Today I received the most divine parcel in the mail from some beautiful clients….a gorgeous bodyshop hamper to spoil myself with but more importantly were the words they chose to write in the card that occupied that parcel and it got me to thinking….Why hire a newborn photographer?
The card and it’s accompanying messages said….
“We had been watching your page and absolutely adored your photo’s. We were so excited to come to you. Now we have our gallery, I could stare at these photo’s all day. I knew they would be amazing but they are even more beautiful than I could have imagined. Thank you thank you thank you! We both love them and there is no way we could choose just a few. You are very talented and I don’t think you could take a bad photo! Every single detail is just so perfect and so much thought goes into your settings. We will be forever grateful to you for capturing such beautiful photo’s of our family. It was such a healing experience”.
.jpg)
Now of course this fills my heart and makes me confidant that this family chose the right photographer for them. My primary concern is always the safety and comfort of all my little bebe’s but also the confidence and reassurance that I give my families. I want them to feel safe in my home and my studio, I want them to feel safe handing me, a stranger, their most valued possession. I want them to talk about what a beautiful and loving experience their session was. I want them to know when they choose me as their professional photographer that they are paying for a professional, they are paying for my skills and my experience, they are paying for my passion, creativity and my love for what I do. They, as a bonus, are paying for the fact that I am a NICU nurse, and therefore experienced in safety, in handling little ones, and in reading babies queues. But is all that money worth it?
Sometimes….families question the cost of a newborn session, it is a big cost at a time in your life where money is at its most important, and seems to be spilling out everywhere. I am a newborn photographer, so of course I’m going to advocate for you as a family spending money on this invaluable gift but I am also a mumma too, so I know exactly where you are coming from. I had an amazing newborn photographer capture memories of my little ones and they are most definitely some of my most prized possessions. Not a day goes by that I don’t look at them and if there was a fire, along with my little ones, they would be what I would grab to evacuate!! Little one’s are only teeny tiny for such a short period of time, a newborn is really only that for the first couple of weeks. Life gets busy, you forget how curly & snuggly they were, you forget the tiniest of tiny finger nails & little pouty lips. Capturing these details to look back on for a lifetime is a gift that you as a family most certainly deserve to give yourselves.
.jpg)
.jpg)
That said, this is also my family business. I spend time away from my little ones to create special memories of yours, and in order to support us the cost must be balanced. I work my very hardest to capture the sweetest of moments between you and your little one. My time is also valuable. When you are choosing someone to photograph your family, and considering cost, please remember that you will choose that special person for a reason. You love their work, you value their time and you appreciate the care and devotion that goes into spending time with your family and working with your little ones.
Last week I saw a post in a local mum’s group, it read….”can anyone recommend a reasonably priced newborn photographer? I have found a few online that look like they do great work but they are crazy expensive and way out of my budget”. It took all of my strength to not comment on the thread, the reason their work is good is because they are experienced, skilled and safe. You literally get what you pay for. Sometimes in the sea of choosing a newborn photographer though, I know price can be what distinguishes one from another when you are looking at your budget.
Other than an amazing & safe professional…there is so much more that goes into a newborn session fee. Did you know that each individual styled set up can cost upwards of $350!! And anyone who has had a session with me knows I usually have multiple set ups for each session! On top of that your session fee’s cover my insurance, my equipment, my training, my products and supplies, my laundry (and anyone who’s been to a newborn session know’s there can be loads of this lol!), electricity…the list is endless. If only it was as simple as a fancy camera and snapping a few pics???
So often I hear the saddest of statements….”I so wish I had images like that taken when my little ones were small”. Please don’t regret this decision. Plan ahead, stash away a little savings, and when you stare at gorgeous images on your walls of your now 5 & 1 year old (sniff sniff) as newborns, you will know that you made the right decision!!
Ps….here’s cuuuutttteeee pics of my gorgeous littles as a newborns taken by the gorgeous Luisa Dunn Photography.
