That first year of a child's life is so precious, and they change so quickly during it, that it's no wonder we can't seem to get enough pictures of our kids during this age. Here are some baby posing ideas to get you through the first year with a memory card filled with cuteness.

Put your child on a bed or blanket (we are partial to white because it doesn’t give color casts and brightens shadows) and have them face the window. Many people take their monthly pictures overhead, but if you have them face the window, you’ll get a nice brightly lit face that will show all of the sweet details of their face and give nice catchlights. When they are a newborn, put them flat on their backs and turn their heads. When they are older, they can do tummy time.

We love sibling photos on a bed because it's easy for almost any age to interact with their sibling that way. When the baby is a newborn, have them facing the light with their head propped up. If the oldest can hold their head, fabulous, otherwise use a pillow. Once they learn to crawl, flip everyone on their bellies to hopefully keep them still a little longer. Ideally, all of your kids would have flat light on their faces, but if you have a bed that has a window to the side like most people, be sure to brighten up those shadows with a selective exposure adjustment in Lightroom*. 

Bath time is an absolute must for this age group. If you have 1990's brown tile and a brown tub like I do, wrap them up in their hooded towel and plop them on the bed or move the bathmat to the floor in good light to get the shot. 

From newborn to toddler, this is such a beautiful way to photograph you with your children. Stand in front of the window and adjust your exposure until you are bright enough. You'll have to be on manual mode on a DSLR and Tenley gives you a cell phone tip for this in the course*. You can snuggle with them on your chest or shoulder, or go face-to-face. 

If you use any of these baby posing ideas, please tag us on instagram. You can find Tenley at @tenleyclark and me at @cristin_more. We are also always following the hashtag #capturingeverydaymagic as well!

*If all of that lighting and editing talk feels like Greek to you, our online photography course for parents to learn to take better pictures of their kids can help! We walk you through all kinds of lighting scenarios inside and out to help you recognize the types of light and make the most out of it. We also teach you editing on both your phone and your desktop to make your photos their very best! You can buy the course below!