10 Tips for Photographing Newborn Twins

Bringing one baby into your life is a joyful-and hectic- occasion, and twins bring double of both! But once they arrive and get settled you’ll hopefully be ready to take some terrific baby photos. The trick is to know how and when to take newborn twin photos to get the best results. Of course, we’re here to help with some great tips:

Tip 1: Flexible Planning is Necessary

You might as well get used to changing your plans according to your twin’s whims – because once they come along most of your schedule will likely revolve around your two little beans. One truth with twins is that they rarely arrive on their due date and often spend a little extra time in the hospital, so you might miss the 10-14 “perfect” newborn portrait window. Don’t fret, they’ll be just as cute when you bundle them up and get them home.

Tip 2: Employ Extra Equipment

After being in your slightly noisy, dark and warm tummy, it can take a bit of adjustment for newborn twins to get settled. Your best bet is to emulate similar conditions; warm, dark, and a bit noisy (a fan is perfect).

Tip 3: Cosy Up

Newborns, particularly twins, love being wrapped up (again, it emulates what conditions were like before they were born). Wrapping up twins and placing them together is a great way to get them settled – once they are fully asleep you can experiment with unwrapping and posing a bit more.

Tip 4: Employ Props

Like any newborn photo shoot, a few props can go a long way. Besides a bean bag or cushion and soft blanket, posing twins inside a crate or basket can make for memorable photos. Additionally, a few fun hats (or costumes) are a nice touch.

Tip 5: Careful Posing

Trying to get newborns into the perfect pose can be a real challenge. Sometimes placing alert twins together and letting them cuddle will result in lovely newborn twin portraits, other times you might be better off to wrap twins so they can’t poke each other too much. As they get older, you’ll get ample opportunity to test out poses.

Extra Tip: One twin will typically settle down easier than the other – get him/her cozy, then place the other twin down to help calm them both.

Tip 6: Solo Images

If someone can help out with feeding and diaper changes, you’ll have the opportunity for some individual twin portraits, as well as having your photo session last longer than 5 minutes. Besides, when it comes down to it your babies are individuals, and even as early as a few weeks you’ll start seeing their personalities shine through.

Tip 7: Patience!

If you haven’t developed the patience of a saint already – well, you will! It might take more than one session to get the “perfect” newborn photos, particularly if you are just getting used to the idea of being a mom.

Tip 8: Extra Help…Helps

Recruiting a friend, spouse, or grandparent to help out can make a huge difference, they can fill in when one baby needs changing, a bottle, or wants a little extra help settling down. It can also help to have extras of everything else, especially bottles, diapers, and blankets.

Tip 9: Stacking

This won’t work with all babies, so don’t despair if you can’t get perfectly “stacked” babies. However, you can start off successfully by settling the larger baby first, face down (which is a good opportunity for some individual shots). Placing the second baby on top, also face down, skin-to-skin, happens next. Go slowly, ensure the room is warm, and ensure that babies are fed and comfy. Take it slow!

Tip 10: Watch the Aperture

Two babies means you really need to watch your aperture – if it’s too large then you’ll have a very limited depth of field, so one baby could end up out of focus. Select a smaller aperture if needed, and check your shots to ensure that both babies’ faces are sharp.

Of course, it’s perfectly understandable if you can’t manage photographing newborn twins on your own, so consider hiring some help! Remember to book early, so you’re not disappointed to find out that your favorite newborn photographer is all booked up.

Get in touch and let’s chat about your newborn twins photo session!

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