As an Oakland-based newborn photographer, parents often ask me about the ideal time to schedule their newborn session. While many photographers strictly recommend the first two weeks, my lifestyle approach celebrates your baby at any age. Let’s explore the different timing options to help you choose what works best for your family.

Those First Precious Weeks

The first two weeks are filled with those impossibly tiny details—delicate eyelashes, fuzzy shoulders, and peaceful sleeping poses. Your baby tends to be sleepier during this time, making it easier to capture those serene moments. Many families choose this window to document their earliest days together, when everything still feels beautifully new.

Benefits of Earlier Sessions

During these first weeks, your newborn will change almost daily. Those wrinkly feet, paper-thin fingernails, and that fresh baby smell won’t last long. This is also when many families are still in that dreamy newborn bubble, making it a perfect time to document the raw, beautiful reality of welcoming your little one.

Baby acne may appear around 3-4 weeks, but it’s temporary and varies by baby. If it’s a concern, we can discuss the best timing for your session.

The Beauty of Waiting

Some families prefer to wait until they’ve found their rhythm. By 5-8 weeks, you’ll likely have settled into more of a routine and gotten to know your baby’s patterns. This timing often coincides with increased alertness and those first social smiles, leading to photos full of personality and connection. It’s also helpful for parents who are still healing from birth or getting comfortable with feeding.

No matter when you schedule your session, each stage offers something special. Here’s what you might expect at different points in your baby’s early months.

Your Baby’s Journey Through the First Months

Early Weeks

In the beginning, your baby needs full support for their head and neck. We’ll focus on capturing intimate family holds, peaceful crib poses, and those tiny details that make your heart squeeze. Safety always comes first, so we’ll choose positions that keep your baby secure and comfortable.

Growing Stronger

As your baby grows, their strength increases. They’ll begin lifting their head during tummy time and while resting on your chest, offering new opportunities for beautiful, interactive images. This opens up new possibilities for photos, from sweet moments during floor play to capturing their growing strength. One of my favorite details to photograph is their tiny fingers wrapped around yours—a simple gesture that holds so much meaning.

Emerging Personality

Your baby’s vision and social skills develop rapidly in these early months. Around one month, they begin noticing high-contrast objects and focusing on your face during feeds. By two months, they’re tracking movement better and becoming more interactive. This progression leads to beautiful moments of connection—from early eye contact to those first precious smiles around 6-8 weeks, and eventually, those heart-melting laughs around 3 months.

The Perfect Time Is Your Time

Whether you choose to capture those dreamy early days or wait for those first social smiles, there’s no wrong time for newborn photos. My lifestyle approach adapts to your baby’s stage of development, ensuring we create beautiful images that honor your family’s story.

These sessions document a fleeting chapter in your family’s life. Years from now, you’ll look back at these images and marvel at how small your baby once was, remembering the weight of them in your arms and the softness of their newborn skin. Every stage holds its own magic, and together we’ll capture the precious moments that tell your story—whether that’s during those quiet first weeks or when your baby’s personality begins to shine through.