I always knew I wanted to take a series of photos of my child their first year, to document their growth… babies change so fast, I figured it would be a fun way to remember that stage of their lives.
We got pregnant with Connor, and I started making plans for his monthly photo shoots. But, those plans were derailed when he decided to arrive a little too early! Because he would spend the first several months of his life in the NICU, I had to get extra creative – so, the Monkey Series was born! Using a stuffed monkey that we could take with us to the hospital (which was nearly as big as he was in the beginning), I attempted to capture his rapid growth during his first 12 months:
As you can see, he changed A LOT over the course of that first year! To give you even more perspective of his amazing growth, he indulged me recently in shooting a couple more photos with his favorite stuffed monkey…
I had a very rough time, emotionally, recovering from our NICU experience. Looking over the series of photos I had taken of Connor really helped me to appreciate just how far our little miracle had come, and put everything into perspective for me – that if he could overcome so much, I would be able to heal from the anguish I was feeling. This series of photos is something I will always treasure!
This photo series has also helped family and friends appreciate his journey as well… especially those who weren’t with us in those early days. Sometimes it’s hard for people to fathom just how small 2 lbs. 6 oz. can be, but when you give them something to compare it to (a familiar object), it becomes much easier to comprehend.
Wondering how you could go about creating your own?
Here are 13 fun and creative ideas for baby photo series that we’ve found for you:
- Erica took pictures of her little guy wearing the same outfit, and watched him outgrow it.
- Nicole placed Eleanor and August in the same Eames rocking chair each month for their photos.
- Becka took photos of her son while holding him in the same pose and location for the first six months.
- Jade posed her twins in front of a chalkboard wall labeled with their monthly age, in the same chair for their first year.
- Sam videoed his son, Indigo, every day for the first year, and then edited it down to one second for each day to make this super fun video.
- Sherry & John used fun colored fabric as the background and photoshopped monthly labels to Clara’s white shirt each week for her first year, then monthly until she turned 3.
- Jen places her son in front of a chalkboard wall, notes all of his latest fun developments on the wall, and then captures all of the detail in monthly photos.
- Reichel took a photo from each week of Arden’s life, and turned it into this fun photo book.
- Ashley Ann laid her baby girl on top of an oversized office calendar, capturing both the actual date and her daughter’s growth.
- Julia used the same backdrop and monthly label stickers to photograph her son for his first year.
- Tabitha’s son was captured each month sitting in the same chair with the same stuffed animal.
- Julie photographed her son with fun felt letters over his head, spelling out his age.
- Johanna made an adorable baby book for Mia, using close-up head shots, and journaling for the month on the opposite page.
Now, I want to throw a huge disclaimer on this idea, before those of you who aren’t able to start from the very beginning of capturing your baby, get discouraged and think this idea is not for you… It’s never too late to start!
These are photos that my sister took of my niece, Ally, during her first year, using monthly label stickers. She only took a photo for 5 of her first 12 months, but the end result is still adorable – she’s still able to see just how much Ally changed over the course of the year.
So, whether your little one is 3 weeks old, 7 months old, or 2 years old… begin taking a series of similar photos now. I promise you won’t regret it, and years from now, you will appreciate the effort you made to capture them at these important stages, especially when you consider their significant NICU journeys.
