© Spellbound Images by Wendy - All Rights Reserved
There are so many names for Maternity Sessions, including but not limited to Expecting Session, Belly Sessions, Madonna Sessions and Pregnancy Sessions. Here's a little insight on what to remember when photographing a pregnant woman.
First of all remember that most expecting sessions are done during the 6th to 8th month of pregnancy, and mom isn't feeling all that wonderful. She's normally carrying around 30 extra pounds or so, her ankles are swollen, she's uncomfortable, and can be dehydrated most of the time. That's not to say she isn't excited about her new bundle of joy... she's just at that point where she cant wait for baby to get here! Not to mention she is ready to get back to her normal self (if there is a normal self after bearing children).
I try to make mommy as comfortable as I can, with as little getting up and down as possible. I try to start my expecting sessions with mommy standing. We do as many standing poses as we can, and I always ask mom if there is anything she has seen that she would like to try. If it's a standing pose we try to do it at this time. After we've exhausted the standing poses (and usually mommy) we do the seated or laying down poses which gets mom off her feet. Sometimes I do high key and low key portraits of my expecting women, but most often I just do low key. Low key is normally done on a black backdrop. This is important as we all know black is very slenderizing. Dramatic lighting helps shadow part of the face and body which enhances mommy and makes her look her very best. I also use a wrap (whether black or white depending on the backdrop) so the upper body is wrapped, and then the lower body is wrapped, exposing the mid section. After all these portraits are all about the baby belly!
I make my pregnancy sessions as quick as possible, generally 45 minutes to an hour. I make sure I have bottled water on hand and also play soft music. If I decide to change backdrops that gives mommy a chance to relax in the middle of the session. If daddy is involved... all the better for helping mommy get up and down. If not, I always make sure I lend a hand when she has to get up, sit down, or lay down.
I always use props that are geared towards mother and child. If we know what mommy is expecting we use ribbon (pink or blue). If we know what babies name will be we use blocks to spell out their name. If we don't have a name yet we use blocks to spell out Baby, Baby Boy, or Baby Girl. We often use flowers, because flowers depict the feminine, which represents women and femininity.
When editing a maternity session I only try to soften a bit, and remove blemishes. Some images are made into classic black and whites, and sometimes a border is added, but that's about it. Natural and beautiful... just like mommy!
Love, Laughs & Photographs,
Wendy
All images captured with the Olympus E500 on Lexar digital media.
