Milestone Baby Collection: How to Photograph Baby’s First Year

Document the Memories

Did you know that a baby’s face changes in the first few weeks of life? A baby has many changes and new milestones in the very first year: rolling over, crawling, sitting up, and even standing and walking.

As a seasoned mom of two children, I watched each child with joy as they reached each milestone. It can also be bittersweet watching as they grow so fast. Each of my children reached milestones at different times; yes, I had to look them up to compare in their written baby books. It all becomes a blur in those first few months. From fine motor skills to big achievements, each child will go at their own pace.

When I am explaining to clients the process of booking a Milestone Collection, I like to focus photography sessions on when they reach the actual milestone. For example let’s list the most common timeline:

  1. Maternity Sessions: Photographing mom’s belly is the first big step for the expecting parents
  2. Newborn Session: the “sleeping” milestone usually taking place in the first 2-3 weeks of baby’s life
  3. Sitter Session: the “sitting” milestone around 6-7 months when baby can sit up unassisted
  4. Standing Milestone: finally, the “standing” milestone at 12+ months. Sometimes babies are walking, others just standing holding on to a chair

However, I use this timeframe as a loose guide, knowing all babies will be on their own timeline.

FAMILY [Maternity – Newborn – 12 Months]

Baby's First Year Milestone Collection Photography photographs of the family with their baby girl at maternity, Newborn and 12 month birthday sessions

BABY [Newborn – 6 months – 12 months]

Baby Milestone photography at ages of Newborn six months and 12 months birthday

Why Booking a Milestone Package is Best

As parents, we all have good intentions to cherish each moment and document each milestone throughout baby’s first year. However, life can get the best of us and we are sometimes left wondering where the time went. When booking the Milestone Collection, we take care of all of the hard work for you. Don’t remember it’s time to book? Not to worry, as we will schedule email to go out the month before your child hits their milestone to remind you to schedule

When is the best time to book?

Typically clients book a THREE Milestone Session Collection or a FOUR Milestone Session Collection during the second trimester of pregnancy, before the baby is born. These sessions can be booked like the following set of portraits:

  1. Maternity, Newborn, 12 months
  2. Newborn, 6 months, 12 months
  3. Maternity, Newborn, 6 months, 12 months
  4. Newborn, 3 months, 9 months, 12 months

Booking at the very beginning of your second trimester is best to ensure I will have an opening on the calendar; I schedule a limited number of Milestone Clients each year to allow for flexibility in my schedule to accommodate ample time for each of my clients.

3 Session Milestone ( Newborn, 6 months, 12 months)

Baby's First Year Milestone Collection Photography depicting the newborn, sitter, and standing milestone

4 Session Milestone ( Maternity, Newborn, 6 months, 12 months)

Baby's First Year Milestone Collection Photography showing the maternity, newborn, 6 months, 12 months milestones

Growth in Baby Milestone Collections

With each passing milestone documented, I aim to keep my portraits as classic and timeless as possible. I tend to focus less on busy backdrops and venues. My goal is to simply document babies at each stage of growth to photograph as authentically as possible. The sweet newborn yawn, the gummy drooling smile, the tummy time progression, the clapping hands, to the bow-legged walk, I truly love it all! Here are some of the milestones I like to photograph at each stage:

  • 0-3 Months: first smiles, eye contact, yawns, baby stretches, back rolls, snuggly parent holds
  • 3-6 Months: head-up, tummy time, rolling over, reaching for rattles
  • 6-9 Months: holding their feet, drooling, waving, sitting up, holding toys/heirlooms, their first claps and laughs
  • 9-12 Months: standing up, holding on to parents’ hands, walking, blowing kisses, big emotions

0-3 Months

Portraits of a baby at three months in white photography studio dressed in heirloom bonnet, also in Beaufort Bonnet Company bow swaddle

3-6 Months

Portraits of a baby at 5 months months for her birthday in white photography studio dressed in heirloom Feltman Brothers dress, a bonnet, and sliver rattle

6-9 Months

Portraits of a baby at seven months for her birthday in a white photography studio dressed smocked bubble

9-12 Months

Portraits of a baby at twelve months for her birthday in white photography studio dressed in heirloom outfit

Creating an Heirloom Album of the First Year

Ever wonder what to do with all of the images we have taken together over the first year? That is a lot of portraits of your sweet baby! There is not enough wall space to frame every single image, so I suggest that parents to create a combined album of the entire first year of milestones. We start with the first documented milestone, whether that be maternity or newborn and follow their growth in a tangible album.

Looking back through these images in print form will be one you won’t regret. I call it the modern-day baby book. Most parents request we add special details like birth date statistics, and the age at which we took each milestone.

Example of family's milestone yearly album with Maternity, Newborn, 6 months, and 12 months displayed in a layout Baby's First Year Milestone Collection Photography

Investing in the Milestone Collection

Choosing your family photographer is not one to take lightly. I always tell my clients and their family and children become like my own in this small town of Lafayette, Louisiana, and beyond. I have yet to meet a mother who didn’t cherish the memories of their baby’s first year.

If you would like to see what my Milestone Collection session investment is, inquire and book a session, or learn more about me ( Lindsey) please click the links to find out more!