Breaking Down the “Sitter Session” in Baby Photography

Everything You Need to Know About Sitter Sessions for Babies

Confession: I have baby fever.  I just love babies, and they are my favorite photography subjects!  There are so many opportunities to capture beautiful photographs of your growing baby in the first year.  My baby milestone portrait sessions document your baby at all these adorable stages – or milestones – between being a newborn and reaching their first birthday.  While I do love photographing babies of all ages, I must admit that a sitter session is my favorite!

A sitter session is simply a photography session for babies who can sit up unassisted. These sessions take place at my portrait studio in Randolph, NJ. What makes these sessions such a treat is that babies around this stage are becoming very smiley, playful and curious!  So we usually get great big smiles and fun expressions.  Parents just love the portraits we get from their baby’s sitter session, and I couldn’t agree more!

When to book a Sitter Session

A sitter session typically takes place between baby’s sixth to ninth month.  There is no exact or correct time, since all babies achieve milestones at slightly different ages.  You want to do it once your baby can sit up unassisted, but before they can crawl away!   This allows us to sit them on the floor or in a prop and capture adorable images of them looking around and smiling. A lot of parents also like to come in around the six month mark, since it represents the halfway point to the first birthday. 

I have many families who are on a “baby portrait plan.” This means they may come in for two or more milestone sessions during baby’s first year. Although the sitter session is always a popular pick, other great choices include a tummy time session and of course a cake smash for their first birthday! As always, I recommend booking well in advance to guarantee availability and allow enough time for the pre-session planning of our portrait process together. 

Props for a Sitter Session

While I do have a variety of adorable photography props in my studio that I use for newborn and baby photo sessions, in general I like to keep them to a minimum.  I do not like the scene to detract from the focus and beauty of our main subject – your baby!  Props are simply used as an enhancement to the setup to lend a natural and timeless look.  For example, a soft beautiful blanket or fur rug for your baby to sit or lay on.

For sitter sessions, I do select some props that will enhance your baby’s sitting experience in my studio.  Sitting babies are usually still small enough to fit into some adorable props, such as a shallow bowl, a crate, or a little bed.  Babies are often amused and curious when I place them in a prop, and usually results in some cute smiles and expressions!

What to Wear for a Sitter Session

I do provide a collection of adorable baby clothes in my studio just for milestone sessions.  This is often a relief for moms who don’t know what their baby should wear for photos!  I offer boy and girl outfits in sizes from 6-18 months, along with matching headbands for girls.  Part of the fun is “shopping” from my collection of baby clothes!  My outfits are beautiful and unique hand-made pieces that you won’t find in stores.

Parents are also of course welcome to bring their own outfits if they prefer.  Or you can mix in one favorite outfit from home and one outfit from my studio collection.  We can typically get two different outfits in one session.  This gives us plenty of variety for your baby’s portraits.