[Updated Lunar New Year 2023] – This blog is one of my most popular ones at all times, attracting readers from across the world. Baby’s 100 Days photo session is what accidentally made me a photographer. You can hear the story from my interview with Bridgewater Lifestyle. It also taught me that a good family photographer is more than just taking good photos – it is the quality to have empathy and show genuine interest to help families capture those precious moments.
100 Days Baby Milestone is celebrated by many cultures. In Chinese culture, 100 Days is an important milestone for the baby because 100 days of birth celebration represents the wish that the baby will live 100 years and reaches longevity. Usually, relatives and friends will get together for a big banquet and send gifts for the baby, similar to baby showers in Western culture. Traditionally, the baby will wear a Longevity Lock on the neck and wearsomething redfor this special occasion. Some also wearspecial hats, bracelets, and anklets. However, in modern days, many parents choose not to go with traditional looks. 100 Days portraits have been widely westernized in styles.
The age stage of 100 days presents some level of challenges for the photographers. Babies are very alert so they are not as easy to be posed as newborns. Their attention spans are very short, get tired easily, might have acid reflux, and could be very grumpy at times. They cannot sit yet and their neck bonesare still very soft. Some might be able to do brief moments of belly time but some still cannot. So the posing choices are very limited.
I always try to create several themes for the babies and provide different outfits, along with various shooting angles, details shoots, etc. to help make the session fuller and richer in content. I also always encourage parents and siblings to be in the photos with the babies as well.
In 2017, I started to include what I call “2D Floor Art” into 100 Days sessions. The floor art photography concept is believed to be originated from Adele Enersen. It is a style involving the creation of a theme on the floor and posing the subjects along with the theme to tell a story. I was fortunate enough to learn from some of the industry leaders in this area such as Angela Forker of Precious Baby Photography. My theme design often involved the season sessions taken and parents’ hobbies/interests.Now the floor concept has been expanded to the utilization of props that allow a bird-view angle shoot as well.
In addition, I also sourced special props suitable for the safe posing of babies in this milestone stage for more interesting theme creation.
100 Days falls under the 3 & 4 Month baby milestone stage. If you don’t celebrate 100 Days, you can always consider a 3 & 4 month milestone photoshoot.
Ready to book 100 Days or 3 & 4 Month baby milestone pictures with me? Contact me now!
