Blaise’s 9-month milestone photos by Nashville Family Photographer Dolly DeLong Photography

Nashville Family Photographer, Dolly DeLong shares that you do not need to have a studio to take milestone photos of your baby’s milestones. Learn how to take advantage of being outside during the golden hour to get some keepsake portraits.

Blaise Bear is now 9 months old (these photos are two weeks late, but in my defense, we had an amazing family vacation in Maine when he turned 9 months old!)

Love this sweet little bear of mine!

In all honesty, taking milestone portraits of my own kid is one of the hardest things ever. I have a VERY active baby boy and he refuses to sit still because all he wants to do is explore his surroundings (which is a very good thing I know…but sometimes mama just wants to get some portraits!)

So, for those of you who are reading this and are parents (or photographers) who need some helpful advice in getting some pictures of your little ones:

1. Give yourself 10 MAYBE 15 minutes to capture some portraits (anything above 15-20 minutes…you WILL lose their attention)
2. Figure out the best time to take portraits (just in case you do not have access to a great studio) take advantage of the golden hour (you know, the time of the day where the sun literally makes everyone look like ANGELS!) (that time, for me, is usually an hour before sunset)
3. Have someone directly BEHIND you while you are taking pictures of your little one so that it looks like they are smiling at the camera (works every time)
4. Do not set your expectations high. Say it with me again Mama…do not set your expectations high! Just know that your kid is going to act like…a kid! You may have a mini-meltdown in the middle of the session. They may try to wander off (or crawl away). Don’t be hard on yourself or them. That’s why I say only give yourself up to 15 minutes to quickly take these pictures (if you are doing these yourself)
5. Research your neighborhood, backyard, or front yard (in my case these photos below were taken in our front yard) and see where you can get the best light (AKA do not “research” great lighting situations in the middle of your photo session with your young one…the time is ticking you and need to have already scoped out some places to shoot)

Again, give yourself some grace and just enjoy taking several milestone portraits of your little one! Remember, these are for your keepsake albums or for your journals, or however you want to remember this short period of time! Even if they are crying the entire time, at least get one picture of that moment!

If you are wanting to learn how I take pictures, scroll down for a $50 OFF code of one of my favorite courses of all time (The Shooting and Editing Course by Amy & Jordan Demos)!

Did you enjoy this post? Please share it on Pinterest!

INTERESTED IN IMPROVING YOUR OWN PHOTOGRAPHY? CHECK OUT THIS SHOOTING AND EDITING COURSE BY AMY & JORDAN DEMOS (WHICH HAS DRAMATICALLY IMPROVED MY OWN PHOTOGRAPHY GAME IN THE PAST 3 YEARS) AND RECEIVE $50 OFF THE SHOOTING AND EDITING COURSE WHEN YOU USE THIS LINK

Meet Your Friendly Nashville Family Photographer

Dolly DeLong is a Nashville-based family, elopement, & branding photographer and a business educator & encourager.  Dolly loves serves families, eloping couples, and business owners with her timeless, radiant photography.  She loves capturing the joy and emotion in both digital and film photos.

She also has a heart for serving the larger business community. Dolly shares her knowledge of tools like Pinterest, email marketing, and time management with fellow business owners in an encouraging and supportive way through Pinterest 1:1 training, helpful blog posts, and other resources.

Dolly’s faith and love for her family motivate her to help other business owners find the joy and freedom she’s found in running a successful small business.

Whenever she has a spare moment, she enjoys watching TV (i.e. Survivor), eating way too many sweets, and listening to podcasts while running or walking. To work with Dolly DeLong Photography LLC, please email her at thedollydelong@gmail.com or fill out her contact form here.

(IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN RECEIVING A FREE GIFT TO HELP PREPARE FOR YOUR NEXT FAMILY PHOTOGRAPHY SESSION, CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD)