A Fresh 48 Hospital Newborn Session at Albany Med - Welcome Baby Oliver!

World, meet our newest Baby Planner: Oliver Cody.

This sweet baby boy arrived a few weeks ago and I was lucky enough to be invited to the hospital to capture him at only two days old during his Fresh 48 hospital newborn session at Albany Medical Center. I always love walking into these rooms to watch a new mommy & daddy cuddle their baby that only came into the world days (or sometimes hours!) ago. It really is such a magical time, and it’s always an honor to be trusted to capture these moments for the families that I work with.

Oliver is already so, so loved. All of his grandparents were at the hospital, eager to hold him and shower him in hugs, kisses, and cuddles. Just look at those proud grandparent smiles!

This baby boy had really big feet! I’m so glad we got a photo of these little stretching toes so that they can always remember what his skinny baby feet looked like! In a few months they’ll be plump and round, but for now they are the cutest little newborn feet I’ve ever seen.

Outfit change! All bundled up in his “Hello” outfit and ready to take on the world!

Right outside their hospital room was the landing pad for the medical helicopters. We could hear the whirring of the helicopters during the session, and it was so cute when Oliver looked right up at the roof as if he knew it was there, too!

Welcome Teagan Rylee | A Fresh 48 Session at Saratoga Hospital | Saratoga Springs Newborn Photographer

Do you remember the day you met your sibling for the first time?  Do you remember walking into the hospital room, running over to your mother, and peering at that tiny bundle in her arms?  

One of my latest Fresh 48 clients told me right away that they wanted to capture the moment their oldest two daughters met their baby sister for the first time.  They wanted to see their reactions, watch the three girls together, and relive those moments from the day their family became 5 for the rest of their lives.

And you know what?  It was pure magic that unfolded in that hospital room at Saratoga Hospital for this Fresh 48 newborn session.  

These big sisters were so in love with their new sister, Teagan Rylee.  They couldn't give her enough hugs and kisses, loving on her from Day 1.  They wanted to know everything about their new baby -- why is she sleeping?  Where are her fingers?  What's that bracelet for?  What color is her hair?  These girls soaked it all up, and it was such a beautiful moment!

I am always so grateful to be invited into a family's life to capture the moments they welcome their new baby to their family.  I love just stepping back and taking it all in.  

The bassinet is one of my favorite things in a postpartum hospital room.  It so classically tells the story of your baby's arrival, and of so many babies around the world.  It's the first bed your baby will sleep in, and those flannel receiving blankets with the pink and blue stripes are the perfect accent to show the beginning of your baby's story in the hospital.  The transparent walls of the bassinet are perfect to let in lots of light while framing your perfect little bundle of joy just so, and the information tags with name & weight are just another little part of your story.  

Of course these proud big sisters wanted to help take care of their new baby, and I'm sure the oldest will remember helping with that first diaper change as she sees these images in their album years from now. 

Like all little/middle sisters, it took her awhile to warm up to her new baby, but once she decided that she was interested in this tiny little bundle, we couldn't tear her away from the bassinet!  She proudly wore her "Big Sister" sticker that the nurses dropped off during their session, and even wanted to share one with the baby.

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Did you know that we only take on 2 Fresh 48 sessions each month to give our clients the time & attention that they deserve while being "on call" for their baby's arrival?  We're now booking Fresh 48 sessions through March of 2018, and I would love to welcome your baby with your family!  Click to read more about these unique hospital sessions.

A Timeless Fresh 48 Hospital Newborn Session: Addison Olivia

This is the Fresh 48 hospital newborn session that spanned four states.  

No, really!  FOUR STATES.  Let me explain...  It started in Massachusetts, when I left my then-home, driving all the way up to Lebanon, New Hampshire to meet this sweet little family at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center.  They drove to the hospital all the way from Rutland, Vermont to deliver their baby girl.  After their session, I drove down to Saratoga Springs, New York to sign papers with my husband and celebrate the purchase our first home!  It was a busy, busy day and so full of celebration.  

I am excited to finally share this baby girl's session on the blog today!  With everything that has been going on with moving our lives and my business to a new state, I can't even believe that it has taken this long to blog this sweet girl's session.  Many apologies for the delay, but here she is.

Beautiful, perfect, tiny little Addison Olivia.

I simply adored this family.  They were the absolute sweetest, welcoming me into their lives and inviting me into their hospital room for a newborn session to celebrate their baby girl's arrival.  We chatted, laughed, snuggled up with the baby, and created so many beautiful memories together.  

This session was so important to them, and they truly wanted to capture Addison's arrival into their lives by documenting these moments and preserving them with keepsakes for their family to pass down to her one day.  

It really stuck with me when they told me that they opted not to receive a 3D ultrasound because they wanted to save some element of surprise for her arrival.  They knew her gender, they knew her exact due date, and they knew her name.  But they wanted to get to know her and see what she looked like face-to-face, rather than with a 3D ultrasound.  So they asked me to join them for a Fresh 48 session at the hospital to capture those moments when they got to know their little girl for the first time.  I just love watching them get to know their daughter & sister, memorizing every detail and soaking up her newness.   Welcome to your family, Addison.

Welcoming new life is such a magical experience, and watching big sister Hailey with her baby sister was just that.  Pure magic.  Hailey's mom asked her to sing a lullaby to her sister, and she stood over her bassinet and let the soft melody wash over everyone in the room.  We were all completely mesmerized by the moment that unfolded between these two sisters. 

One of the things that I love doing while editing my Fresh 48 sessions is editing a handful of photos in black & white.  These sessions are filled with so many emotions, and sometimes color can compete with the emotions in your photographs.  When you convert the image to a clean B&W, all of the focus is on the powerful emotion, the story, the love.