I love photography, like love it, love it..  I always have, I am that person willing to thumb through your photo albums and sit through your family vacation videos.  I also know what I like in a photo, what makes my heart sing and what makes me wish I was the one that captured that moment in time.  I didn’t start actually becoming a photographer until later in life (I’m obviously a late bloomer), and I write ‘becoming’ as I feel like I am ever evolving, learning and thus ‘becoming’ who I want/hope to be in my photography adventure.  I like to encourage others to explore their dormant skills and have been blessed with many successes in our classes we have taught.  I don’t shoot a lot of individuals, though I wouldn’t be adverse to it. I just haven’t had the opportunity and I am not sure they would be up for what my idea of a perfect photo would be; I can tell you this, it would not be a posed shot. I do not like posed shots, I like images of people wherein it looks like the photographer has just happened upon that perfect moment, I feel like those are the images that are worthy to be framed and added to the wall. Some shots, if you were a brilliant creative genius you can absolutely make them look like they were instantaneous ‘caught in the moment’ ones, here are two of my favorite shots that look spontaneous but were actually produced ones–there’s this and this.

Now that I will have my very own little individual that will be living with us and who can’t complain about my camera for some time, I have been gathering up piles of inspiration, techniques and of course ideas on how-to to preserve these precious memories. A lot of these baby photography resources extend past baby of course, but I do know that a lot of future photographers don’t start exploring the medium until a baby arrives.  I hope you find these useful!

//BABY PHOTOGRAPHY RESOURCES//

There is no way that I am not going to pull out my film camera and try a few shots (or million). The above images by Taylor Lord are film and you can see how beautifully creamy the tones are. I am so happy that I took Jen Huang’s film photography workshop and now that she has her workshop-in-a -box, you can too! She also has an upcoming workshop that would be well worth the investment! I have found both Elizabeth Messina’s and Jonathan Canlas’s books (both film centric) ,very helpful on my film photography journey.

I have preached about this forum for ages. I am not writing the name because I feel like the name is off-putting for those that are not mom’s or mom’s-to-be but I truly believe every newbie-moderate photographer could benefit from being part of such a supportive community.  I have watched their business evolve and expand exponentially since I joined and they offer some of the best (and most affordable) classes around, their blog has tons of free and valuable advice. They also have some gorgeous presets and actions that have a film feel that are very well done!

If you plan to solely partake in digital, I have already mentioned previously one of my very fave people and baby photographers-Meg Fish. Meg excels at creating beautiful creamy soft tones and is a master with light, lucky for us she is sharing her ‘secrets’, I highly recommend her book, I have the pdf version (instant gratification!) and Meg writes in a simple + clear voice that even a newly minted photographer can easily comprehend.

Post processing skin can always be a challenge, but especially newborn skin and perhaps even new mama skin (I know a little about this one right now, grrr!)  Here are some processing tools that I have tried and would recommend based on ease of use and results:

• VSCO-their presets are tops when trying to get that film look, the bonus is that film look can also be very flattering on the skin!
• Paint the Moon-The photographer that developed these actions has two little girls she often photographs and processes with her actions. She also has great tips on her blog that are very helpful!
• Jinky Art-These are more stylized looks, but people RAVE about this company and it’s worth taking a peek, she offers workshops, actions and an on-line Lightroom processing course.

There are many ideas on how to compile your images, but as you know I prefer simple + clean.  Jennie has created some photo books (based on her Iphone images) of her first year with baby that I am wildly inspired by. She shares her printing source with you and glimpses of how the books have come out. Her daughter is going to be so lucky that her mom had such foresight, taste and talent.

A perennial favorite Creative Live will be hosting an online class ‘Bumps to Babies: Photographing Motherhood’. You can watch it live for free and after that buy the course if you so choose.  It is being co-hosted by Sue Bryce whom I worship/adore (she knows how to make a woman look her most beautiful).

If you are missing my normally scheduled Pinterest inspiration post, please feel free to check out my every growing collection of baby centric inspiration at my Oh, Bebe board!

P.S. If you have a company or service that you think should be added to this please let me know! I am also open to adding any of your favorite baby photography resources here too, so bring them on!

