Linda Hewell Maternity and Newborn Photography FAQs

When should I book my newborn session?

I do suggest booking in at least 2 months before your due date to secure a session in my calendar. I do try to limit sessions to a manageable number per week. However I also get plenty of last minute enquiries and bookings and depending how my schedule looks in the following week or two ahead, can most likely fit in last minute bookings, however editing time may take longer than usual for later bookings

My Newborn is already past 3 weeks old, is it too late to have a “Newborn” photo shoot?

Absolutely not! In fact a lot of my newborn sessions are photographed beyond this time frame up to 6 weeks old. I love the older newborn! They have filled out a little more, tend to have more eye contact, have adjusted to life a little better, maybe even a real smile or two, and still find time to have a nap for those sleepy poses. As my poses do not really require deep sleep for babies to settle into a position, I have found there’s no difference between a 7 day old and a 6 week old. I’ve had amazing sleepy older newborns and at the other end, wide awake fussy 7 day olds. Every baby is different and there’s no guarantee how your baby will be on the day of the session.

How long does a newborn session take?

As my style of photography leans more towards the natural poses, my sessions do not need to take quite as long to complete and tend to be shorter than other newborn photographers. Most babies can be photographed in a Simple in about 2 hours. However I want to make sure you get the full variety of poses and set ups for each package, so time may run over if baby is particularly unsettled.

What if my baby won’t sleep during my session?

Most babies do end up falling asleep for a few sleepy shots, however some babies just will not sleep but I can still get a great variety of awake images for your gallery if baby happens to be just that little bit too excited for their session. This can happen whether baby is just days old, or much older. Theres no guarantee your baby will fall asleep but I do give it a good try!

What if my baby is very unsettled and won’t stop crying?

Occasionally I do have a baby that is highly unsettled during their time with me and I may not be able to get a full gallery of images. If that should be the case with your baby, I am more than happy to invite you back for a short make up session. This is very rare. To ensure you get the maximum amount of time out of your session, please try to arrive on time.

Are you up to date with all your vaccinations?

Yes, I am a firm believer in vaccinations and I am fully up to date with all shots, including the yearly flu shot, Covid-19 and the whooping cough booster.

One of my family members is feeling unwell. Should I postpone?

Yes. If any of your family members attending the studio are feeling unwell for any reason, please do contact me to postpone your session to another date.

I also postpone any sessions should I feel ill. The majority of my clients are brand new newborns. You can never be too careful around the little ones.

What if I need to cancel my session?

I have a no penalty cancellation policy, you may cancel your session and move it to another day with no penalty if you or your family member wakes up sick on the session day.

What happens next after my session?

After your session ends, I will go through your images deleting all the misfires, duplicates and awkward poses/expressions. I will then lightly edit them for the proofing gallery. What you will see are unfinished, lightly edited photos. You will be sent a link to view them in 7 days.

From there you will choose your selected images for me to fully edit and deliver. Each packages have a selected number of images included. I will also include at no extra charge up to 5 close up detail shots (fingers, toes, lips etc), because I want parents to have these to keep. They are precious!

Once you choose your favourites by hearting the images in your proofing gallery, I will get to work editing them (or if my schedule is busy, will send them to my retoucher to do final edits.

You will receive a download link with the retouched images in 2 – 3 weeks time.

Additional retouched images or the full gallery of proofs may be purchased at an additional cost.

How many photos will I get in my proofing gallery?

Depending on baby’s mood and modeling skills, and other children’s mood etc, you may end up with any amount. I shoot for the required amount of poses/setups for each session and I don’t heavily cull the proof gallery so you can get a good choice of what images you would like to select to keep.

What should we wear?

Whites, creams, ivories, earthy tones and blacks all photograph well in my simple studio setting. Most clients choose to wear lighter colours for the white background and black/darker tones for the black background but it’s best you wear whatever colours you feel the most comfortable in.

Do keep all clothing as plain as possible i.e. no heavy patterns and definitely no T-shirt’s with printed pictures on them. Small patterned clothing is fine but generally the plainer the better.

Here are a few sample images of what has worked well with my style.

Do we need to bring anything for baby?

I have everything needed here for baby but you are welcome to bring any special gifts you would like included in a few shots. I do suggest a top up feed before leaving the house if baby needs it and definitely bring a dummy if bub uses one or a spare bottle if bottle feeding. Both these items can really help a session go much smoother.