanket, wide for scale
- 11In a basket or prop, supported
- 12Awake, eyes open, if it happens
Detail
The shots parents come back to. Get every one.
- 13Hands, macro
- 14Feet, macro
- 15Ear and profile
- 16Eyelashes and hair
- 17Lips and yawn
- 18Umbilical detail, if appropriate
- 19Whole baby in a parent's hands for scale
With family
- 20In each parent's arms, close
- 21Parent looking down at baby
- 22Both parents holding together
- 23Baby on a parent's chest, skin to skin
- 24Sibling holding baby, seated and supported
- 25Whole family together
- 26Parents' hands around baby's feet
Tips for this kind of shoot
- Safety before every shot. Never leave a newborn unsupported and never attempt a composite pose without a spotter.
- Warm room, patient schedule. A cold or hungry baby ends the session.
- Detail shots are the ones that get printed. Do not rush them for the sake of another pose.
Use this list on your next shoot
Storeyz keeps your shots in story order for planning and regroups them by location for the day — then you tick them off on your phone as you get them.