Newborn portraits with 17-day-old Thea

By lucky coincidence, Lisa was taking part in a medical research trial which required her to regularly monitor her blood pressure during her pregnancy.

February 2020 Update: The above image has just been awarded a Highly Commended Rosette by the Master Photographers Association (MPA). Ray Lowe, Chairman of the MPA, commented, “This is gorgeous… there is absolutely nothing at all I can criticise in that picture. Cocooned beautifully, photographed beautifully… the time and effort and patience that you’ve gone to to get it is absolutely superb and you should be very proud of yourself. Another perfect newborn.”

When it shot up one Sunday, she went to get a second opinion.

It turned out she had preeclampsia, and so little Thea arrived nearly a month early, weighing just 4 lbs 7 oz.

Although no-one would wish for a 16-night stay in hospital – particularly over Christmas and New Year – there was one very good lesson that came out of it: Lisa and Tai realised just how little they needed as new parents.

Clothes, nappies and lots of cuddles were all that mattered, and they had plenty of those.

Whenever Thea needs a little soothing, mum or dad will hold her close and whisper to her.

Dad’s favourite thing to do is read stories to her. He’s already over half way through Jacqueline and The beanstalk – renamed to show Thea that girls can have just as many adventures as boys – and his soothing narration is just the thing to settle her back off to sleep.

Lisa and Tai love animals, so Thea’s nursery will be filled with lots of cute and colourful critters.

The couple brought a couple of their favourite stuffed toys along to Thea’s newborn shoot with me, and as she grows up to be as big and then even bigger than this elephant, these images will show her just how tiny she once was:

Lisa and Tai went to the same school and then crossed paths again several years later.

What started as a catch-up chat turned into something more serious, and the pair’s opposite personalities have balanced each other out well since then.

They can’t wait to see which traits Thea has inherited from each of them. So far, Tai tells me that Thea has strong feelings about what she likes and doesn’t like, which she gets from her mum!

Thea is the first grandchild on Tai’s side of the family. On Lisa’s side, Thea will be the 11th great-grand-daughter to Lisa’s Nan, with another three great-grandchildren on the way this year!

Indeed, 2020 is going to be an exciting year for this family, with Thea’s arrival, a new home to move into (just down the road from me!) and a big trip to the Caribbean to celebrate a family birthday in a few months’ time.

In the meantime, though, Lisa and Tai are perfectly content to continue falling in love with little Thea, with her tiny fingers holding on to theirs as if to show how much she loves them back 🙂

After our shoot, Lisa said:

“Thank you Sarah for an amazing experience and so many amazing photos of our beautiful baby girl. The whole process was very professional from the booking to the consultation before the shoot. Sarah was brilliant on the day and everything ran smoothly. The photo reveal was very emotional as the photos were SO good and we just couldn’t decide on the best ones so have ordered them all :). Thank you again Sarah for capturing such a special time in our lives.”

Lisa, newborn client from Oxford, Oxfordshire

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).