catherine + gary + baby luke // utica, ny

There are many different styles of “newborn photography,” but this is the style that I will always prefer. It’s real, it’s in the home which is a very sacred place, and the focus is on the connection of the family as they tread these brand new waters of parenthood. There’s so much beauty in the chaos and uncertainty of life, and in my opinion, it needs to be embraced and celebrated. When you bring a new baby home for the first time, you are so overwhelmed. It never even crosses your mind that you’re living the moments that you’ll soon look back on as “the good old days when you had a newborn.” These crazy times with babies, messy houses, and dark circles under your eyes are actually the best days of your life. I’m mostly talking to/about myself here, lol, but maybe other moms can relate. ;)

A lot of people think that their home isn’t a good backdrop for photos, but as long as you have windows, it’ll be perfect. I promise. Because it’s not about what your house looks like; it’s about remembering the connections you shared during a brand new phase of life. This is the style of photography that we had done when our Elsie was born. We had photos taken of us sitting with her in the nursery that we lovingly designed and created months before we ever met her, and those photos are so incredibly special to us.

It was an absolute honor to be invited into Cathy and Gary’s home to document their new life together as a family of three, and I love that their dog, Pumpkin, was able to jump in for some family photos, too!