Melbourne Newborn Photographer | In-home Newborn Photos
A Relaxed In-Home Newborn Photography Session in Melbourne
Newborn photos of a beautiful new baby, his family and his much-loved fur sibling, captured in the comfort of their Melbourne home.
I drove to the other side of Melbourne for this newborn shoot and it was such a beautiful session.
I mean, all newborn sessions are special, but every now and then there’s a session that leaves me feeling particularly content with the work we’ve created. This was definitely one of those.
I love getting to be a little part of someone’s newborn bubble. You can feel it almost immediately when you walk into their home. That completely smitten feeling of having a brand-new baby and still not quite believing that they’re actually here.
Everything feels a little slower. There are lots of cuddles and probably quite a bit of wondering how something so tiny has suddenly become the centre of your entire world.
Being invited into that space to photograph it is something I never take for granted.
In-Home Newborn Photography in Melbourne
One of the things I love about in-home newborn photography is that families don’t need to go anywhere.
You’re at home, in your own space, with everything you need around you. If baby needs a feed, you can feed them. If they need a cuddle, you can stop for a cuddle. If an older sibling needs a break from photos, that’s completely fine too.
There is no pressure for everyone to be perfectly behaved or for the house to look like a photography studio.
For me, some of the best newborn photos happen when everyone is simply comfortable and we let the session unfold naturally.
Including the Family Dog in Newborn Photos
Being a big dog lover myself, I also absolutely love it when families have a fur baby they’d like to include in their newborn photos.
Of course, every dog is different, so I always have a chat with Mum and Dad first about their dog’s personality, how they normally behave and how they’re handling the big change that’s happened in the house.
A new baby can be a huge adjustment for everyone, including the family dog, so safety is always my priority.
If you see any of the photos from this session where the dog is close to the baby, don’t worry. There are always extra hands right there supporting and supervising. Those hands are simply edited out afterwards so that the final photograph looks natural.
I love being able to include dogs in newborn photography but only when everyone is comfortable and it can be done safely.
When Mum Was the Only One Who Could Settle Baby
Want to know my absolute favourite part of this newborn shoot?
Halfway through the session, baby became unsettled and I tried all my usual tricks to soothe and comfort him. Nothing was working.
Sometimes babies just aren’t interested in our tricks!
Mum picked him up and held him right against her face and he settled almost immediately.
It was such a lovely little moment.
I will often try to settle babies during a newborn session if Mum and Dad are comfortable with me doing so. But sometimes there really is no substitute for Mum.
Babies know their mum’s smell, voice and touch, and when they’re unsettled, that familiarity can be exactly what they need.
Watching this little guy go from unsettled to completely content as soon as Mum cuddled him was a lovely reminder that, sometimes, the best thing I can do as a newborn photographer is simply give Mum and baby a little space to have their moment.
And yes, I absolutely photographed it.
Natural Newborn Photos of Your Family
While the focus of this session was, of course, the new baby, I always want to photograph the little things happening around them too.
The cuddles.
The tiny details.
The family dog getting used to their new little person.
Mum and Dad simply being Mum and Dad.
And all those little moments that are so easy to forget once the newborn days have passed.
This is what I love about natural newborn photography. The aim isn’t to manufacture a perfect version of your family. It’s to photograph what life actually looks like during those first precious weeks with a new baby.
Keeping Things Private
You may notice that there aren’t many photographs in this blog post showing Mum and Dad.
They were very happy for me to share photographs of their beautiful new baby, but for privacy reasons, they asked that their faces weren’t completely included in the images I shared.
And that’s absolutely okay.
Everyone has different circumstances and different levels of comfort when it comes to sharing photographs online. I completely understand that not everyone wants their family, home or faces appearing on a photographer’s website or social media.
I’m always happy to work within those boundaries.
The most important thing is that my clients feel comfortable with what I share, while still allowing me to show some of the beautiful newborn photos we created together.
It was such a lovely session and I’m so grateful this family trusted me to photograph these early days with their new baby.
Melbourne Newborn Photographer
If you’re looking for a Melbourne newborn photographer for relaxed, natural and personal newborn photography, I would love to hear from you.
I photograph newborns in their own homes throughout Melbourne and surrounding suburbs, creating beautiful newborn photos that capture your baby, your family and all the little details of this incredibly fleeting stage of life.
Explore more newborn photography in Melbourne. Browse the full portfolio or suburbs I serve.