Packing a Hospital Bag for Fresh 48 Photos

Fresh 48 photos take place within the first 48 hours of your baby's life, oftentimes at the hospital. Many hospitals in the Des Moines area offer a complimentary session for their families and they simply purchase the images or products that they want. This is a great and affordable way to get professional photos of your baby. If you'd like a Fresh 48 session with me at Broadlawns, please fill out the contact form with your due date.

A lot of parents don't know about fresh 48 photos, or don't know what to include in their hospital bag for photos. I know, eleven years ago, I definitely had no idea. So, here's a few tips from a photographer and a mom on what you should include in your hospital bag,

1. Name sign

2. Stuffed animal/lovey

3. Coordinating swaddles and hats/bows, and robe for mom

That's it. These are all optional things to include. I'm taken over 300 Fresh 48 sessions in my photography career, and I have utilized a lot of props and only things that are available in the hospital room. I have swaddled babies in pillowcases, mom's sweaters, pajama pants, and a white hospital sheet.

If you ask a Fresh 48 photographer, what we enjoy photographing babies wearing, I'm betting it will be nearly unanimous that we prefer babies to wear a swaddle. Although cute, newborn outfits rarely fit correctly. Too much fabric has a tendency to engulf the baby. My favorite outfits for newborns are sleepers, but then we can't see the cute little hands and feet of the tiny baby. Babies love to be swaddled--after all, they just spent 9 months of their life cuddled up inside their mama next to her bladder. They love the tight spaces.

Let's break things down further.

Name Signs

My husband and I never found out the sex of our first three children during our ultrasound appointment, so I'm not sure we would have utilized a name sign or not. But I do love the idea. These make for a cute way to make an announcement on social media or as a birth announcement mailed to family members.

I love the wooden take on the Hello My Name is sticky note that you wear at conferences. It's simple, it's direct, and it's just the perfect size for those little fingers to wrap around or to tuck into the swaddle.

I have seen a lot of the reversible circular wooden signs as a Fresh 48 photographer. I like that it includes a spot for the baby's birthday, height, weight, etc. These are details that a first-time mom may memorize, but come baby #4, you definitely don't remember details except it was in the early morning and you were hungry. Ask me how I know....The good news is that the nurses will write it on a little card and slip it into your newborn's bassinet for you to take home with you.

I really love the wood signs, but I have not seen very many acrylic signs yet. They are a bit more modern looking and more colorful. These look like a good option if your baby has a name before they are Earthside. The floral acrylic sign would be gorgeous displayed in a little girl's nursery, yet it could also grow with her. It doesn't scream baby to me.

Stuffed Animals & Loveys

I enjoy incorporating stuffed animals or loveys into a Fresh 48 session. One of the things that you need to be mindful of though is the size of the stuffed animal in correlation to the newborn. Newborns are tiny little things around 7 pounds. Some stuffed animals are just too big to be in the same frame as their tiny little body. And reminder, the shoot is taking place in the hospital room. Although some of the furniture is modular, it's not recommended to rearrange the entire room to get the perfect shot. There is a mom postpartuming in that same room that needs to eat, rest, and bond with her brand new baby.

Here's a few favorite loveys that are the perfect size for the smallest clients.

This panda stuffed animal is the perfect size to prop up in the corner of the bassinet.

My boys each had an animal lovey (a stuffed animal head with a blanket body). Theodore T Bear, Pup-Pup, Sleepy Fox, and Leo the Lion have ventured to a lot of different places with us. Pup-Pup also cuddled with his boy for every single nursing session until we weaned. The stuffed animal head and the blanket body makes these loveys perfect for 'tucking in' baby and the lovey under a blanket. One of my favorite looks honestly. These loveys also come in a million different animal options from ducks, giraffes, cows, and everything in between. I love this elephant lovey because it's the perfect neutral in color. Also, no white to show the dirt and grim that will accumulate over the years because that lovey will go to every Stroy time and grocery store with you.

Swaddles. Hats. & Robes

Lastly, lets discuss swaddles, hats, and robes. The robes are for the mamas. I love a good coordinating set. I absolutely love when a family shows up to the hospital with one solid color swaddle and one patterned swaddled. It makes me feel twitterpated. I am also a sucker for hats, boys, and bonnets, but I do remove them for some poses. If it's ill-fitting or sliding around, it's off. I want the focus to be on baby, but a misfitting hat that's more suitable in a year.

I am obsessed with the black and white swaddle set. One of my most favorite galleries that I shot was the cutest litle girl swaddled in a black and white striped blanket with a big matching bow in her hair. I love this set because it can easily be utilzed for twins or you can switch up the background blanket. You could even do double swaddle and have multiple blankets showing. Black and white is such a classic option and it's perfect for families that were Team Green and didn't find out the baby's sex before the birth.

Moving along, I am in love with this four swaddle set with coordinating hats and bows. This truly is perfect for families with multiples. Again, you could mix and match the bows and blankets or layer the swaddles to create a very beautiful photo.

Although this 3 dino swaddle set does not include a hat or bow, the color of the blue is way worth it. I would lay the dinosaur swaddle down as a backdrop then swaddle baby in the blue swaddle. Newborns are very sleepy, but when they open their eyes, they have very dark eyes. If the photographer could capture catch light in their eyes, this would make for a stunning photo paired with that blue swaddle.

Green is my favorite color, and I am a plant lover, albeit, I struggle to keep them alive. I love the green and nature swaddle pack because it is made of a different fabric. The others have been muslin, but this is more of a jersey fabric and has wonderful stretch. This is the fabric to use if you are a little rusty on your swaddling.

Lastly. I am going to mention the terracota and rainbow swaddle. I have been seeing a lot of the pastel and orange tinted rainbows lately vs the traditional ROYGBV rainbow from my youth. And honestly, I love it. I am pro all rainbows though. I have seen families use rainbow props for their rainbow babies (babies that were born after a loss or miscarriage) or used because they just enjoyed the colors.

But what about moms? If you just recently gave birth, chances are you do not want to do a full face of makeup and look presentable. I would implore you to jump into a few photos. Moms may not realize this, but they have a special postpartum glow about them. They really do look radiant.

Do not worry about fitting into your pre-baby jeans though. Just wear a robe. Robes are great for breastfeeding and they hide the mesh panties that you wear postpartum. Here's a few of my favorite ones.

I am a big fan of pairing a solid with a print. Either mom wears a solid and baby a print, or vice versa. The blue floral robe and solid color swaddle is perfect for a little boy or a gender neutral option. Same for the green robe and swaddle combo.

I hope you're feeling more prepared for your 48 hospital photos. I know it's hard, but try to keep your cellphone down when your baby is being photographed. You will have a lifetime to take photos, just trust that your photographer will capture some amazing photos for you.

Disclosure: some of the links in this post are affiliate links and if you go through them to make a purchase I will earn a small commission. Keep in mind that I link these companies and their products because of their quality and not because of the commission I receive from your purchases. The decision is yours, and whether or not you decide to buy something is completely up to you.