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How to Take Monthly Baby Photos

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How to Take Monthly baby photos, baby sitting on white fur blanket

Have you seen those beautiful monthly baby photos on Instagram or Pinterest? Of course, you have! I think every new parent stares for hours at those and wonders how to make the same memories for their children. At least I did! I was so excited to watch my baby grow and I wanted pictures to be able to remember how small they were. There are so many different options for these pictures, but there are some things that are key to decide early. Here’s some things to think about when setting up your monthly baby photos.

How to Take Monthly Baby Photos

Pick an outfit

Arguably the most important part is deciding what baby will wear. Some people like baby to be in just a plain white outfit or some just put their baby in a different cute outfit each month. I wanted to have a theme and so I chose different themed costumes. Anyway that you decide, I would suggest picking out the outfit a week or 2 in advance so that it will be ready on the day of the shoot.

Decide how to display months

There are, again, so many options here, but it’s an integral part of the photo! Most times you can just tell by the size of the baby where each photo is in the timeline, but as baby gets closer to their first birthday, it might become more difficult to tell. You can get belly stickers or the stickers that you place on the outfit, like a bow tie. Or maybe using numbered blocks, scrabble pieces, or a chalkboard to display age. You could also use a certain number of objects for each month, for example, one rattle, four teethers, eight toy cars. You could also digitally write on the photo after you’ve taken it, we have some great options of this in our shop if you need help doing this.

Pick your spot

There are a couple ways to do this, the best is to pick a spot that won’t really change so that the pics all look the same all throughout the year. Make sure there is a lot of natural light. You want to pick something that will show baby’s growth. So using the same chair, favorite stuffed animal, or their crib are all good ideas. We actually moved half way through, and I’m glad I used a blanket on the floor so that I could easily recreate it. So keep this in mind if you think you might move.

baby sitting on white fur blanket, photo taken from above

Add in Special Details

I love the photos that include weight, height, and milestones of things baby likes that month. You can add these in on a chalkboard, visually with a tape measure, or add them in digitally after the photo is taken.

Taking the Photo

As I already mentioned, pick a place with lots of natural light. In front of a big window with filtered light is always a good idea. Also, try to use the same time of day every time you take the photo. This will ensure that the light is similar. Again, if you move or have to take the picture in a different spot, it’s not a huge deal. You should be able to recreate the same feel.

Let Baby be Themselves

I’m a firm believer that not every photo has to be perfect. Let the photo be a true capture of what your child is like at the time. If the second you put him down he starts screaming, take pictures of him screaming. If she’s a crawler and she can’t wait to roll over and crawl away from you, catch her as she’s exiting the frame. You’ll look back at these pictures and remember your child as they were.

Baby laying on a white fur blanket, photo taken from above. Text overlay saying three months, I can laugh chew on my hands roll from front to back, transitioned from sleeper to co-sleeper to bassinet, what makes me laugh baby "slide" neck tickles, Loves when we make sounds, starting to play with toys coo, June 2016

Have you attempted monthly baby photos? What did you do?