Newborn Photography as a Baby Shower Gift

Yesterday’s newborn shoot came in the form of a gift.  Two grandmothers conspired to give a newborn photography session as their baby shower gift for the new mom.  Lucky for me Beverly Hall Photography was their choice!

Are baby shower’s still popular you might ask?  Absolutely!  In fact baby showers have been around for hundreds of years and show no signs of losing their fanbase.  Through the years, however, the rules and names of the event have changed depending on the culture and the era.  For example, in Victorian England where the notion of ‘prim and proper’ ruled the day, the practiced etiquette was to keep one’s pregnancy a secret.  Aided of course by the voluminous crinolines and petticoats of the day, it was easy for an expectant mother to frequently make it through her entire pregnancy unnoticed.

Nevertheless, gossip and superstitions would get the best of people and speculation as to whom may or not be pregnant was a popular topic at dinner parties.  Little clues like an extra teaspoon being included with a young lady’s afternoon tea could set off speculation.  Finally though, once the mother had given birth the friends of the mother would then hold tea parties to celebrate and all would be well again.

As for America, the modern baby shower took shape during the post-war period as the baby boomers got down to the business of having children.  The old habits of waiting for the baby to be born were cast aside as gift-giving took center stage.  With so many young, low-income families eager for any help they could get in shouldering the expense of starting a family, gift-giving was taken to a whole new level.  Along with weddings it was during this period that designating a ‘registry’ from where to purchase gifts became popular.

Which brings me back to my two wonderful grandmothers and the star of our show, Alahni.  Our little newborn was an amazing subject throughout the photo shoot and there’s nothing like having a couple of extra hands throughout the session.  With our new mom on hand and our little newborn we had a room full of girls!  I suppose one could say we had our own very little ‘baby shower’ part two!