Natural Newborn Poses With Parents

Newborn posing does not have to be complicated

Some of the most natural newborn poses begin with something parents are already doing.

Holding their baby.

A newborn settled into a mother's arms, lying against a father's chest or tucked over a shoulder, gives shape, scale and the small gestures that make these photographs so particular to the first days.

I guide hands, bodies and light, but I do not need to turn a baby into something they are not.

The pose begins with the baby.

In a parent's arms

A baby being held is one of the simplest places to begin.

New parents already have their own ways of gathering their baby close. I work from there, making small adjustments to hands, posture and the position of the baby where necessary.

It allows the photograph to remain recognisable while still being carefully made.

I begin with the way you already hold them.

Over the shoulder

A newborn resting over a parent's shoulder gives a wonderful sense of scale.

A tiny head against an adult shoulder. A hand supporting the baby's back. The curve of a sleeping body against someone so much bigger.

It is also a position many babies already know well.

Skin-to-skin

Skin-to-skin photographs strip almost everything else away.

The baby's body against a parent's chest gives me warmth, shape and scale without needing clothes or props to create the photograph.

These portraits are made simply and discreetly.

Feeding

Feeding is part of newborn life, and it does not necessarily mean the camera has to be put down.

If it feels right for the mother, I may photograph some of these quieter moments.

A baby's head in the crook of an arm. A hand resting against skin. The concentration on a mother's face.

There is no need to stage what is already happening.

Mothers, fathers and both parents

I often begin with the way a parent naturally holds their baby.

With a mother, I may photograph the way she looks down, the baby's face tucked against her, or simply her hands and the shape of the two bodies together.

A newborn against a father's hands, arms or chest can show just how small that baby once was. The difference in scale does much of the work.

When both parents come into the frame, I might begin with one holding the baby and bring the other close rather than trying to construct a complicated pose.

Hands find their places.

People look at each other.

The photograph grows from there.

Father and Newborn Strength Portrait