I’ve been photographing this family for several years now – from family photos, to newborn, to extended family sessions, and now maternity! This mama wasn’t sure if she was the “maternity session” type, but wanted to give it a go since this is their last little one. I understood her hesitation. For starters, even though pregnancy is a beautiful season, we as women are so critical over how we look (just in general!), but especially when we are pregnant and gaining a pound a week! I also was self conscious during that time, but I knew knew knew that I would regret not getting that season captured.

The other thing is, some maternity photos can feel very staged and cutesy, but my approach to them always heirs on the romantic side. It’s also what I was looking for in my own maternity photographer. These photos SHOULD be romantic…I mean how do you think that baby started growing in there in the first place? I get it though, when we think pregnancy most of the time, we recall what we felt physically – nausea, swollen ankles, weight gain and stretching. However, what I’m looking to tap into is what we felt emotionally – joy, hope and anticipation. Think of the gift this will be for your children one day. They get to see what their mother looked like while they were growing inside her and through that, feel the emotions she felt. I wish I had photos like that of my own mother to pour over.

So mamas, don’t just think of these photos as pretty pictures for your wall and frames, they are so much more than that. They are heirlooms and gifts that will be enjoyed 15, 30, 60 years from now.