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Newborns to 4 Months Old!

So by now all of you know how much I adore the newborn stage and capturing those curly, sleepy babies in our newborn sessions… I really do!! But what I love about our baby planner families is that I get to see your sweet babies grow and capture the most adorable milestones as they develop. 
 
These two little sweeties just came back for their 4 month baby session and while the 3-4month sessions are not often (or ever;) sleepy, they capture the amazing little personalities that are emerging through their adorable smiles, expressions and squishy little “baby-ness”. It honestly is one of the cutest stages to capture and  slightly easier than the next as they are not yet moving!! Also I find babies of this age do not often make strange so their cute smiles often emerge after I make a silly face or funny sound. It really is so adorable!!
 
 
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We do have a limit as to how long these little ones are happy to interact with me and my camera so I tend to book 30-40 minutes only and watch for little signs that they are tired and ready for a snack and to be finished in the studio. Your little one always lets us know when time’s up!
 
Have a look to see how these precious baby boys have grow from their newborn session to their first milestone session at 4 months of age!! We can’t wait to have them back again between 8&9 months to see how much they’ve grown and changed again!
 
If you are interested in planning your year of baby’s photos, the First Year Baby Planner Collection includes your maternity session, newborn session, two milestone sessions (I recommend 4 months and 9 months) as well as a One Year Celebration session with the whole family back again in the studio. I can’t wait to capture these incredible stages for you!!
 
To book a session with Amanda, please call 250-885-6860 or email her at amandahaddow@gmail.com. Can’t wait to meet you and your growing family!

How do you balance your photography life vs. personal life (it’s a tough one!)

This is a subject that is tough to tackle!! I think Jenna Kutcher’s blog is the first place I read that “Balance is a Mystical Unicorn” and I have to agree!! I think most moms who work and balance family life will have to tackle how to find balance early on.

Having started my photography as a hobbyist and then developing a business in the United Arab Emirates gave me a chance to learn and grow at a much slower pace. It wasn’t a career path I had imagined taking but after falling in love with newborn photography early on in our time away, I had the time to learn my craft and the flexibility to learn editing, client relations etc organically. After moving our family (and business) to Canada 18 months ago, those systems were in place but it became necessary to grow at a much faster pace! All of a sudden my work days became 12 hours and new systems needed to be developed to help me work much more efficiently. These systems are not perfected yet. 

Running a business that allows me to capture other families memories while being fully present in living my very own is now my goal. If you have tips and tricks that you use to find balance in running your balance as well as your family life, I would love to hear your strategies and methods that work in your home!!

Follow along to Jenna Marshall Photography’s page to find out how she organizes her work week. She is a newborn baby and family photographer based in Stevenage, Hertfordshire. 

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Welcome Baby Boy

So excited to welcome this gorgeous baby boy into our First Year Baby Photography Plan. Mom came to visit me in the studio a few weeks before babe arrived for her maternity photo session. He will then come back to visit us for his 4 month and 9 month milestone sessions and then a celebration session with the whole family when he turns one!! 

These soft colours and natural tones from this session are perfect for a baby boy. Just a week old, he was so chilled throughout his session. Then awoke to give us the most beautiful little looks!! I know that babies can’t fully see when they are this young but it always surprises me as to how they can focus so directly, my heart melts every time!!

Once big sister arrived we got him all wrapped up, she happily snuggled him and he drifted back to sleep again. She was so sweet with her baby brother in her arms and proudly held him. What a dream!!

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Amanda Haddow is a photographer specialising in newborn photography, baby photography and maternity photography in Victoria, BC. If you would like to capture this beautiful stage for your baby please call Amanda at 250-885-6860 or email her at amandahaddow@gmail.com

Inspiration in Newborn Photography

Inspiration can be found in so many places. I started my journey to professional photography in the UAE and over the next couple of years drew so much inspiration from my friends who were established photographers. Kirsty Larmour Photography, Emma Wood and Chloe Lodge Photography to name a few. Often loving a body or work that was different from mine and still unsure of the style I was leaning toward. 

As time went on, I found that I absolutely loved working with new mamas, capturing them in the precious stages of pregnancy and then again when baby was born. I was drawn to newborn photography and fell in love with it when I mentored with Jillian Greenhill Photography. Her style of photography is so classic and clean, beautifully hand edited images that are perfectly captured for parents and I was so very fortunate to be mentored by her and learn from one of the best!! I am continually drawn to her use of colour and her ability to capture newborn portraiture effortlessly (trust me, it’s a lot harder than it looks!! 😉

As the years have gone by my style has emerged. Using a soft palette of pastels and many neutrals as my backdrop, I’m able to create the images I have always loved and have become my favourites. Soft, light, bright, airy, timeless portraits of baby. Many of my images are nature inspired, I often combine a blend of simple monochromatic set ups with a touch of florals, leaves and textures and draw inspiration from the colours and tones that are in a gorgeous bouquet.

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For more inspiration, please head over to see Lynne Harper Photography’s page. She is a very talented newborn and baby photographer in Ayrshire. 

The Sweetest Boys

This baby boy came in to visit a couple of weeks after his arrival. Unfortunately we missed mom’s maternity session as she went into labor the morning we were to be meeting!! Baby arrived shortly after her call and decided to surprise everyone a little early! He was so good for us and we got the sweetest little set-ups for our prop shots. I love the whites, cream, grey and blue combination for little boys, it flows so nicely into a session. 

Are there any colour combinations that you would like to see us use in our baby sessions? Please let me know in the comments below!

After baby’s turn in the props and beanbag set-ups, we had Dad and his big brothers join in. I often suggest for siblings to join in the last half hour of our time together so they don’t have to sit for hours watching baby being photographed. They were both so proud and amazing little ones to work with!! They joined in right away and it was so much fun watching these 3 adorable brothers cuddle and snuggle together. 

If you would like to capture this special time with your growing family, please call Amanda at 250-885-6860 or send an email to amandahaddow@gmail.com. Would love to meet you! xo

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Macro Newborn Photography

With every newborn baby photo session in my Victoria BC studio, I take just a little extra time to change off my portrait lens for my macro lens, (for other photographers, I use the Canon 100mm lens). With this lens I am able to get right in closely to capture all of those itty bitty eyelashes, lips, fingernails & feathery soft hair. 

To me, it’s those gorgeous little details that make each baby so unique and special-the way their sweet little toes curl, the way they favour a hand by their face, the length of their eyelashes, the swirl of their hair. A little upturned nose or rosebud lips. Each baby is so different and these are the teeny soft details that all mamas want to remember. As your baby grows and changes, these tiny details change so quickly and newborn photography is a wonderful way to preserve those memories. 

What were your favourite little details from when your baby was this small?

Please enjoy looking through a few of our latest newborn session pictures below and then hop on over to Dawn Martin Photography’s page, a fellow newborn photographer in Glasgow to see some of the beautiful macro images she captured this week. 

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