Photographing a newborn when there are two toddlers in the family is a very different experience from photographing a first baby.
There are more people who need something. More personalities. More movement. Someone will probably need a snack at some point. A toddler may decide that reading a book is infinitely more interesting than anything the photographer has planned.
And, in my experience, that’s not a problem.
For this in-home newborn photography session in Surrey, BC, the family had a newborn baby and two toddlers. They wanted their photos to feel light and airy and they wanted their children to have the freedom to be themselves.
Those two things can absolutely coexist.
In fact, I think some of the most beautiful family photographs happen when we stop trying to make young children perform for the camera and start paying attention to what they’re telling us instead.
Why an In-Home Newborn Session Works So Well With Toddlers
One of the biggest advantages of photographing an in-home newborn session is that the children are already in a place that belongs to them.
They know where their toys are. They can climb onto their parents’ bed, grab a favourite book or wander away for a few minutes when they’ve had enough.
For toddlers especially, that familiarity matters.
During this Surrey newborn session, I let the older children lead quite a bit. If they wanted to participate, wonderful. If they needed a break, we gave them one and photographed something else.
There’s no reason every member of the family needs to be involved in every photograph.
I might photograph the baby alone for a while, photograph one parent with the newborn, or focus on another little moment happening elsewhere. Then, when a toddler is ready to come back, we bring them back into the photographs.
Being able to pivot like this is a huge part of photographing families with very young children.
I Don’t Expect Toddlers to “Behave” for Family Photos
This is something I feel quite strongly about.
Constantly bribing or threatening young children to behave will never result in the kind of beautiful, connected photographs most parents actually want.
It puts an enormous amount of pressure on the child. It can make the parents stressed. And suddenly everyone is thinking about whether the toddler is cooperating instead of simply being together.
I would much rather figure out what the child is interested in and work with that.
A Simple Moment From This Surrey Family Session
At one point during this session, the kids were done with photos.
I could have tried to redirect them back to whatever I had planned next. Instead, I grabbed a favourite book of theirs from the shelf. I have two young kids of my own and there’s barely a time where reading to them doesn’t get them to sit still for a minute.
First, I photographed them doing it on their own. Then I recruited Mom to come over and read with them.
Suddenly, something that could have been viewed as the children “not cooperating” became an opportunity for photographs of Mom curled up reading with her kids.
Those are the moments I’m looking for.
I’m still directing the session. I’m watching the light, composition and background. I’m deciding where I need to be and anticipating what might happen next.
But I’m not trying to manufacture every interaction.
There’s an important difference between directing a family and controlling a family.
The Best Family Sessions Leave Room to Pivot
After photographing families for years, one of the things I’ve learned is that you need to pay attention to children’s cues.
There is usually a point when a toddler is telling us, in one way or another, “I’m done with this.”
That’s when it’s time to pivot.
Maybe we move to another room. Maybe we let them play. Maybe Mom feeds the baby while Dad hangs out with the older kids. Maybe we pull out a favourite book. Maybe that child disappears from the photographs entirely for ten minutes.
That’s okay.
The goal isn’t to follow a rigid shot list.
The goal is to create a gallery that feels like this family.
With three very young children, that means allowing the session to breathe.
How We Created a Light and Airy Look Inside Their Surrey Home
This family also wanted their photographs to have a light, airy feeling.
Something I think is important for families to understand is that “light and airy” isn’t something that happens only in editing. The look of your photographs starts long before I edit them. Inside a home, little decisions can make a surprisingly big difference.
We Look for the Best Natural Light
I photograph using the available natural light in a home, so I’m always looking at how light moves through each room.
We don’t necessarily photograph everywhere.
I’ll choose the spaces with the most flattering light and position the family in relation to windows rather than simply putting everyone wherever there happens to be space.
Opening curtains and blinds can completely change a room.
And sometimes moving only a few feet closer to a window is enough to give us that soft, bright feeling we’re looking for.
Light Coloured Bedding Makes a Difference
This is one of those small details that people don’t always think about.
