# When Is the Best Time to Book a Maternity Photoshoot?
Pregnancy can feel incredibly long while you’re living it, and then somehow, once your baby arrives, it becomes this tiny chapter of your life that already feels a little hazy.
A maternity photoshoot is a way of holding onto some of it. Your changing body, the anticipation, the quiet moments before everything changes — and, if this isn’t your first baby, those last few weeks of your family exactly as it is right now.
But when should you actually book one?
## When is the best time to have maternity photos?
For most pregnancies, I recommend having your maternity session at around **28–34 weeks**.
By this point, your bump is beautifully defined, but you’re hopefully still comfortable enough to walk, move around and enjoy the session without feeling like your baby could make an appearance at any second!
There isn’t one perfect week, though. Every pregnancy and every person is different.
If your bump has appeared early, you might prefer your photographs a little sooner. If you’re still feeling comfortable later in pregnancy, we can absolutely photograph you further along.
The most important thing is that you feel like *you*.
## How far in advance should I book?
Although your actual session won't usually take place until your third trimester, I’d recommend getting in touch **after your 20-week scan, or earlier if you already know you’d like a maternity session**.
My diary can fill several weeks in advance, particularly through spring and summer when we have those gorgeous long evenings.
Booking early also means we can start thinking about where you'd like your photographs taken, what you might wear and the sort of feeling you want your images to have.
Then you can forget about the organising and simply look forward to it.
## What if we book an outdoor session and it rains?
Living in East Yorkshire means we can plan everything perfectly and the weather can still decide to do something completely different.
I keep an eye on the forecast in the days leading up to outdoor sessions and, if the weather really isn't on our side, we'll rearrange.
I'm much more interested in creating beautiful photographs for you than forcing a session to happen in horrible weather just because we put a date in the diary.
Cloud doesn't worry me. A little wind can actually be beautiful. Horizontal Yorkshire rain? Maybe not.
## What time of day is best?
For outdoor maternity photography, **golden hour is my absolute favourite**.
That's the period towards the end of the day when the sun is lower, the light becomes softer and everything gets that warm, hazy quality you see throughout so much of my work.
In summer, this can mean a fairly late session. During autumn and spring, golden hour happens much earlier.
It is completely worth working around the light.
Rather than simply documenting what you looked like while pregnant, I want your photographs to *feel* like something — warm, quiet, nostalgic and a little bit magical.
## Can my partner and children come?
Absolutely.
In fact, I love it when they do.
Maternity photographs don't have to be entirely about standing alone and posing with your bump. Your session can also document this particular version of your family before somebody new joins it.
Little hands on your tummy. Your toddler being completely uninterested in doing what we've asked. Walking together. Cuddles. Your partner making you laugh.
Those imperfect little interactions are often the photographs that end up meaning the most.
And we'll always make time for some photographs of you on your own too.
## What should I wear for maternity photos?
You don't need to dress like somebody else just because you're having maternity photographs taken.
I generally recommend soft, natural colours and fabrics that move beautifully — linen, cotton, knits and flowing dresses all photograph wonderfully outdoors.
Most importantly, choose something you feel genuinely beautiful and comfortable wearing.
Once your session is booked, I'll help you with clothing and styling so you don't have to figure everything out alone.
## What if I feel awkward in front of the camera?
Nearly everybody tells me this.
You don't need to know how to pose and I'm not going to leave you standing in a field wondering what on earth you're supposed to do with your hands.
I'll gently guide you when you need it, but we'll also walk, talk and move. If your partner or children are joining us, I'll encourage interaction rather than expecting everybody to stare at my camera and smile.
The aim isn't perfection.
It's to create photographs that still feel like **your family**.
## Don't wait until you feel completely ready
Pregnancy isn't always the glowing, floaty experience we're sold.
You might feel tired. Your body might feel unfamiliar. You might look at photographs of yourself differently from how everybody else sees you.
You don't have to wait until you suddenly feel completely confident to deserve photographs of this part of your life.
Because one day, the bump will be gone.
The baby you're waiting for will be running around your house.
And these photographs won't just be pictures of how you looked while you were pregnant.
They'll be part of your family's history.
### Maternity Photography in East Yorkshire
I photograph relaxed, natural maternity sessions outdoors across **East Yorkshire and the surrounding villages**, usually during beautiful evening light.
If you're expecting a baby and would love photographs that feel warm, nostalgic and genuinely like you, you can find out more about my maternity sessions or get in touch to reserve a date.
