Last Updated on 01/06/2025 by Armands Sprogis

DIY Maternity Shoot at Home – Ideas and Tips

I want these ideas to be very simple and basic. Nothing too fancy, no fancy lights, no fancy cameras, just a simple understanding of light and some basic camera settings. Everything we talk about will be something you can do at home.

We will need a  camera, daylight and (ideally) a tripod with a remote control to trigger the camera. If you have a simple “point and shoot” camera, then a self-timer will do.

I will talk you through some basic maternity poses, which are always a hit at my studio as well.

Let’s start.

1. Understanding light.

2. Remote control or self-timer and tripod.

In this case, the family had a decent DSLR camera and used a remote control to trigger the shots. This makes the process easier, allowing you to take many photos and have a wider selection. Not all cameras have this feature, though. Another option is the self-timer, but that means a lot of running back and forth to get the perfect shot. We also had a toddler present, which made coordinating everyone and pressing the timer quite tricky.

Your partner can, of course, take the photos, but if they want to be in the pictures too, a remote control is very helpful. If you’re using a point-and-shoot camera, the self-timer is usually your only option.

TIP:
Sit further away from the window. This way light will not be so harsh and overexpose your skin.

In this photo, you can see the remote in his hand, but at least the whole family is in the shot.

3. Watch the background.

Make sure there is not too much clutter. Avoid clothes, chairs, lamps, or other distracting shapes. Aim for as simple a background as possible.

In this example, we did some darker shots in an open-plan living room. To use the light best, I initially placed the kitchen in the background, which was not ideal.

I then noticed a window behind, so I closed the blinds to darken the kitchen area and create this image.

You should avoid photographing right next to a window on a sunny day because the contrast between light and shadow is very strong. One side of your body will be very bright while the other will be very dark. Instead, move slightly away from the curtains and position yourself so the light falls evenly.

4. Clothing.

5. Make a shot list.

This sounds very obvious, but preparation is your best friend. If you are prepared and know in advance what poses you will be photographing, you can decide what clothing you will wear in each image. These are two fewer things for you to worry about on the day. You will be playing with your camera and trying to get things right, so you won’t want to be thinking about your clothes.

Why not take a look on Pinterest for some ideas.

TIP: Camera Settings
In this case, I didn’t want the family to fiddle too much with camera settings or manual functions. If you’re not familiar with how your camera works, here’s my advice for both DSLR and point-and-shoot cameras:

To adjust exposure, I recommend using exposure compensation, which lets you underexpose or overexpose images by up to 2 stops. For most of this shoot, I used -1 (minus one) to keep highlights and create slightly darker images, especially when shooting JPEG. Only backlit images were set to +2 to overexpose the window.

Set the image quality to the highest setting. This ensures you have the maximum amount of data for editing. If you know a bit more about photography, RAW format is great, but for now, stick with simple JPEG.

Put the camera into auto mode. Yes, auto! Modern cameras are quite smart when it comes to exposure and colour temperature.

6. Make-up and Hair.

It may sound obvious, but for many mums-to-be, makeup and hair aren’t at the top of their “to do” list. To make editing easier and to feel happier with your photos, it’s worth applying a little natural makeup and tidying your hair.

This will also help you feel that these photographs truly mark a special occasion.

7. Plan your session around 6-8 weeks before the due date.

Your belly will grow, and you’ll feel heavier each day, often less willing to move around. I usually photograph maternity sessions about eight weeks before the due date. At this stage, the belly looks beautiful but isn’t too large, and mums tend to feel more comfortable trying different poses and ideas.

Ideas on some poses and setups at home.

Here, I wanted to photograph both the child and the whole family together in the bedroom. The toddler loved the camera, so I gave him mine to keep him entertained. Keeping a toddler’s attention is a whole different challenge!

TIP: Take as many photos as you can. As a professional photographer, I tweak everything until I’m happy and then I start shooting. For you, I would recommend that you take more photographs with lots of variations so that you have more choices later. I always say it doesn’t cost you anything to take more images. You will just spend longer choosing the ones you like.

TRY DIFFERENT ANGLES.
Try to photograph from above, too. It’s not easy, but sometimes it can result in some nice images which will show your belly well from an unusual angle.

Play with creating silhouette images.

One of the most popular ideas you can do at home is to create silhouette images. These can feature either the mum-to-be alone, couples or the whole family.

TIP:
This is one of the situations where you’ll want to set your camera’s exposure compensation to +2. This will brighten up the window and create a silhouette effect for you. It’s easiest to take this type of photo when it’s very bright outside.

On the sofa.

There are different poses on a sofa that you can use for maternity photographs. Move the sofa in front of a window for a nicer light, get the whole family on the sofa and cuddle up. Whatever you do, make sure that your bump is very visible. This is the purpose of the session, after all.

TIP:
TIP: If you have lots of space, please step away as far as you can and zoom into your subject. This is called background compression. I always do this during home sessions to avoid unwanted objects and to concentrate on the subjects I am photographing.
In this case, I had to avoid photographing objects on the wall, so I decided to place the camera further away and zoom in on the subjects.