Birth Photography: An investment that lasts a lifetime

One of the most common reservations surrounding hiring a Birth Photographer is that parents-to-be feel uncomfortable allowing a complete stranger access to such an intimate and raw moment in their lives.

It’s no surprise, given my choice of career, that I’m a firm believer in documenting milestones. But as a mother, I can genuinely relate to this hesitation: The birth space is a sacred and private place, marking the beginning of a new chapter in your life. The last thing you want while giving birth, is a camera pointed right in your face (or ummm… somewhere else!), gripped by some chick that keeps calling you by the wrong name!

So here’s my two cents on getting past this road block:

Firstly, make sure you find the right photographer. Obviously their qualifications and experience as a certified Birth Photographer is a huge part of this, but the connection that you have with them is equally important. If you don’t feel comfortable with them during your first meeting (and you should already feel uncomfortable if they don’t offer you a no-obligation, in-person meeting before any photographing happens!), you certainly won’t feel comfortable when you’re at your most vulnerable.

Secondly, if you stop thinking of your Birth Photographer as your Birth Photographer, and instead as your lifetime Family Photographer, it might change your perspective:

A Birth Photographer documents the lead-up to your birth by taking maternity photos; they subtly and delicately document the arrival of your little one, often stepping in as a vital source of support and calm; they capture the unadulterated emotion of your family meeting your baby for the first time; they photograph every small, pink, squishy, adorable detail of your newborn in the comfort of your own home, alongside the stunning, inconspicuous nuances of your parenthood during this fleeting time. They might even photograph your baby's baptism. A year later, they may play witness to your baby turning one. Fast-forward a few more years into the future, and they might even document your leggy toddler becoming a big brother or sister! This has the potential to be a lifetime relationship, every meeting marking a special memory worth documenting.

I’ve been so lucky to have walked this journey with so many of my clients. Witnessing a birth is already miraculously special in itself! But getting to see that child grow up and becoming a sibling, is a gift that one cannot properly put into words… Seeing someone becoming a parent for the first time is breathtaking! But watching them slowly settle into parenthood over an extended period of time is even more splendid. The process of a family actually becoming a family is like watching an artist creating a masterpiece. In the beginning, it’s just a bunch of abstract shapes and shadows - an idea - and as bits and pieces are added, details carefully layered over time, it becomes real. Magical. Whole.

Just as my clients invest in my services, I become invested in them too. I am in awe of every baby bump, elated at each new arrival and ecstatic to be able to have a front-row seat to the beautiful journey of a masterpiece in the making!

Here are just a handful of examples of long-standing clients that I’ve walked a journey with. Click on the photo to see the full story:

Two years later | Andreas

From newborn to today: Three consecutive years of family photos

Four years later: Parents reflect on hiring a birth photographer