Informational post ahead! Over the years as a Newborn photographer, I have received questions about the price and why a newborn session is more expensive than others. So I thought I would just put together a blog post and go over this question! I understand that for some people I am just out of their price range and the *reason* doesn’t matter but I think some are genuinely curious and like knowing the behind the scenes when it comes to a newborn photography business! And if someone wants to invest in a newborn session, but can’t afford one big lump sum, I do offer payment plans. MANY of my clients have taken advantage of this option!

In general, regardless of what type of photography, you have to invest in courses, training, equipment, marketing, insurance etc. and I’m sure you are all aware that none of these things are cheap.

Newborn Photography is no different. I’ve invested in a lot of education around newborn posing, safety, technique, lighting but those are things that are more obvious. Then there are the following things that you have to consider as well:

1.)    Estimated due dates are just that: an educated guess. So we have to keep a LOT of flexibility in our schedule for them which means not over booking in case babies come early or late! I don’t schedule more than 6 due dates in a month for this reason.

2.)    Newborn sessions are very long (3 to 4 hours) and require a lot of work during the session. I’m not shooting the entire 4 hours, but stopping for feeds, cuddles, cleaning up messes (sometimes you’ll spend 10 minutes or more getting baby into the pose and they poop everywhere and you have to start over! Haha) etc. All the while you’re sweating your buns off because it’s 85-90 degrees in the studio. A lot of bending over and on your feet that whole time.

3.)    Newborn photography uses a lot of props including buckets, baskets, old boxes, little beds made to be the correct size, knit bonnets, wraps, furs, beanbag fabrics in different colors, felted basket stuffers etc. None of these items are cheap and some of them get ruined with poop and need to be thrown away.

4.)    Laundry is something I don’t think people think about. Everything that baby touches has to be washed, even if the baby didn’t soil it. My studio is cleaned/disinfected before and after every session.

5.)    Editing is more time consuming compared to other sessions! Baby skin tends to be super flaky as well as a mix of colors. Some areas are purple, red or yellow and I have to fix all of this in post-production.

6.)    Sibling photos are usually composites. If a big brother or sister is young (under 4) you can’t count on them to be calm, still and support the baby by themselves. If baby is in an unusual prop like the photo below (This rocking horse was brought by the family and will be passed down to their children, so it was essential we photograph it!) and so dad needed to keep a hand on baby 100% of the time for safety. So I took 1 photo of the horse by itself, and another with the baby and I merged them together in Photoshop to get the resulting image!

7.)    I pride myself in making mom look amazing and sometimes that requires a little nipping and tucking in Photoshop as well as full retouching to get rid of blemishes and any unwanted areas.

So bottom line: Yes, newborn photography is not cheap. But it’s one of those sessions that you can’t go back and re-do. So hire someone you trust to handle the most precious gift entrusted to you. And remember, anyone can call themselves a photographer or specialist photographer, but it really takes time and money to get to know your craft. If someone is too cheap they are likely cutting corners somewhere. And of all sessions to try to find a deal on, this should not be one of them.

If you’re still researching photographers, consider reading my blog post “10 Questions to ask before hiring your newborn photographer” for more info before making such an important decision!