Happy New Years!

Happy New Years from Mark Stevens Photography! We had a wonderful 2014 and are truly thankful for all of our new and repeat clients. 2014 was a big year for us as we added a new member to our family. Molly Stevens joined our family in November and she's practicing to be our future photo assistant and learning what it means to be the newest, littlest worker in our crew.

We've had a fun time photographing every little milestone for her and while we know that you can't come in every week, we hope that you will consider planning a professional photography session to capture the big changes your babies and children make as they grow up. Most of our clients prefer to do newborn sessions, followed by sitting up pictures (typically 4-6 months) and 1 year pictures all in the baby's first year. It is amazing to see how your baby changes in just the first 12 months!

Photographing your child's milestones

We are frequently asked when are the best times to have professional portraits taken of babies. We know that kids grow very quickly and it's important to document the key milestones of their development. Here are the three most common times to come in for a portrait with our studio:

Newborns. To get a true newborn portrait, it is best to have your session during the baby's first 10 days. We will work with your schedule to make sure that we can see you during this time and give you suggestions for the day of your shoot to make the session go as smoothly as possible for everyone involved. Many families choose to have a new family portrait taken to include the newest member of the family at this time. We are happy to create portraits of all the siblings, of mom and baby, the new parents with the baby, or even your fur kids with the new baby.

6 Months. We find that we capture some really fun moments around the time your baby is able to sit up by themselves. The timing of this varies by baby, but it is usually around the 5-6 month mark.  This is the time where they are very expressive and their personality really starts to show in the pictures.

1 Year. Many people like having their baby's 1 year birthday portrait done. This is perhaps the most common time to come in for a portrait after the newborn session. A lot of changes happen in the first 12 months and it's fun to see the little person they've grown to be. We have a lot of fun with the 1 year baby pictures and are happy to work with you on your specific ideas for this session. Some people choose to bring in a birthday cake for the baby to smash, their favorite toy, or families want one last chance for a naked baby picture. This is also a great time to update your whole family portrait!

Hello Baby A

Baby A came in recently for her newborn photo shoot. She's already very curious about her new big world. She's the perfect new addition to her beautiful family and we look forward to seeing her grow!