Newborn photos of 12-day-old Sienna

There’s an idyllic childhood laying ahead for Sienna. Her parents can’t wait to play outside with her, just as they did when they were kids. Instead of relying on technology to avert boredom, they’ll be opting for more traditional pastimes, like exploring forests, building dens and playing hide-and-seek in the great outdoors.

Happily, they have easy access to canal walks, fields and woodland from their front door, all of which they’ve already made great use of while walking their much-loved dog.

The three-year-old Labrador, Roscoe, hasn’t quite adjusted to Sienna’s arrival yet. Every time Sam and Sophie bring Sienna downstairs in the morning, Roscoe looks up and then away again, as if to say, “Oh, that baby is still here, then.”

When mum and dad are feeding or holding Sienna, Roscoe will gently nudge their knee or elbow until he gets a share of their attention. To try to make up for the new arrival, they’ve been taking Roscoe out on almost constant walks. Happily, this has worked out well for Sienna, who snoozes away in the pram as soon as they get going!

In fact, Mum and dad have been incredibly lucky. Despite being under two weeks’ old, Sienna sleeps through most of the night and has settled into a regular routine already. Sophie can even predict when Sienna will need her nappy changed with an impressive degree of accuracy – she even won a bet during our shoot when Sam and I were both wrongly convinced Sienna needed changing!

Most of all, though, Sienna loves cuddling up with her parents. That’s worked out well, as spending time skin-to-skin with her is their favourite thing to do, too.

Sophie works in a nursery so has a lot of experience with children three months and older, but the newborn phase is all quite new to her. That’s especially the case as Sienna is the first grandchild on her side of the family (Sam’s side already have six!).

Despite having less experience with this age group, Sophie has taken to motherhood smoothly.

“You’re an absolutely amazing mother,” Sam whispers to her during their newborn photoshoot with me.

Sam seems to be settling into fatherhood just as easily. After setting up for each shot of him with Sienna I walk back to pick up my camera.

Every time, as I turn, I notice that he’s planting a gentle kiss on Sienna’s head, rubbing her back to soothe her or whispering in her ear. When she makes one of her little noises, or pulls one of her many expressions while facing him, he copies the expression, or makes a noise back.

That’s how I can tell that these three are going to have a lot of fun: getting to know each other at first, then interacting more and more, and before you know it, enjoying all those outdoor adventures together. 🙂

If you’re interested in newborn portraits or family photography in and around 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).