5 Cute Poses for Baby Portrait Photographs in the First Year

In the first year of a baby’s life, things are constantly changing.  The first about three to four months are spent sleeping.  After that your baby becomes more alert and active and you have a lot more scope to get different poses and expressions for your baby portraits.  However, the idea is to make the best of each stage while it lasts.  Here are some poses that you could try when shooting baby portraits in the first year.

Sleeping  

Sleeping portraits are easiest to achieve and look the best in the first three months.  At this stage the baby sleeps more soundly, the body is very flexible, and is light enough to be held in your palm.  Wait until the baby is sound asleep before you attempt to pose him or her.  While posing make sure they are comfortable and safe.  One classic sleeping pose is to place the sleeping baby face down on the parent’s arm, the face supported in the palm.  Another adorable pose is a sleeping baby with the bottom up.  You can try variations of this using accessories and props.
    

Close-ups

You can get close-ups at any age but once the baby is able to focus on the camera you can get far more expressive portraits.  This generally happens around four month when your baby is able to support their head.  Place the baby in a well-supported position so that they can look at the camera.  Keep talking to them while shooting and capture their reactions.  Remember to focus on the eyes.
    

Sitting

Babies generally sit independently around six months.  At this stage you can get sitting poses of the baby in the nursery or with their toys adding composition to your portrait.  Focus on the baby but also get part of the background.  Also, at this stage, try to capture feeding time, bath time, play time and so on.  You will get amazing portraits.
    

Standing

Your baby is now about eight months.  He or she is able to stand, first with support and then independently.  Make sure to get some shots of them when they begin to take the first few steps independently – a little hesitant initially and then the glee of being able to walk without support!  Priceless.  Make sure these are full length shots.  Focus on the baby sharply and blur out the background.
    

Action

Once your baby is moving about independently, you can get action portraits of them doing their thing – running, walking, playing in the home, rolling on the grass in the park.  Capture them doing all their favorite activities and include their favorite toys and play equipment too, these would serve as props and add to your portrait.