Despite the fact that your baby would be free and does not have any other commitments for the rest of the day, it still does not mean that they will spare their entire day for just a photo shoot.
All jokes apart, most parents, while considering hiring a professional photographer to carry out their baby’s photo shoot, are much concerned about how long will or usually does a baby photo shoot last.
Why do parents get bothered about how long their baby’s photo shoot session will last?
Generally there are two main reasons for asking such types of questions.
First, parents are worried about their baby remaining uncomfortable or bothered during the whole time.
Second, the amount of time that any baby photo shoot session would take is in most cases directly proportional to the price of the photo shoot session.
So this means that more time or any extra time taken for this job will certainly come with an increased price tag.
So how much time does baby photography take?
While the most common answer to this question that any professional photographer will tell you is that a baby photo shoot usually lasts 3 to 4 hours, it obviously is not certain and will vary on a case to case basis.
This is because all babies are different and considering their age factor, they are highly unpredictable.
One second their mood is fine and the other second they can easily, without any obvious clues, become uncontrollable tiny wonders.
In other words, their mood is somewhat kind of like a bi-polar weather.
So even though no person can be completely sure of how much actual time would a baby photo shoot take, there are still a few certain things that you need to keep in mind if you are planning to get your baby’s photo shoot done.
By preparing in advance for these things and keeping a check on them as much as possible, we are sure that your baby’s photo shoot session won’t last long and will hopefully deliver much more than you expected.
To help you out in this, we have prepared the following list of all possible things with some explanations to help you better understand what factors can affect the time duration of a baby photo shoot.
So let’s begin.
1. Keep in mind that this isn’t a one size fits all kind of a thing
While different photographers, based on their prior experience might tell you different time lengths, keep in mind that in case of a baby photo shoot, each and every case is different.
This is because each case of a baby photo shoot comes with its own set of challenges and is a new experience, hence it clearly defies any norms or expectations you or the photographer has for any particular baby photo shoot session.
Some babies tend to be very quiet and enjoy their surroundings. Some are comfortable in getting along with strangers.
On the other hand, some babies can be very good at creating terrible experiences and therefore cause unusual delays while shooting the easiest scenes as well.
So instead of causing any kind of trouble for the photographer, it is important for you as a parent to remain calm and supportive throughout your baby’s photo shoot session.
2. It depends on the place of photo shoot as well
Although your baby isn’t old enough, it still starts to get fond of the place where it spends most of its time i.e. your home.
So it might be hard to believe but the length of your baby’s photo shoot session may also get affected due to the place of photo shoot as well.
This means that your baby might feel uncomfortable in the studio especially when exposed to all the lighting equipment and the crew members.
3. It depends upon the skill and experience of the photographer you have hired
In the case of a baby photo shoot, it is a general opinion that the only person to be held responsible for its probable good or bad outcome is the photographer and its team.
This means that the more experienced the photographer will be, the more smoothly things will navigate from the beginning till the end of the whole baby photo shoot session.
This also again highlights the importance of not hiring any professional photographer, but the photographer that has more experience or specializes in baby photo shoots.
4. The actual photo shoot time is usually less than the total time
For some parents, especially the new ones who are getting the photo shoot done of their first born child, learning that they would have to keep their baby engaged for as little as 3 to 4 hours can be pretty tough as well.
Such parents need to understand that the total time of a photo shoot session does not mean only shooting photos and/or making videos of their baby.
Its actual scope is much wider than these things.
During the photo shoot, there will be multiple instances when your baby will become uncomfortable, might cry so has to be calmed down, will wet his/her diaper so it will also need to be changed more times than you expected, will have to be fed as well, he/she might seem tired or even sleep so it needs to be kept awake as well, etc.
All in all, any baby photo shoot session is likely to comprise more of a nursing and caring experience than just a plain photo shoot session.
5. Baby photo shoot session time duration also depends upon the type of photos you want
This factor again plays a great role in deciding the total time that your baby’s photo shoot session should last.
Some parents would prefer their baby’s photo shoot to be done while they are asleep, while others would want it to be done while they are awake. Some might also want it both ways.
While it may not be hard for an expert level baby photographer to handle any particular type of photo shoot situation, it still depends upon your baby and how much he/she is willing to cooperate with the photographer as well.
Some babies tend to keep their bodies free, flexible and easy while sleeping, so a sleeping photo shoot in the case of such a baby should not be hard.
As against this behavior, some babies tend to sleep in a particular style, sometimes all rolled up in a compact style and hence so rigid that they are unable to be posed for any particular style.
Similarly, considering these behavior patterns during the sleep time, imagine how hard it would be for doing a photo shoot while the baby is awake and feeling super energetic.
What might seem as a simple to do task, is in reality full of complications and challenges.
A quick advice worthy of being shared at this point is that most decent, cute and adorable baby photo shoots can be taken when they are asleep.
But nevertheless, hiring a professional photographer that is well versed and has a wide experience in doing baby photo shoots will help you stay relaxed as they very well understand how to get the most out of every mood of your baby.
Especially in the case of new parents, I compare photographers not only know better ways of handling the baby but would also take less time in shooting each pose as well as suggesting different ways on how to capitalize on what the baby is currently doing.
6. Baby photo shoot duration also depends upon the themes you select
How long your baby’s photo shoot session last also depends upon the themes or setups you choose or which are included in the package you have bought.
The more themes or setups you select, the more photo shoot sessions there will be.
Switching between two subsequent setups or themes will certainly take some preparation time as well. For each session, you will also need to change your baby’s wrapping or clothing to match the theme accordingly.
If a certain session requires your baby in sleep mode, then you will have to make it sleep as well. Similarly, if it requires your baby to be in the wake up mode and it has gone asleep during the session transition phase, you will have to wait until it awakes again.
While this might not take much time during a photo shoot at a studio, it will certainly take much time when the photo shoot is being done outdoors or at your home.
Again, you can also hire a big and expert baby photography studio that may have pre-setup rooms for different themes they offer.
This will save time and will be easy for the baby as well as it won’t make it tired due to the long sessions or the transitions in between. But this will definitely cost you more.
7. Baby photo shoot time duration also depends upon who else will become part of the photo shoot
Is it just the photo shoot of your baby or does it involve you or its siblings or grandparents or any other family member.
Of course the more people who become part of your baby’s photo shoot, the more preparations, sometimes more retakes, etc. all of which will add up to the total time required for the photo shoot.
8. It also depends upon your special requirements or level of satisfaction
While you might not be an expert but still some baby photo shoot ideas might have stuck in your mind while going through the portfolio of different photographers.
But since you aren’t a professional, it might take time to explain to your photographer on what exactly you need.
It could also happen that what you need may not be possible for the photographer you have hired because of the limitations of the technical equipment or their experience.
Another similar case is when you don’t like the quality of the photo shoot and you want certain photos to be retaken.
Conclusion
Taking into account all these factors, it makes it very much impossible for any photographer to give you the exact duration of a baby photo shoot.
And while it is possibly true that the more time a baby photo shoot takes, the higher you might be billed, beyond a certain number of hours, this fact will also become invalidated.
This is because your photographer will certainly have other commitments for the day and therefore he probably would not be able to continue with the shoot.
Even though this does not in any case mean that your booking gets cancelled, it is just that it might have to be rescheduled for next day or another day.
But don’t assume this is to happen as well under any circumstances.
Before making a booking with the photographer, discuss all these relevant points so that you are well aware of the ‘Plan A’ and the ‘Plan B’ both.