Thinking of a Fresh 48 Hospital Session? Advice from a Saratoga Springs and Boston Newborn Photographer

Our Fresh 48 hospital newborn sessions are always the ones that steal my heart and make me melt into a puddle right there in the hallway of the hospital.  

These magical newborn sessions are such a treat because families invite me into their postpartum room just hours after their baby was born to celebrate their little one’s arrival with them.  I could photograph these first moments together as a family all day, every day, and never grow tired of these sessions!
 

Our Fresh 48 sessions are completely different from all of our other sessions, and if you’ve explored our website even a little bit you know that we offer three different types of newborn sessions (studio portraits, lifestyle portraits, and Fresh 48 hospital portraits).  Some families choose to do just one session, while others do two or all three!  Today’s blog post is all about our Fresh 48 sessions so that you can see if this relaxed style of storytelling is the right fit for your family.

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A Fresh 48 session is the perfect fit for your family if…

 

You are ready to embrace the unpredictability of having a baby.

Some babies arrive early, some babies arrive late, and very few babies actually arrive “on time”.  
We will pencil your due date in on the calendar a few months before the baby arrives, and I will check in with you beginning at 38 weeks.  We’ll remain in touch right up until the baby is born through quick texts or emails.  I leave enough wiggle room in my calendar during these on-call periods to drop everything and come to the hospital within 24-48 hours after the baby’s arrival for your Fresh 48 session.

But speaking of unpredictability… these sessions are RELAXED.  We truly go with the flow.  I do ask that you let the nurses know ahead of time that we’re planning to close the door to your room for an hour, but sometimes social workers come in for a moment, or your lunch gets delivered mid-session, or an alarm goes off and a nurse needs to come in to check on everything.  That’s okay!  Embrace the unpredictability and know that I will do everything possible to help you create a calm and enjoyable environment within those four walls as you get to know your little baby in front of the camera.

You want to capture siblings meeting for the first time.
 

There is nothing more magical than watching your first baby meet your second baby.  I love being there to document these moments for families as their toddler enters the room and is curious (or sometimes not so curious!) about the tiny little baby in the bassinet. 

You value natural, unposed, beautiful, real-life moments. 

These sessions are not about planning the perfect outfits, having a full face of makeup, or making sure every hair is in place.  These sessions are about EMOTION.  We freeze this instant in your lives and celebrate the beginning of this new chapter for your family.  

You’ll look back at these images and remember the weight of your baby in your hands, the feel of them cuddled up against your chest,  the moment your firstborn sang “Happy Birthday” to the baby, and that indescribable joy you felt when looking over at your husband holding your newborn.  These moments are real, raw, and ones that you will never get back.  That’s why I want to slow down time and help you relive them again and again.  

The grandparents will be traveling to town for the arrival.
 

Everyone loves coming together and celebrating a new baby’s arrival, and grandparents are often a part of these sessions!  We make sure to spend 15 minutes with the grandparents in the hospital room to capture candid grandparent portraits and three generation portraits as you all get to know the new love of your life.

You want to remember every little detail about your newborn baby.

Their wrinkly knees, the flaky fingers, that swirl of hair atop their head, and the way their tiny mouth opened into a silent yawn.  You know that these first few days will pass in a blur of appointments, feedings, and so much sleep deprivation, but you don't want to forget a thing.

Trust me to capture your perfect miracle just as they are in this moment, showcasing their tiny newborn freshness at just a few hours old.  These are some of the most important moments of your life, and they deserve to be beautifully documented for your family.

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Intrigued?  Check out this post where new moms & dads talk about why they chose to document their baby's arrival with a Fresh 48 session!

Welcome Evelyn Madison - A Fresh 48 Session at St. Peter's Hospital in Albany

Fresh 48 sessions always steal my heart, and I love being invited into a hospital room to celebrate a new baby's arrival with their family.  There is always so much excitement, awe, and love filling the room that makes for such a beautiful story.  

On a Sunday morning in September, I rushed to St. Peter's Hospital in Albany to welcome Evelyn Madison with her parents and grandparents.  They had such an amazing hospital room filled with so much light, and everyone cozied up together on the couch with their beautiful new addition.

Isn't she the most perfect baby girl?  I'm officially obsessed with her cute little hospital hat.

Evelyn was born breech, and she loved keeping her legs up high on her body.  I had never seen a baby touch her toes to both sides of the bassinet before, and I love how this photograph shows just how new & fresh she is and how accustomed she is to keeping those legs held up high.

Grandma brought her a little newborn bracelet, and she kept it on for her entire session.  How adorable!

Evelyn enjoyed lots of cuddles with her mom and dad, who couldn't take their eyes off of her.  Their smiles never left their faces the entire time we were together.  And of course her grandparents got lots of time in with their new granddaughter and they were thrilled to be included in the Fresh 48 portraits, too. 

Congratulations on your sweet baby girl's arrival!

We are now booking maternity, newborn, milestone, and birthday sessions through March 2018!  We only take on two Fresh 48 clients per month, and the calendar is already filling up quickly for the winter months.  Be sure to reach out early to plan your hospital newborn session!

