It’s been awhile since I’ve posted (and boasted) about sitter sessions. What exactly is a sitter session and why am I often gushing about it? A quick Google search about baby photography will show results for newborn sessions, capturing babies as tiny and fresh as possible, first birthday sessions where you often will see baby enjoying their first taste of cake and lastly, sitter sessions. These are the most popular ages to capture baby within the first year. A sitter session is all about capturing your baby at the stage where they can sit confidently on their own. Often photographers will suggest 6-months old, but typically I find most babies are not sitting stable until they are around 7-months old. It’s a magic window where you try to catch baby before they start walking or crawling.
Why is this age such a big deal? Well, because baby is sitting on their own, your photographer can capture a bigger variety of images than younger ages where they are just lying on their back. A sitter allows for more opportunity to photograph them in different positions: sitting up, lying down, tummy time, grabbing their toes and maybe even standing or the beginnings of their crawling stance.
Another benefit of the sitter age is around this time baby’s personality really starts to emerge. Around 6-7 months baby are comfortable around strangers and haven’t yet become shy or scared of new people. This means your photographer can get lots of smiles and a good variety of expressions.
I actually prefer when families book their studio session at the sitter age over waiting for their first birthday and that might sound weird but hear me out. Once babies are crawling they much prefer exploring and being independent. They may not be happy sitting still because they have a new skill that allows them to quickly explore the new and exciting things in a studio. Having photos done in-studio at the sitter age means you can capture lots of photos without baby getting frustrated.
If you are reading this and are thinking, uh oh, my baby is crawling and I’ve missed this precious window. Don’t worry, there are a few options.
If it’s between May-October, let’s get baby outdoors. I do lots of sitter sessions outdoors and they involve the whole family so you can check “family portraits” off your to do list for the year. Babies love outdoors, there’s so many colours, smells and things to look at.
If it’s winter, contact me anyway. Even if baby is crawling we still get a nice variety of photos. I work really fast and if you’re willing to help pick baby up, give them a quick cuddle and place them back then I can quickly get the shot before baby is gone exploring again. I’ve also got lots of wooden toys and props that keep their attention long enough for me to photograph them.
If you’d like to explore some of my photos of sitter aged babies, go here to read more and find some examples. These sessions typically last about an hour in my Burlington studio. It’s best to book as soon as you know you want a sitter session because my calendar does fill up every month. Hopefully this lengthy blog post answers your questions about having your baby photographed. If you’d like to book a session with me, contact me and I’ll give you the details and my current availability.
