Why I didn't get newborn photos done - and why you absolutely should..

I didn’t get newborn photos done. Not by another photographer that is. And I hate myself for it.

But I have my reasons, and I’m gonna tell you why.

Taken almost 4 years ago. So lifestyle even back then! And nailed lighting, I’m proud. I adore this image, his gaze is still the exact same.

Taken by me, almost 4 years ago. Little dry skin, he was a bit overcooked in my oven.

There are hundreds of beautiful photos of my dear baby with my husband and with my parents, even with our friends who visited us to congratulate, however not one with me that I would love. That I would be proud of. That I would blew up on the wall big for us and everyone to see every single day.

Being a photographer means, unless you find another photog who’s style collides with yours, you are pretty much never photographed. And we preach that you have to, absolutely must, exist in photos. And we don’t.

I was very picky when choosing a photographer.

And now, almost 4 years away, with 2 boys running around me, talking (Oh God even my smallest one is talking now!) I realised as I photograph families with their newborns, and especially mothers and their newborn babies that maternity and Motherhood portraits is where my passion really is. Every time I edit a beautiful image of a new mom and her baby I am full with emotions and often times tears in my eyes, overflowing with joy. And I don’t have one single image I’d really love.

It actually hurts so much that I don’t have images with my babies!

An image like this would worth for me everything.

I will tell you why I haven’t got it done thought. First time around, I had lots of photogs around me (I lived outside of UK) and I almost booked one. She was 2 hours away, her style was the only one I really liked. It was emotional, it was artistic, laid back. I loved it. There was no weird poses done on baby, nothing I’d consider dangerous (when done incorrectly by someone not educated in newborn photography). Then life happened and I had a C-section. My recovery was very slow, I needed about 2 full weeks to be able to walk further than the toilet. Even in the 3rd week I was not ready to travel. So my newborn photoshoot went out the window as she would not travel to me. So sad….

After a c-section, an in-home newborn session would have been the best option.

Second time around I didn’t have a photographer around me, where I lived at that time, whose work would really speak to me. It was all the same, one size fits all images… and I’d love to have something more emotional, something more unique to me, to us. So…those are my whys.

I really regret it. Any kind of photos are better than no photos (except for phone photos though). Even one photo is better than no photo. And what would be that one photo I’d go back in time to get done, if I could get done only one image? Hands down the one with me and my baby. Hands done. And I would make it a BIG wall art and display it proudly.

If I had those photos, they would be big and on my walls.

However, please don’t fool yourself into thinking “Oh I’m gonna DIY take some photos of my newborn” or “Oh my husband has a camera he can snap a few”. I will tell you honestly now, newborn photography is a completely different genre of any other photography and it is an artful, a skillset that need to be learnt, takes a lot of education, patience and practise. I am specialising in newborn and I am trained and certified in newborn safety. It is just not the same when you “just snap a few”. Plus, you don’t know what life throws at you: a c-section or a longer recovery period and all that good will will go out the window because, anyways, you’ll have hundred of different things on your mind with a newborn. Especially if it’s your first. And most probably if you already have a toddler running around.

Don’t DIY it, hire a professional newborn specialist. I am certified in newborn safety.

I’m not saying all this because I want you to book me. I want you to book a newborn photographer who you feel drawn to, anyway. But I want you to not miss out on your life’s most precious memories!

When in doubt, go big. Always go BIG

Don’t make the same mistakes I have made. Because not in 10 years, but even in 1 year you will regret it. You will lose yourself a little (most of us completely) to motherhood. Which is okay, there’s hardly any way around it. But you will feel, oh how you will definitely feel you want it documented somehow to one day show your baby how much you gave from yourself, how much they mattered. They and you will need that constant reminder. In life, we need to remember the best things to keep us strong when we would go weak. Photographs are the best way to help with that.

So go ahead and look around, chose a photographer whose work speaks to you, who you feel could trust your baby and family with, whose products speak to your lifestyle and book your newborn photographer in advance!

Next time, we are going to explore how to book the perfect photographer for You.

Until next time, check out my newborn work

Here you can check out what a session with me is like

Here you can check out my gorgeous Fine Art albums, folio boxes and canvas

I am Klara Balogh-Bona, and I am a newborn, maternity and motherhood photographer based in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk.