Fresh 48 | Digital Vs. Film
My favorite thing to gift at a baby shower is a newborn photo session.
I love giving my friends and family photos I hope they’ll cherish forever.
I hosted a baby shower for my sister this past weekend and surprised her with a session voucher. I told her she could choose between a Fresh 48 at the hospital or a newborn session at her apartment in Provo. She can also decide whether she wants her images captured on digital or film.
To help her choose, I’m writing two blog posts explaining each option. This one is all about the Fresh 48 — what it is, what it feels like, and the difference between digital and film for this kind of session.
What Is a Fresh 48 Session?
A Fresh 48 session takes place within your baby’s first 48 hours of life, typically in the hospital. It’s not a posed newborn session. It’s documentary, intimate, and full of the raw emotion that fills those first hours together.
The room is quiet and slow. You’re still learning their face. You’re counting fingers and toes. There are hospital blankets, tiny hats, and that clear bassinet beside your bed.
I love capturing:
The hospital bands wrapped around your wrists
The crinkly hospital blanket tucked around your baby
The clear hospital bassinet
Fresh baby skin and wrinkly toes
The way you look at them in those first hours
There is something sacred about those details — the ones that disappear almost as quickly as they arrive.
Digital vs. Film for a Fresh 48
One of the things I love offering my clients is the option to shoot on digital or film.
Digital images are crisp, true-to-life, and perfect for capturing fleeting in-between moments. They allow me to work quickly in unpredictable hospital lighting and ensure we don’t miss a single detail.
Film has a softness and depth that feels nostalgic and timeless. The tones are creamy, things dont have to be perfect or staged, it feels even more documentary and soooo nostalgic.
There isn’t a “right” choice. It simply depends on the feeling you’re drawn to. Some moms love the clarity of digital. Others are drawn to the emotion and texture of film.
In the next post, I’ll share more about newborn sessions at home — a slower, more settled option once you’ve had a few days to rest and recover.
But if you’re drawn to the raw, emotional, fleeting beauty of those first hours… a Fresh 48 might be exactly what you’ll treasure most.