Welcome Teagan Rylee | A Fresh 48 Session at Saratoga Hospital | Saratoga Springs Newborn Photographer

Do you remember the day you met your sibling for the first time?  Do you remember walking into the hospital room, running over to your mother, and peering at that tiny bundle in her arms?  

One of my latest Fresh 48 clients told me right away that they wanted to capture the moment their oldest two daughters met their baby sister for the first time.  They wanted to see their reactions, watch the three girls together, and relive those moments from the day their family became 5 for the rest of their lives.

And you know what?  It was pure magic that unfolded in that hospital room at Saratoga Hospital for this Fresh 48 newborn session.  

These big sisters were so in love with their new sister, Teagan Rylee.  They couldn't give her enough hugs and kisses, loving on her from Day 1.  They wanted to know everything about their new baby -- why is she sleeping?  Where are her fingers?  What's that bracelet for?  What color is her hair?  These girls soaked it all up, and it was such a beautiful moment!

I am always so grateful to be invited into a family's life to capture the moments they welcome their new baby to their family.  I love just stepping back and taking it all in.  

The bassinet is one of my favorite things in a postpartum hospital room.  It so classically tells the story of your baby's arrival, and of so many babies around the world.  It's the first bed your baby will sleep in, and those flannel receiving blankets with the pink and blue stripes are the perfect accent to show the beginning of your baby's story in the hospital.  The transparent walls of the bassinet are perfect to let in lots of light while framing your perfect little bundle of joy just so, and the information tags with name & weight are just another little part of your story.  

Of course these proud big sisters wanted to help take care of their new baby, and I'm sure the oldest will remember helping with that first diaper change as she sees these images in their album years from now. 

Like all little/middle sisters, it took her awhile to warm up to her new baby, but once she decided that she was interested in this tiny little bundle, we couldn't tear her away from the bassinet!  She proudly wore her "Big Sister" sticker that the nurses dropped off during their session, and even wanted to share one with the baby.

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Did you know that we only take on 2 Fresh 48 sessions each month to give our clients the time & attention that they deserve while being "on call" for their baby's arrival?  We're now booking Fresh 48 sessions through March of 2018, and I would love to welcome your baby with your family!  Click to read more about these unique hospital sessions.

Alexis Noelle: A Birth Story with Saratoga Springs Albany Birth Photographer

There is nothing quite like being on call to photograph your very first birth story.  

Your camera bag has to be packed with gear, snacks, and a change of clothes.  Batteries must be charged and memory cards cleared.  Gas tank full at all times.  And your schedule has to be more flexible than it's ever been because you might have to change your plans in an instant when your client calls to tell you she's in labor.

For nearly two weeks leading up to delivery day, every single time my phone would beep, ring, light up, or buzz I would run across the room to check the screen.  Even my husband started being hyper-aware of where my phone was at all times, handing it to me mid-sentence "because it might be your client!" even when it was just a Facebook notification popping up on the screen.

And then on Saturday, February 25, I got a text message at 7:00 in the morning exactly 12 days before Danae's due date.  Today was (probably...almost certainly...very likely...hopefully...) going to be the day!

Danae and I stayed in touch all day long, checking in every couple of hours to see how her labor was progressing at home.  Since her contractions were only mild and not consistently spaced out, she and Cory chose to stay at home rather than head in to the hospital too early.  As I later learned, they had a relaxed day of cleaning, organizing, spending time with their daughter, a haircut for the new dad, and a nice walk around the neighborhood before leaving for the hospital.  Their little stroll did just the trick!  

Danae's water broke in the car on the way to the hospital, and they arrived to Bellevue Woman's Center just in time, a little after 8:30pm.

When I arrived to the hospital at 8:54pm, Danae was completely in the zone moving through her contractions with the help of her husband, Cory, and her doula, Erica DeBie.  Her nurse, Kelsey, was in and out of the room checking her stats and helping her get more comfortable.

This wasn't going to be a long night, or a long labor.  Danae's baby definitely didn't want to wait any longer to meet her mother, and within minutes Danae was pushing as the doctor rushed to put on her gloves and get the space ready for the baby's arrival.  

After only about a minute of pushing (thank goodness for the timestamp on my camera keeping track of just how quickly everything unfolded!), Danae & Cory's little girl made her way into the world at 9:02pm, exactly 8 minutes after I stepped into the delivery room to photograph her birth.

Danae & Cory were so excited to meet their second daughter, and they couldn't take their eyes off of their daughter.  While the medical team moved in and out of the room, they were in their own little world with just the three of them, completely mesmerized by their brand new baby girl.

World, meet Alexis Noelle.

A beautiful baby girl with a head full of dark hair, she was

8 pounds, 6 ounces and 19 1/2 inches long.

Marking her first footprints, listening to her first heartbeat, and hearing her very first cry.  It truly was an incredible experience, and such an honor to witness this baby be brought into the world.  Danae & Cory did an absolutely fabulous job together, and their daughter is perfect in every way.  

Congratulations to the new parents!

Thank you for trusting me to capture the beginning of your daughter's beautiful life for you!