Houston Newborn Photographer, Sarah Borchgrevink, shares ways to create unique newborn portraits during studio baby sessions.
Texture, Textiles and Timeless Accents Props
Good morning, friends! Thanks for stopping by to view some tips on how texture, textiles and timeless props create unique newborn portraits. My name is Sarah and if this is your first time here, welcome! I specialize in posed newborn photography. Serving the entire Houston area, I delight in working with my most precious clients and cannot express how special these babies are to my heart. I hope you find these tips inspirational in your own sessions. If you're a parent and are looking for a newborn photographer, I'd love if you could consider my professional baby portrait services. Most mothers to be book in their second trimester to ensure availability, though I do my best to fit in all inquiries, however, sometimes there is just not enough of me to go around. However, let's get started!
Hand Knit Bonnets, Hats or Caps
Hand knitted bonnets, hats, or caps are a second way to create gorgeous newborn portraits through texture because the bonnets are always created with different material. Each pattern is unique and each method of stitching is lovely. I like to use these adorable hats during all parts of your session, except for parent posing, since I like these to have as few props as possible. You may be interested in reading the following about parent posing while you're here:
I have these sweet bonnets in every single color so there is always one that looks great on whichever backdrop color you choose to use. For instance, when working with Levi, he looks absolutely breathtaking in a soft, muted heather grey. I pulled a slightly darker grey hat so that there is a little bit of contrast, but not anything too distracting. After all, your session will be timeless and classic through the use of texture and textiles. This bonnet helps to create unique baby portraits because the texture of the stings look lovely as they cascade down his shoulders and also add a bit of interest to the images since the bonnet adorns his sweet little face. My favorite aspect of a hand knitted bonnet is that it frames their cheeks perfectly and makes their face the star.
Gorgeous Organic Wraps
Without a doubt, cozy and unique wrapping is my favorite way to implement texture into your images when creating unique baby photos. This is a cornerstone to all of my newborn work and I cannot begin to tell you how much babies love this! The wrapping keeps baby feeling safe, secure, and also peaceful. After all, as a new mother, you're going to want to remember these sweet fleeting newborn moments in which your baby is fresh and just beginning to be part of this world. The texture of the wraps adds a unique dynamic to your newborn session because each wrap is made with a different material and can be layered in a variety of methods, from chunky knit sweater fabric, to cheese cloth, to any color you can imagine. When paired with a vintage floor props, classic bowl, or adorable knitted bonnet the results are breathtaking! Newborn portraiture is essentially my life and as a Houston newborn photographer and Mom, I cannot tell you how important these sessions are to me.
Another tip for creating unique baby photographs through texture is to pull props from an earlier part of your session, such as this sage green bonnet and wrap against the light green and muted backdrop. This helps tie the session together, keep things looking cohesive, and ensure there is a lovely theme throughout the images. Also, don't forget to switch up your angles when taking photos of your newborn clients. The texture of the backdrop adds interest to your images because, in this case, the drop is completely seamless and allows baby to shine. The viewer is not looking at anything but baby.
Custom Curated Wood Floors
Another top for creating gorgeous and breathtaking newborn portraits through texture is having curated wood floors. You may be curious what that means. It's simple: in your studio, you'll have backdrops. For me, I personally chose to have a huge wood wall built by my husband. It was a wedding anniversary gift and he spent about 50 hours working on it. The wood was custom stained by him and he spent hours mixing stains and asking my approval. There is no other wood wall exactly like it, and part of what makes it unique is each board has a different texture added to it. He used a bag of bricks to hit the floors making nicks and grooves; he also used a blow torch to add more character to these floors and even sanded the floors to different depths so that each board has its own look.
Wooden walls add texture to your photos because each board is different. You can do a variety of things with wood walls from floor props, flokati rugs, using different wraps, etc. For instance, in this set up with baby boy Levi, I pulled a hand knitted bonnet, chunky textured wrap, and a metal pail with a wooden handle so that everything looks like there is contrast. Paired with his handsome little face, I was swooning and bucket shots are always included in each newborn session.
Make sure to move around when photographing this set up so that there's many different angles for parents to select from.
Classic and Vintage Inspired Props
The last tip I have for you is to select classic props so your baby sessions truly are unique. In this case, texture is a creative element because I pulled a grey classic flokati rug, 2 different hand-dyed cheese cloth wraps, and a chunky knit bump blanket with the white bowl so that all the different textures are harmonious in showing off the softness of Levi's brand new nature. The wrapping allows him to look very curly, just like when he was in the womb.
Don't forget to do a shot on the wood floors, too! This is a quick way to achieve two different looks without disturbing baby.
And of course, this classic green backdrop is a great way to create texture because the softness against baby is classic, timeless and does not distract.
