How do Newborn Photographers Get Newborn Babies To Smile?

You’ve probably seen adorable portraits of newborn babies blissfully smiling in their sleep and must be wondering how newborn photographers get babies to smile. I wish I could say that we have special skills or that we’re magicians, but honestly it just comes down to timing.

Getting your baby to smile in their newborn portraits isn’t always guaranteed but when we do, it has everything to do with timing. When most clients come my studio for their newborn portraits, I usually ask them to try and keep baby awake before the session starts, this way I can put baby to sleep and line up the timing for a successful photography session. Once baby has relaxed and is starting to fall asleep I know I usually have a few minutes until I might catch a smile.

This is why timing is important – those early few minutes of baby falling asleep is when baby enters into REM (Rapid Eye Movement) state – According to Sleep Foundation, the REM state is when baby’s brain triggers reflexes such as sucking, rooting and smiling!

If I time the session right, there’s a good chance your baby will smile. These smiles are usually very quick, and there’s really no way to control or trigger it. All you can do is wait and observe. Luckily my photography skills are very good so I always catch these fleeting smiles for parents and they end up being some of the favorite portraits from the session.

I wish I could say I was a magician or that babies love my personality, but really, it’s just science and good timing.