Eton sits at the edge of the Cohutta Mountains in Murray County, where the pastoral flatlands of the valley floor begin to give way to ridges and hollows that stretch north toward the Tennessee border. It is a quiet, unhurried community, and the families I work with here tend to be the same — people who value substance over spectacle, who want something real rather than something performed.

When first-time parents reach out to me about a newborn session, they almost always arrive with the same set of questions, and almost none of those questions are the ones they most need answered. They ask about props and colors and background options. What they should be asking is: when exactly do I need to book this? What will the actual session day feel like? What can I do beforehand to make everything go smoothly? And what happens after, in terms of how long the editing takes and what I receive at the end? This post is my attempt to answer all of those questions honestly, so that families in Eton and across Murray County know exactly what they are walking into.

Because here is what I have found after years of newborn work: the families who come in with realistic expectations have better sessions. Not because they are more cooperative or their babies are more accommodating, but because they are not spending the first hour of the session anxious about whether things are going the way they expected. Anxiety travels down the arms into the baby. Calm travels down the arms into the baby. The session you arrive at emotionally is, to a significant degree, the session you get.

When to Book — Earlier Than You Think

Book during your second trimester. I know that sounds early for something that will not happen for another four or five months, but the math is straightforward: newborn sessions need to happen in the first two to three weeks of a baby’s life to capture the curled, deeply sleeping postures that make newborn photography what it is. After three weeks, babies become more alert, their sleep is lighter and more easily disrupted, and the poses that look so natural in early newborn images become more difficult to achieve safely and comfortably. The window is narrow.

My calendar fills up quickly, particularly in spring and fall, which are the most popular conception-to-birth cycles in the region. If you contact me in your third trimester, I may not have your due date window available. Contact me at week 20 or 22, we will put a placeholder on the calendar, and when your baby arrives we will confirm the exact session date. If your baby comes early or late, we adjust. The placeholder just ensures that your window is protected.

What to Expect on Session Day

A newborn session takes three to four hours. That is not a typo, and it is not padding. Newborns need to be fed, settled, transitioned between poses slowly and safely, and given unhurried time to slip into the deep sleep that allows for the images you are hoping to get. I do not rush this process. If the baby needs to nurse for forty minutes in the middle of the session, we stop and the baby nurses. If a particular pose is not working because the baby is resisting it, we move on to something else and come back. The session pace is always set by the baby, never by me.

For the session, I will ask that the house or studio space be warm — warmer than you might like it, around 75 to 78 degrees. Newborns are accustomed to a much warmer environment than the rest of us, and a cool room means a more lightly sleeping baby, which means a more difficult session. Feed the baby right before we begin, or have a feeding ready. Do not worry about the space being perfectly clean or organized — I am there for the baby, not to judge the state of your home. Wear something comfortable in a neutral tone for your own portraits during the session. Keep siblings close but prepared for a slow, quiet day rather than an exciting one.

What not to do before the session: do not schedule anything afterward for at least four hours. The sessions that run longest are the ones where a parent has a hard stop and the anxiety around the clock begins to affect the whole room. Also do not attempt a major house-cleaning event the night before — you need sleep more than you need a clean baseboards, and sleep-deprived parents transmit tension to their babies with remarkable efficiency.

Choosing a Look, and What Happens After

I photograph in two broad styles: minimalist and gently styled. Minimalist means the focus is entirely on the baby — simple wraps in organic neutrals, posing on clean textured surfaces, natural or near-natural window light, no props beyond the baby’s own hands and feet and the texture of the wrap. Gently styled means I introduce a small number of carefully chosen accessories — a knit hat, a simple headband, a textured blanket — that add visual interest without overpowering the baby as the primary subject.

I do not do elaborate themed setups. I do not build custom scenes with miniature furniture and scale props. This is a philosophical choice as much as an aesthetic one: I think those images, while visually striking in the moment, age poorly and tend to date quickly. The images I make are meant to last. They should look as natural and true in fifteen years as they do the week after the session.

After the session, I spend time in careful post-processing — color correction, skin tone refinement, gentle retouching of any temporary skin conditions that are common in newborns. My typical delivery window is two to three weeks. You will receive a private online gallery with your full image collection, downloadable in high resolution, ready for printing. I partner with several printing labs and can provide recommendations if you want professional prints rather than phone downloads.

If you are expecting in Eton, Chatsworth, Calhoun, or anywhere in the Murray County and Gordon County corridor, I would love to talk about your session. Reach out through the contact form and let me know your due date and a little about what you are hoping to document. I will confirm availability and send everything you need to get started — usually within a day or two of your inquiry.