Conducting safe newborn sessions is not a negotiable – it is essential to the well-being of the baby and for the legal protection of your own business.

In the video below I share with you the reasons for having a newborn safety spotter and why it’s so important.

Prefer to read about safe newborn sessions in stead?

This video is not to argue whether if you use or not use a spotter that you’re unsafe. In my professional opinion, using a spotter is going to always keep baby safe. I hope you watch this video with an open heart and an open mind and you can see the reasoning why having a spotter will keep the baby safe and keep you protected as well.

So in my opinion, having extra hands during a session is extremely important when you have these tiny little babies . They can move, they jump, they flinch, and you don’t really know when that’s going to happen. If you’ve got a baby on a beanbag or you have baby on a prop, and you’re 3 or 4 feet away from them, a lot of stuff can go wrong. They can tip over the bucket, they can crawl off the beanbag … you want to make sure that you are always using the safest measures and having extra hands that is going to keep that baby safe.

Now babies have a startle reflex – they can startle from the noise of your shutter, or from any loud noise. The startle reflex is really something that’s in them to protect them, but if you don’t have someone there and you’ve got them in a position, you’re not protecting them so you need to have those extra hands around them.

That startle reflex has happened to me and having mom there or dad there or my assistant there – it’s going to keep you safe. So when I’m working with a newborn I always have an assistant in my studio, whether it be my assistant that I hire (which you can do too), or I use parents.

Now the caveat using parents or grandparents is that they are not trained to look for the cues when baby starts moving. You need to let them know that you need them always keeping their eyes on the baby.

Also, the image is never more important than the child. If you’re putting baby in a position where you’re feeling like maybe the parents are tired or they’re maybe not paying attention like they should, that’s a really good indicator that you need to call that session. The baby’s safety is paramount and you being known as the safest photographer is going to be so integral to the success of your business and your success as a photographer.

Leaving children or toddlers unattended with a newborn is a huge no-no as well. You want to make sure that when you’re taking that shot, especially an image like the aerial shot where you have the two children side by side, you always have the parent’s hands on the newborn or around the baby. If you feel like that toddler is really starting to move, you need to call it.

Another reason to use a spotter is when doing composite images. These images can be merged together and you can remove these hands in Photoshop later – you just want to make sure that you’re utilizing your spotter for the baby’s safety to create beautiful art and great memories for their family.

They’re going to remember their experience with you and if they felt like their baby was in jeopardy in your hands, they’re not going to want to come back to you. So make sure that you use that spotter and use all these little rules and tips that I’ve given you – you’re going to have a great session!

We’re ALL about safe newborn sessions here at The Milky Way! Look for our other posts on Newborn Safety:

• Using composites to create beautiful & safe images
• Props – considerations to ensure newborns stay safe