Newborn photos with 16-day-old Ace

Lumariel and Justin knew each other at school, but it wasn’t until much later – after many years of Facebook messenger chats – that they started dating.

Growing up as Asian-Americans in the same US town meant that they both had a similar background and cultural experiences. But this is where the similarities end.

Lumariel is very emotional, whereas Justin has a steadier temperament. Lumariel tends not to worry about things so much, whereas Justin wakes up and jumps out of bed every time their new arrival, Ace, snorts or sniffles during the night.

Nevertheless there’s one thing that they are both equally passionate about: anime, a Japanese style of animation. Lumariel has always known that she wanted to name after her favourite anime characters. When she shared this with Justin and he agreed, she knew she’d found The One!

Lumariel works as a hairdresser – so no wonder she has such beautiful locks herself! Her line of work means she’s developed a creative eye, and came along with two unique ideas to personalise Ace’s newborn photos.

The first idea was the inclusion of some wintry-coloured leaves, to add a sense of season to the images, as you can see here:

The second idea was related to Lumariel and Justin’s love of anime, and – in particular – the film My Neighbour Totoro. The movie features three distinct anime characters, one small, one medium-sized and one large.

Lumariel and Justin have opted for the Baby’s First Year Package, which includes a newborn, sitter session and first birthday photoshoot.

Lumariel’s idea is to feature newborn Ace as the smallest anime character. Then, at his sitter session, he’ll become the medium-sized one, finishing with Ace dressed as the largest character on his third birthday.

To achieve this, Lumariel’s mum hand-knitted hats for Ace to wear each time, and teddies to represent the other characters in each shot.

For Ace’s newborn shoot, we started with him as the littlest of the characters as you can see here:

I absolutely cannot wait to see Ace again in six months’ time to see how much he’s grown and capture him as the next anime character – but don’t grow up too quickly, little man! 🙂

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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).