The plan we made
The plan was a maternity session in the backyard and a Fresh 48 at the hospital. Neither happened. Baby came early, and by the time we had a date, the window for both had closed.
What we did instead was the session we’d talked about on our very first call — as the backup, the one you hope not to need.
Why we talked about a backup on the first call
When someone books at 37 weeks, the maternity session may not happen. That isn’t pessimism, it’s arithmetic — so we discussed the at-home newborn as the alternate option in case the baby does arrive early.
Which meant that when the plan broke, there was no scramble. No refund conversation, no starting over. Just a different session we’d already discussed and planned for during our call before the delivery.
The Takeaway: Ask your photographer what happens if the baby comes early, and ask before you book. If they don’t have an answer, that’s the answer.
What an in-home newborn session actually looks like
Where it happens
Wherever the baby already is. Mom had no nursery yet — the bassinet was in the master bedroom, so that’s where we worked. That’s normal and it photographs better than a staged room, because it’s the room the baby actually lived in that week.
The light
One window, usually. Curtains open, lights off. The bedroom with the best window beats the prettiest room in the house every time.
The pace
The baby sets it. Feeding, changing, settling — all of it is part of the session rather than an interruption. That’s the difference between in-home and studio, and it’s the reason it takes longer and feels shorter.
Fresh 48 or in-home newborn: How to choose
Fresh 48 First 48 hours, at the hospital
In-home Newborn First few weeks, at home
Fresh 48 Documentary, immediate, a little foreign
In-home Newborn Quiet, cozy at home, unhurried
Fresh 48Whatever the room offers
In-home Newborn Your own windows, chosen in advance
Fresh 48 Whoever’s there and allowed during visiting hour
In-home Newborn Whoever you invite
Fresh 48 Hospital permission, visiting hours, a second contact who can contact the photographer
In-home Newborn A date, and a room with a window
Fresh 48 Timing is entirely out of your hands
In-home Newborn Minimal as you are at the comfort of your own home
The honest truth: Fresh 48 gets you something no other session can — the first two days, which never come back. An in-home session gets you a calmer picture of the same story. Some families do both. If you can only plan one and you’re booking late, plan the one that doesn’t depend on timing.
How to plan so an early arrival doesn't undo everything
- Book maternity earlier than feels necessary. The ideal time to schedule your maternity session is between 28–34 weeks of pregnancy, when your belly is beautifully round and you’re still feeling comfortable and mobile. We recommend reaching out to book your session around 20 weeks to ensure your preferred dates are available, especially on weekends.
- Agree the fallback before you sign. In the case of baby arriving early, or complication at delivery, have an open conversation with your desired photographer what would be the alternate plan for the photo session that had already been paid with a deposit.
- Keep the newborn window loose. Provide the due date, and allow at least a week window around it, this will help your photographer schedule things in place.
- Give your photographer a second contact. You will most likely busy delivering instead of texting, provide your photographer a secondary contact person, even better, start a group conversation before your water break.
- Check the hospital’s photography policy early, not the week of. Visiting hours, permissions, which windows face where.
- Test your light at home. Provide lighting reference photos of the rooms you’d like to photograph in at home, to better help your photographer determine best time for the session to take place.
Frequently Asked Questions
Standard practice is 28–34 weeks — far enough along for a clear bump, early enough that you’re still comfortable standing for an hour.
Book the photographer well before that. Good dates go early, and booking ahead means you’re choosing a time of day rather than taking what’s left.
Not too late — but late enough that you should plan for it not happening. At 37 weeks the baby could arrive any day, and if that’s where you are, the honest conversation is about what you’d do instead. That’s not a reason to skip it. It’s a reason to agree the backup before you book.
Photographs taken in the first 48 hours after birth, usually at the hospital — the first day of a baby’s life, documented as it happens. It’s immediate and a little raw, and it captures something no later session can.
It also depends entirely on timing you can’t control. Hospitals set their own photography rules, so permission and visiting hours need confirming in advance, and your photographer needs a second contact who can call them when things start.
Traditional posed newborn work is usually done in the first two weeks, while babies are sleepiest and curl-up the most. In-home lifestyle sessions are more forgiving and work well for several weeks. The practical answer is that a date range works better than a date. Babies rarely arrive when expected.
No. This session happened in a master bedroom because the nursery wasn’t finished, and it was the better room anyway — it’s where the baby was actually sleeping that week.
What matters is a window. One room with good natural light beats a finished nursery with a small north-facing window every time.
Yes, and I’d encourage it. The dog was part of the family before the baby arrived, and in a few years you’ll want that in the record.
It’s also one of the clearest advantages of photographing at home — most studios can’t accommodate a dog at all. Here he was in the bedroom, on the lawn, and at one point being gently removed from the frame. All of it made the gallery.
A studio gives you controlled light, props and a set look. An in-home session gives you your own rooms, your own light, and everyone who’s already there — grandparents, siblings, the dog — without anyone coordinating travel with a days-old baby.
The other difference is pace. At home, feeding and settling are part of the session rather than interruptions, which is why it takes longer and feels shorter.
This is the question worth asking before you book, and the answer should exist before you need it.
In this case, we’d already discussed an at-home newborn session on the first call, precisely because the booking came late. When the maternity date passed, there was no renegotiation — just a different session we’d both already pictured.
When you choose to work with us, our package options offer up to First Birthday, so in the case of wanting to switch from Maternity, to Newborn, to Milestones, or even First Birthday, the flexibility is there, just keep in mind these are growing phases that won’t happen again, so it is important to capture the most important phase of the baby’s first year, as you wish and see fit.
Still pregnant, and further along than you planned to be?
That describes most people who find this page. Tell us your due date and where you are, and we can tell you honestly what’s still possible — and what we can plan instead if the timing gets tight.
There’s no wrong answer to “is it too late.” There’s just a different session.
