What if My Baby Doesn’t Sleep?

Are you eagerly anticipating your newborn’s photo session, but wondering what if your baby doesn’t sleep? I get this question all the time from new parents before their baby’s photo session. Short answer: We get adorable wide-awake images of baby!

Navigating Awake Windows:

Embracing the awake moments has become a fun, and parent-requested part of our newborn sessions. We understand that all babies have unique personalities. Some will arrive and sleep throughout their whole session, while others have major FOMO and insist on remaining wide awake!

Parent are always provided a helpful welcome guide during our design consultation with tips to help soothe and prepare baby for a smooth and easy experience. Despite this, you might still be worrying, What if baby doesn’t sleep? Doesn’t cooperate?

First, everything I do with babies is baby-led, so there is no such thing as an uncooperative baby. If they’re hungry, we stop and feed them. Wet? We change diapers multiple times during their session. If they’re awake, I have a whole set of emotive poses planned and ready. Some babies have major FOMO, it’s nothing to worry about! Fussy, colicky, or cluster-feeding – we take all the time baby needs.

Capturing Baby’s Wakeful Wonders:

We begin with these awake images when babies arrive at the studio, you guessed it, wide awake. It allows us to capture their unique personality, and allows them to settle gradually. These “Story Board” images inevitably become some of my clients’ most favorite. How could they not? Did you know newborns can have a WIDE variety of expressions? We LOVE it! Of course we have to have a few sweet, peaceful expressions, but it never fails that we add a few quirky expressions to their baby’s storyboard. Baby sneezing, yawning, giving me the side-eye (it’s more often than you think, haha). These wide-awake moments make for some of the most emotive, unforgettable photos.

The Magic of Studio Swaddles:

Most often though, babies arrive to our studio asleep. I ensure baby is well fed, burped, changed, warm, and then softly swaddled. Yet another parent concern, but my baby doesn’t like to be swaddled. Even if your little one isn’t a fan of swaddling at home, I’ve never had a baby not love and settle with one of our buttery-soft newborn wraps in the studio. I have been photographing newborn babies for over five years and I have never had a baby that we didn’t capture a full, gorgeous gallery for parents to choose from.

Transitioning from awake to asleep, I usually begin with what we call “swaddled poses”. Baby is snug, warm and secure, and it’s easy to capture a variety of different sets without disturbing baby. I have many props to choose from: beds, baskets, wreaths, buckets, bowls… all with different colors and accessories. I’ll often catch moments of wide-eyed wonder along-side those of baby sleeping as they drift off. Once baby is fully asleep, I move on to the more advanced poses. (These should never be attempted without specific newborn safety training from experienced mentors.)

Enjoy the Experience:

Embrace the journey of wide-awake wonder in your newborn’s session, where “Baby doesn’t sleep” becomes a delightful chapter in your cherished photo collection. Our experienced approach ensures that wide awake, or peacefully sleeping, we’ll capture a beautiful gallery of your precious newborn. Rest assured, we’ve fully planned out your session, know all the tips and tricks to gently keep baby comfortable, and have years of experience to ensure you’ll have an experience and treasured heirlooms you’ll always remember.

Still have questions? Visit us online or Give us a call.