Yes, those new babies are simply delicious.  At only 5 days old, this lil’ peanut was ALERT!  I don’t think we’ve ever worked so hard to get a little one asleep…whew!  She was so sweet…so perfect…so tiny. Every minute with her was a joy…truly and honestly.  And I don’t know I could have said that a few years ago.

Feeling like I need to be a little honest here – – for a long time, I struggled photographing newborns.  They are NOT easy little creatures to work with!  After all, they cry…they poop and pee…they wiggle…they make ‘old man’ faces…they don’t sleep when you want them to and when you’ve decided that they are just going to be awake, their underdeveloped eye muscles make them look cross-eyed.  It really isn’t a surprise that I’ve struggled with newborns…even with my own kids, I was so much happier when they were…oh, say…4 months old, when they had personalities and could communicate in some other way besides blood-curdling screams.  But as a photographer, I see the beauty in those newborn babes…their delicate features, their soft skin, their vulnerability to this world…and I want to capture that beauty.  Ultimately inspired by Anne Geddes, the Godmother of modern newborn photography, many of the ‘rock star’ photographers of the world create the most incredible newborn images.  You know…the ones where your jaw drops and you think “wow”…or “how in the world!??!?”.  So for a long time, I’ve held myself to that standard.  But you know what…I feel like I’ve come into my own with these newborns.  I hold them…I talk to them…I hush in their ears…and I let them be.  Maybe it’s not the most stylized or trendy newborn photography out there, but I think I can capture a pretty good moment…a uniquely distinct emotion…one where you look at the image and you can feel that little baby’s skin…or you can hear their soft breathing.  And besides…I’m not the most stylized or trendy person out there, so why should I try to make my photography that way?