Your Baby Has Arrived. Now What?
You don't need to know the exact day or time you'll be ready for your Fresh 48 session. That's our job to work around.
Whether you're welcoming your baby in a hospital, birth center, or at home, we'll stay in communication with you throughout the process. Once baby arrives, you keep us updated, and we'll coordinate a time to come to you.
Fresh 48 photography is all about documenting those first hours while everything is still brand new — the hospital bracelet, tiny fingers, sleepy stretches, first family cuddles, siblings meeting their new baby, and all the little details you'll want to remember later.
What Is a Fresh 48 Photography Session?
A Fresh 48 session is a newborn photography session that takes place within the first 48 hours after your baby is born.
Unlike a traditional newborn session, you don't need to pack everyone up and head to a photography studio. We come to you.
Your session can take place in a hospital room, birth center, or your home after a home birth. The setting is part of the story, and we document your family right where you are during those first hours together.
Fresh 48 sessions are relaxed and focused on connection rather than perfectly posed photographs. We want to capture what life actually looks like after your baby arrives.
How Does Fresh 48 Scheduling Work?
This is one of the biggest questions we get from expecting parents.
How can you schedule a photography session when you don't know when your baby is going to arrive?
You don't have to.
When you book your Fresh 48 session, we'll get your due date and the information we need ahead of time. As your due date gets closer, all you need to do is keep us updated.
When labor begins, send us a message.
When your baby arrives, let us know.
Then we'll talk through how you're doing, what is happening with baby, and when it makes sense for us to come by.
We are flexible because we know birth doesn't follow a calendar.
We Work Around Your Birth Experience
Your Fresh 48 session shouldn't add stress to an already busy few days.
Maybe you want some time to rest after delivery before having photographs taken. Maybe you're ready a few hours after birth. Maybe baby is feeding, your older children are visiting, or you're waiting for family to arrive.
We'll work around what is happening.
You don't need to rush through those first hours because your photographer is waiting. We'll stay in communication and plan the session around your needs.
You have the baby. Keep us updated. We'll handle the timing.
Fresh 48 Hospital Photography
Hospital Fresh 48 sessions are a wonderful way to document the first chapter of your baby's life.
We can photograph your baby in their hospital bassinet, wrapped in their first blanket, wearing that tiny hospital hat, or being held by you and your partner.
We'll also capture the details that make your hospital stay part of your baby's story — the room, the bracelets, the little cards or signs, flowers from family, and the things surrounding you during those first hours.
Of course, every hospital has its own photography policies, so we'll always follow the rules of your hospital and your medical team.
Fresh 48 Photography for Birth Centers
If you're planning to welcome your baby at a birth center, we can document those first hours there as well.
Birth center sessions tend to have their own atmosphere and rhythm, and that's part of what makes your photographs personal to your experience.
We'll document your baby, your family, and the interactions happening naturally around you without turning the session into a production.
Fresh 48 Photography for Home Births
Planning a home birth?
Your home can become the setting for your baby's first photographs.
Instead of recreating those first hours later, we can document them as they actually happened — your baby in the space where they were born, your first moments together, your partner holding the baby, siblings meeting their new brother or sister, and all of the little details around your home.
You don't need to have your house perfectly cleaned or decorated before we arrive.
You just had a baby.
We'll focus on your family.
What Happens During a Fresh 48 Session?
There isn't a strict checklist that every family has to follow. We'll photograph what is naturally happening during our time together. That might include your baby sleeping peacefully, feeding, being swaddled, or being held by Mom or Dad. We may photograph grandparents meeting baby, an older sibling climbing up beside you, or everyone gathering around the bassinet. We'll also take time for those little newborn details — fingers, toes, eyelashes, flaky skin, hospital bracelets, tiny hats, and all the things that make your baby look like a brand-new baby.
If there is a moment worth remembering, we'll look for it.
Do We Have to Pose?
Not much. Fresh 48 photography is intentionally relaxed. You don't need to know how to pose, and you don't need to worry about making every photograph look perfect. We'll give you gentle direction when it helps, but we're primarily there to document the interaction between you and your baby.
Hold your baby.
Snuggle.
Feed them.
Talk to them.
Let your partner have a turn.
We'll photograph it. The goal is for your images to feel like your family, not like you're recreating someone else's newborn photographs.
What Should We Wear?
Comfort comes first. You're recovering from birth, so the last thing we want is for you to feel uncomfortable in an outfit you've chosen just for photographs. Soft, neutral colors and simple clothing tend to photograph beautifully, but there is no requirement to buy anything new. For baby, a simple onesie, gown, swaddle, or hospital blanket can work perfectly.
And if your baby is wearing the hospital hat and blanket they gave you, even better. Those little details are part of the story.
What If I'm Not Feeling Camera Ready?
That's completely normal. You just had a baby. You don't need to have your hair done, your makeup finished, or everything around you perfectly organized. Fresh 48 photographs aren't about looking like you just walked out of a magazine. They're about remembering what your family looked like during those first hours.
We'll work with the light, space, and circumstances we have and keep the experience as comfortable as possible.
What If Baby Isn't Cooperating?
That's okay too. Newborns don't follow a photography schedule. Baby may be hungry. Baby may need to be changed. Baby may want to be held. Baby may sleep through the entire session. We simply work with it. There is no need to force a particular pose or moment. We'll take breaks when you need them and continue when everyone is ready.
Why Choose Fresh 48 Instead of Waiting for a Newborn Session?
Fresh 48 and traditional newborn photography are two different experiences. A traditional newborn session usually happens after you have returned home and had some time to settle into your new routine. Depending on the photographer, it may include more posing, styling, props, or carefully planned setups. Fresh 48 happens much earlier.
Your baby is still brand new, you're still in those first days, and your birth environment is still part of the story.
If you love both styles, you don't have to choose. Many families enjoy having a Fresh 48 session to document those first hours and a traditional newborn session later to capture their baby at home.
What Makes Fresh 48 Photography Different?
Fresh 48 photography is less about creating a picture and more about documenting what is already happening. Your baby's hospital bracelet. The way their fingers curl around yours. Your partner holding them for the first time. An older sibling carefully touching their tiny hand. The bassinet beside your hospital bed. The first quiet moment when you finally have a chance to take everything in. These are the details that make your story yours. You Don't Need to Have Everything Planned One of the best things about booking a Fresh 48 session is that you don't have to know exactly how your birth day will unfold. Your due date is not an appointment time. Your labor may start early. Your baby may decide to wait. You may need more time to recover than you expected. Your plans may change. That's life with a newborn. Our job is to stay flexible. Once your baby arrives, keep us updated. We'll communicate with you and plan when to come by based on what's happening with you and your baby. Your Hospital, Birth Center, or Home — We're Ready
Whether you're planning a hospital birth, a birth center birth, or a home birth, Fresh 48 photography can be adapted to your experience. We don't need a studio. We don't need a perfectly decorated nursery. We don't need a perfectly timed schedule.We need you, your baby, and a little communication. We'll meet you where you are and document those first hours as they happen.
