The health and safety of all our clients is very important to us but especially so for our tiniest, newborn clients.
Newborn photoshoots are unlike any other genre of photography but is also one of the most unregulated types of photography – anyone with a camera can begin taking photographs of newborn babies, without any kind of training or experience. As professional, experienced photographers, we feel that this is a worrying factor when new parents are trying to navigate their way to finding a suitable, trustworthy photographer to photography their precious newborn baby and this is why we have taken measures to ensure that we continually reassess our safety measures for newborns and re-evaluate training on a regular basis. That and over 30 years experience of photographing newborns means that you can rest assured that your new baby is safe in our hands.
You will be asked if there are any medical issues and allergies that we need to be aware of, on arrival at the studio, so that we can adapt particular poses to fit with our workflow. Some poses may be unsuitable for us to use, if your baby has a particular medical condition and this will be discussed before the start of the photoshoot.
Babies are never left unattended during a photoshoot session, at any point. Even a soundly sleeping baby may have a strong startle reflex and jump at a sudden noise so it’s important to have someone keeping an eye on them throughout.
The studio is heated for your baby’s comfort to around 27 degrees. This may not be so great for parents but new babies are unable to regulate their own temperature so we need to maintain this kind of warmth to ensure that they are comfortable, especially when in their birthday suits or with very little on. We do suggest that anyone else coming to the session dresses in light layers to avoid overheating.
All the blankets, fabric wraps and props used in each session are washed in non-bio washing liquid and no fabric softener is used so as to prevent any reaction on babies soft, sensitive skin. Most parents worry about accidents happening, if baby is undressed for part of the shoot, but all items used are washed/sanitised after every newborn session to prevent cross-infection.
Studio equipment, lighting and props are all subject to regular checks to make sure that they are fit for purpose.
Some images seen on our website and on our marketing material may show babies in various poses that are not possible to create without the aid of “composite” images (meaning that two images will have been taken separately and then combined in Photoshop to create the final effect). Images where the baby seems to be supporting their head on their hands or where a baby has been photographed next to the family pet are examples of composite images. We will never sacrifice the health and safety of a newborn baby for the sake of an “unsafe” image. If a parent requests a particular pose that is felt to be unsafe, the studio reserves the right to refuse and will explain the reasons why. Your baby will never be forced into positions or placed into a situation where they are clearly unhappy or uncomfortable.
Hallmark Photography has completes a regular Risk Assessment of our newborn sessions and a copy of this is available upon request.
Hand sanitiser stations are available for your use throughout the studio and viewing areas and our photographers will use hand sanitiser regularly to maintain good hand hygiene while photographing your newborn. Medical quality disposable gloves may also be worn by the photographer during the session.
If you or your baby happens to be unwell on the day of your appointment, we would ask you to reschedule rather than risk bringing any infection into our studio.
If you do have any questions about the session, you may find some of the answers in the information pack that will have been sent to you on booking but please let us know if there is anything you are unsure about or that isn’t covered.