Sitter photos with 6-month-old Avery and his family

“It’s like I put out an advert for the perfect baby and Avery got the job,” Matt tells me, “He’s so chilled out and easy going, and I’ve loved getting to know him.”

I last saw Matt and Holly at their newborn photoshoot with me when Avery was just 9 days old. A LOT has changed since then: Avery is much bigger, he’s sitting up confidently and he’s very interested in everything around him.

“Most of all we’re starting to see his character form,” Holly says, “and he’s really cheeky – like his dad!”

Matt and Holly have taken advantage of shared parental leave. Holly has taken the first six months of Avery’s life as maternity leave, and now it’s Matt’s turn for extended paternity leave. He’s getting to spend the next six months of his life being a full-time daddy to this little sweetheart, and it’s everything Matt has dreamed of and more – you can read just how much Matt wanted to be a dad here.

For Holly, the decision to have a baby was more complicated. Holly works in the hospitality and catering sector, an industry with notoriously long and antisocial working hours. She rose through the ranks quickly, putting in the time and effort to reap the rewards. But now, while she’s enjoyed the mental challenge of returning to work managing multiple multi-million-pound contracts, come 4:30pm there’s only one thing on her mind: getting back home to see Avery and Matt.

That’s because so much has changed for her. She no longer cares about things like shopping for bags and shoes. She only wants to spend money on Avery.

“I have enough,” she says, “I’d much rather spend my money on things for him.”

It’s certainly the case that Avery has got a lot of treats in-store for his first Christmas. His grandparents have gone a bit crazy and mum may have got one or two things, too…

And while dad pretends to be more stingy, he does let on that he may have bought a bright red fire truck for Avery to sit on. I’m sure that Avery will get a LOT of fun out of it. But I think the happiest person in the room will be his dad, who will enjoy every minute of seeing Avery zoom back and forth.

Because not only did Matt and Holly get the perfect baby in Avery, but Avery lucked out too: he got the perfect parents 🙂

After our shoot, Holly said:

“I cannot recommend Sarah enough, her photos of our little boy are truly beautiful, she was absolutely amazing with him and the photos are evidence of this. She is also really good at getting the best from you too ( I’m not great with having my photo taken) it all felt very natural and we had a lovely day with our little boy.”

Holly, Family Photos client from Collier Row, Essex

If you’re interested in family photography in Bicester, Oxfordshire, please get in contact.

Sarah Plater LMPA is an award-winning qualified, certified professional newborn and family portrait photographer based in Bicester, Oxfordshire. She is the Master Photographers Association Newborn Photographer of the Year 2019 for the Central Region (covering Oxfordshire, Northamptonshire, Cambridgeshire, Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire and Hertfordshire).