How to Prepare for your Newborn Session

Preparing for a newborn photo session is essential to ensure a smooth experience and beautiful photographs. Megan Leigh Photography, based in Temecula, California, specializes in newborn photography and offers guidance to help parents prepare effectively.

Booking Your Session
It's recommended to schedule your newborn session during pregnancy, ideally in the second trimester, to secure availability. I advise booking early to accommodate the optimal time frame for newborn photos, which is within the first 3 weeks after birth. If your baby has already arrived, contact me for any last minute openings.

Timing of the Session
Newborn sessions are best held when the baby is between 5 to 21 days old. During this period, infants are typically sleepier and more amenable to posing, resulting in those serene and curled-up images. If your baby has already arrived and is getting close to the end of this time period or already passed it, we can still get some great photos while they are still little. They are just much more likely to be awake for the session. But older newborns have amazing expressions and eye contact. These are sometimes my favorites! Some examples are below...

Preparing Your Baby
Feeding: Plan to feed your baby right before the session to ensure they are full and content. You can choose to do this at home if you live close or you are more than welcome to feed baby at the studio when you arrive. A well-fed baby is more likely to sleep soundly, facilitating smoother posing and transitions.
Clothing: Dress your baby in loose-fitting clothes to avoid marks on their skin. Simple, easy-to-remove outfits are preferable. I provide a selection of wraps and props, so elaborate clothing is unnecessary unless it's something specific you would like incorporation into the session.

Environment and Family Involvement
The studio is designed to be warm and comfortable for newborns so dress lightly or in layers in case you get warm. Bringing a pacifier can help soothe your baby during the session if they are having trouble settling. I do have a room dedicated for clients to take over and make themselves comfortable. There is a TV for DVDs, toys and books to entertain siblings during the session. I have some seating in the shooting area so you to enjoy watching the process of the newborn photos being taken. Family participation adds a personal touch to the photos if you'd like to get family photos done. Coordinating outfits in neutral or muted tones without busy patterns ensures that the focus remains on your family's expressions and connections. I offer 3 backdrop colors for family images to coordinate with any house decor so you and loved ones can display them proudly. For younger siblings, I have them lay on a fluffy, wool rug to lay down with baby for safety.

Relax and Trust the Process
Newborn sessions can between 1-3 hours depending on the package you booked. This is to accommodate feeding, changing, and soothing. I emphasize patience and flexibility, ensuring a stress-free experience for both parents and baby. I will shoot both awake and/or asleep. If baby is content, I will be capturing all those opportunities. I do not guarantee any particular pose. I never force a baby to do anything that makes them uncomfortable.

What is a Cake Smash Session?

Celebrating a child's first birthday is a momentous occasion, marking the transition from infancy to toddlerhood. One delightful way to commemorate this milestone is through a cake smash photo session—a fun and messy tradition that captures the joy and curiosity of a one-year-old exploring cake for the first time. Megan Leigh Photography, based in Temecula, California, specializes in creating personalized and memorable cake smash experiences that families can cherish for years to come.​

What is a Cake Smash Session?

A cake smash session is a photo session typically held before or around a child's first birthday (typically, but can be done for older toddler's as well). It involves presenting the birthday child with a small cake and allowing them to explore, play with, and, of course, smash it. The resulting moments—filled with candid expressions, messy hands, and frosting-covered faces—are captured in high-quality photographs. These sessions not only celebrate a significant milestone but also provide keepsake images that reflect the child's unique personality.​ Megan Leigh Photography offers custom cake smash sessions designed to reflect each child's unique interests and family's preferences. 

Planning Your Session

To ensure a seamless experience, it's recommended to book your cake smash session 4-6 weeks in advance. This time frame allows me to design, plan, and order any necessary props or custom backdrops, especially if a new theme is desired. If the photos are intended for birthday invitations or party decorations, scheduling the session at least three weeks before you plan to send out invitations is advisable.

Custom Themes and Personalization

One of the standout features of Megan Leigh Photography's cake smash sessions is the ability to customize themes according to your child's interests or your family's vision. Whether it's a favorite storybook character, a cherished color scheme, or a whimsical concept, I collaborate with parents to bring these ideas to life. This personalization ensures that each session is unique and meaningful.

Session Structure

A typical cake smash session with Megan Leigh Photography includes:​

• Pre-Smash Portraits: Capturing the child in a clean outfit, these portraits highlight their personality and mark the milestone age.​

• Cake Smash: The main event where the child interacts with the cake, resulting in candid and often humorous photographs.​

• Optional Splash Session: Some sessions conclude with a fun and practical splash segment, where the child enjoys a small bath to clean up, providing additional adorable photo opportunities.

What to Bring

While I provide many of the props and backdrops, parents are encouraged to bring:​

• Outfits: One or two outfits—one for the pre-smash portraits and another (optional) for the cake smash itself.

• Personal Props: Any special items or toys that might comfort the child or add personal significance to the photos.​

Post-Session

After the session, I edit the photographs, enhancing their quality while preserving the authenticity of each moment. Clients receive a selection of high-resolution images, perfect for printing, sharing, or creating custom photo albums.

She is such a sweet, loving kitten who LOVES to fall asleep in your arms or on your chest. She's getting more and more playful every day and just learning to jump (only about 6" high right now). She's adjusted so well here and Scarlett is absolutely in love with her baby! She refers to herself as "mommy" when talking to Sparkles, hehe! 

Naturally, as a newborn photographer, I wanted to bring her into the studio for her "newborn" session. I had so many ideas but Sparkles was a pretty TOUGH baby client. She did not want to stand or be next to the flowers, did NOT want to look at me or the camera at all (except once) and took a very long time to get her to sleep, haha! So a lot of my ideas went out the window and she is SO tiny that baskets and wraps pretty much engulfed her. But after quite a bit of time, we did manage to get a couple of set-ups. And I LOVE the ones with her and her "mommy", Scarlett. So here is our sweet Sparkles...

We had this session at the dog beach in Del Mar. So perfect around sunset! A few of my favorites...

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Getting ready for a snowball fight with mama!

Aiming for the camera... of course! Haha!

Looks like she's ready for some snow kung-fu!

Attempt at her first snow angel! <3

Do you want to build a snowman?...

Makes my heart so so happy <3 <3

There he is! Little Olaf!!

{ August 20 }

Strong t-storms, lighting, and rain last night! Woke everyone up but Scarlett. Love the peaceful sound of rain though!

{ August 19 } 

Timeless reading outside.

{ August 18 }

Playtime in the kitchen.

{ August 17 }

I brought my camera over to take a picture, she heard it and turned around at the perfect moment <3

{ August 16 }

Scarlett's birthday party! She turned 3 today and said it was the "best party EVER!" Haha!

{ August 15 }

It's a cup of coffee in bed kinda day :)

{ August 14 }

I LOVE this because she is always holding things with her toes! A pair of monkey feet here...

{ August 13 }

A mini meltdown...

{ August 12 } 

Sneaking a peak of her show after a bath :)

{ August 11 }

Her growing crap toy has finally become gigantic!

{August 10 }

Scarlett's at grandma's and Garrett's at band practice so I've got the evening to myself :) This calls for a sweet fancy drink and Big Brother!

{ August 9 }

Love.

{ August 8 }

New generation entertainment.

{ August 7 }

Food.

{ August 6 }

Reading time at the library.

{ August 5 }

Playing with the self-timer for the first time on the new camera. I'm rarely in front of the camera so Scarlett and I were way over due for a non-iPhone picture of just the two of us :)

{ August 4, 2014 }

Scarlett was playing around with one of my newborn wraps this morning after a newborn session.

{ August 3 }

Yay! Lots of rain this weekend and mid-summer too! We have been needing it SO bad and excited for everything to be green again. She almost forgot what rain looked like, haha!

I will be offering Spring Family Mini Session at this field May 3rd and 10th. There will be evening time spots only. If interested in a spot, see details at http://www.meganleighphotography.com/specials and contact me.