If we’re going to photograph your family on a bed, light-coloured bedding can make an enormous difference to the overall photograph. White, cream, beige and other soft neutrals reflect light beautifully and help create that bright, relaxed feeling. As always, any photographs of a newborn on a bed are created with an adult right there; for sleep, you can read Health Canada’s current safe sleep recommendations.
A very dark or heavily patterned comforter, on the other hand, can become one of the strongest visual elements in the photograph.
That’s why I recommend light bedding whenever possible for families who love this aesthetic.
Wardrobe Helps Create the Overall Feeling
Clothing plays a role too. I have a whole guide on what to wear for family photos, but for a light and airy gallery, I generally recommend lighter colours and softer neutrals rather than having everyone dressed in very dark colours.
That doesn’t mean everyone needs to wear white or match.
The goal is for the colours to work together and support the feeling you want from the photographs rather than distracting from the people in them.
It’s the combination of wardrobe, bedding, natural light and where we choose to photograph that creates the finished look.
Your House Does Not Need to Be Spotless
This may be one of the biggest misconceptions about in-home family photography. You do not need a perfectly styled home. In fact, one of the reasons I love in-home family photography is that your home doesn’t need to look like it belongs in a magazine to photograph beautifully.
And you definitely don’t need to spend the night before your newborn session frantically cleaning every room in your house.
I’m looking through my camera very differently than someone walking through your home.
I’m paying attention to light, angles, composition and what will actually appear inside the frame.
We can move something distracting if we need to. I can change my angle. We can photograph in the two or three areas of the house that work best and completely ignore everything else.
Your laundry room does not need to be photo-ready. I expect your home to look like people live there :)
What Parents of Toddlers Can Do Before an In-Home Newborn Session
You don’t need to prepare your children to perform for me.
In fact, I’d rather you didn’t.
You can tell them a photographer is coming to hang out with the family and take some pictures, but there doesn’t need to be a big conversation about smiling, listening or being “good.” If you’re wondering about the practical side of how to prepare for your newborn session, I’ve answered some of the questions families ask me most often, from what-to-wear to how to prepare your home.
A few things that are genuinely helpful are:
- Open blinds and curtains so we have as much natural light as possible.
- Put light or neutral bedding on beds we may use for photographs.
- Choose clothing that works with the light, relaxed feeling you want in your gallery.
- Have a few favourite books or simple activities available.
- Let me know if your children have particular interests or things that reliably make them happy.
- Expect breaks.
- Give yourself permission to let go of the idea that everyone needs to cooperate perfectly.
Most importantly, don’t panic if your toddler isn’t doing what we expected.
That’s information for me.
It’s my cue to figure out what we should do next.
What I’m Really Looking for During a Newborn Family Session
Of course I want beautiful photographs of your newborn.
I want the tiny details and the quiet moments with your new baby.
But when I’m photographing a family with older siblings, I’m also thinking about the story of this particular season of family life.
What does it feel like to have a newborn and two toddlers right now?
That’s what I want to preserve.
The toddlers being themselves mattered in this Surrey session. The quiet newborn moments mattered. And the photographs of the whole family connecting mattered. If you’d like to see another example, you can also look through this in-home newborn session with a toddler.
I don’t want to remove all the personality and unpredictability from a family in pursuit of a “perfect” photograph.
I’d much rather make something beautiful out of what’s actually there.
Because toddlers grow up.
The child who insists on reading the book instead of sitting where we planned won’t always do that.
The way they climb onto Mom, squeeze beside their sibling or wander in and out of what’s happening will change.
Those little pieces of family life are worth photographing too.
In-Home Family and Newborn Photography in Greater Vancouver
If the thought of taking a newborn and your toddlers somewhere for family photos sounds exhausting, you don’t have to.
My newborn photography sessions take place in your own home, which allows us to work around your children instead of expecting your children to work around the session.
We’ll find the beautiful light. We’ll make thoughtful decisions about where to photograph. I’ll give you direction when you need it.
But there will also be room for your children to play, read, wander away, come back, cuddle their new sibling and simply be themselves.
That’s often where my favourite photographs come from.
If you’re looking for an in-home family or newborn photographer in Surrey, BC, and you want photographs that feel beautiful without requiring your family to behave perfectly, I’d love to photograph this season for you.
