Adorable new baby boy captured in his family home in Christchurch.

It was so special to be invited into Saba and Patrick's home to meet their new little bundle Raphael. I photographed their wedding, as well as Saba's pregnancy, so this felt really fitting to capture for them! They had the look of brand new parents, and were already completely in love with their little dude. After I got all my gear inside, we spent the first few minutes chatting and catching up, while I took some candid lifestyle images of family cuddles in their living room.

Raphael had the most magnificent mop of dark brown hair, as you can see in his images! You could definitely see some resemblance to his gorgeous parents which was lovely.

Patrick wasn't keen to be in many images which is absolutely fine, I always respect how much or how little parents want to be involved in their newborn shoot and work together to create results you are really pleased with. I did my usual tour of the house and found the room with the best light, and we set up in there for some snaps. I took a few family shots while Raphael snoozed on his Daddy's chest.

Then it was cuddles with Mum. He was a very content and sleepy boy, snoozing away as long as he was cuddled and warm. Capturing some relaxed images while we first eased into shooting is my favourite way to begin and get everyone feeling comfortable. It's also great for capturing a favourite little outfit before we move on to the posed images with normally are taken in only a nappy.

From here we got the little one fed and settled onto the bean bag. I used a warm toned set for his first images alone. We were so lucky that he was really settled. He loved sucking on mummy's finger to settle to sleep and this helped so much. If you use a dummy this can also be really helpful for settling-even if just for the shoot! And of course lots of feeding is helpful and always accommodated for!

Doesn't he have the sweetest little face? I was in newborn heaven getting these snuggled up images of him all wrapped up and cosy. I also made sure to get a few detail shots of things like feet and hair as these change so fast and it is absolutely priceless to have these to keep forever!

I try to vary the positions slightly to get variety in a gallery, but without disrupting baby and moving him into different positions all the time. I slight change of position to the arms can give a totally different look to the images without waking him! We kept the room nice and toasty with the heater going the whole time, and this helped him to be okay with having his arms untucked for some shots.

I actually love when you can see a little of that flaky skin newborns often get when they are brand new, as it is so authentic to how they look as they gradually adjust to the outside world.

Next we stopped for another cuddle and I changed my backdrop on the beanbag for an off-white set. I don't always use a second colour, but he was really settled so we were able to get away with the change in this case! It was lovely to have a completely different option and look for the next photos which we took on his belly, and to see how his skin tone looked against another colour. He was very cosy tucked up on his belly, and I was able to get a lovely mix of close ups and more pulled back shots without moving him much.

The shot above is one of my favourites! The little feet, perfect lips, and cute belly rolls are just too much!

I then brought Mum's hands in for some additional belly down shots. It is a lovely way to feature parents without always having their face in the images. It can also be a great option if you aren't feeling like being in photos but still want to have some images that have a glimmer of you in.

Look at the way he's holding her hand! So sweet!

Saba was happy to be in a few more shots so we got some stunning close ups of her face right next to Raphael on the beanbag. These turned out absolutely beautiful! I love seeing the difference between how certain images look in colour versus black and white, which ones are you favourite from the images below?

I'm lucky to have lots of cosy in-home newborn sessions coming up, so watch this space as I add them to the blog! I'm absolutely lovely photographing these, so if you have a newborn on the way please contact me for a price list and all the info on how to book. Alternatively if you are ready to book go here to choose your date from what I have left!

Love, Gem x