I have had many false starts to explaining my illness/condition/affliction.  I did not want to announce my greatest joy with the grave and heavy news of my rare condition. I did not want to come off as dramatic nor not be able to express what this is properly. I feel like I owe this to the brave women that have gone before me, are suffering with it now or will suffer with it in the future.  It is flippantly described as “severe” morning sickness, but that seems like a day at the beach compared to what I had/have and the consequences of said severe morning sickness (a misnomer if ever there was one). Hyperemesis gravidarum (HG) is a rare condition that effects about 1% of pregnant women, many consider it to be much more but the condition often goes undiagnosed. Charlotte Bronte is said to have died from it, along with her unborn child.  Being that it is the 21st century, you would think we would have more of a handle on it, but we don’t and many women suffer miserably both mentally and physically.  It robs you of all joy and hope and many have had to make the painful decision to terminate much wanted, planned and tried for pregnancies (the only known ‘cure’ for this disease).  It is not just “severe” morning sickness.  I have read via the HG forums that many women have had major organ failure and near death experiences. I did not know that HG existed prior to having it, I just knew that I could not eat anything and movement made me sicker, that is why a car ride across country nearly killed me.  I am not exaggerating.

I had been pregnant for 3 months with my condition undiagnosed. By the time we got to Seattle my first doctor here was not familiar with HG and told me to eat Saltines and drink gingerale and that I should feel much better going into my 2nd trimester. I got worse. I already could not eat without becoming violently ill, but then I had stopped drinking all together because I suffered the same reaction. Even if I had nothing in my stomach I was still sick and my insides felt like they would become my outsides.  I did not feel pregnant, I felt like I had a terminal illness. I laid on the cold tiles of our bathroom floor, trying to sob wildly, but not being able to produce tears. I had migraine headaches that effected my vision and felt like my skull was being cracked open with a hammer. I begged God on more than one occasion to just let me die. I could not live like this. The worse knowledge I had was that this could all go away if I terminated the pregnancy, it was some sick and twisted non-option and I wondered in my delirium if I was being more selfish by ‘sticking it out’, this couldn’t be good for my baby.  My husband lobbied for me to get admitted to a high risk pregnancy specialist practice which you needed a recommendation for, they agreed to meet me and I was immediately put on an IV since I was severely dehydrated, underweight (at 5’7, I was barely over 100 pounds) and my blood pressure was dangerously low, it didn’t help.  They prescribed me the same anti-nausea meds that they give to cancer patients after chemotherapy, again it did not work. We discussed hospital stay, it was not an option for me I could not be in a strange city away from my husband and my beloved pups, I couldn’t.  It was arranged for an IV to be put in at home so I would be hydrated at all times, the anti-nausea medication was administered via needle attached to my stomach and I had to replace the needle every day (myself!). I had one nurse that came to the apartment each week and I had another nurse that checked my vitals every day. I still could not eat and a medical nutritionist was instituted and made the plan of me eating one spoonful of something, anything every two hours. I could not keep the spoonful down. One sleepless night, after being sick for what seemed like hours I came to bed and had severe chest pains.  This was a problem because I have an existing heart condition. I was born with a murmur and then had Rheumatic fever as a kid (how very Victorian of me).  My low blood pressure was not doing my heart any favors.  The next morning, I calmly told my husband, ‘I thought I was going to die last night’, he calmly replied, ‘I did too’.  We wondered if this was worth it, I hadn’t felt pregnant and I was clearly deteriorating more each day and now we had the very real threat of me going into cardiac arrest. We made an appointment to have my heart checked and another to terminate the pregnancy. I sat with the doctor for what seemed like hours discussing the procedure and then I passed out. I would have preferred to have been struck by lightning or have some other force come in and take me away, when I came to I spoke to a battery of doctors and specialists, I wanted to make sure that my baby was indeed healthy and that this condition hadn’t affected her. Every test came back with glowing results, our baby was perfect and it was a girl!  When my husband found out he looked over at me, his now emaciated and very sick wife and said, ‘she’s going to be so beautiful’.

I have always been able to look on the bright side, even in my most darkest of times, but I couldn’t move past this obstacle, no amount of praying and positive thinking helped. My Frenchie became my shadow she still refuses to leave my side, I had to hang on to the idea that this would pass. Now that I knew that she was perfect, a miracle if there ever was one for me I had a fleeting glimmer of hope and I decided to hold on to that as if our lives depended on it, they did.  I would write down every day in a notebook what I was grateful for, it made me feel better, it started with my being grateful for the ability to drink a sip of water.  And then another miracle happened, I started to get better each day, not 100%, but I was slowly able to eat, drink and take a walk. I could sit up, read, make plans for the future. I am grateful for everything right now, the most minute of details feels like an Everest accomplishment. I am not going  to lie to you, I am scared. I haven’t really worked in five months, income that I had counted on, we have gone through our savings, emergency fund and baby fund, the mounting medical bills are so unbelievably astronomical even with insurance it makes me wish we would have kept driving through Seattle on up to Canada. It’s stressful but I have an unwavering belief that everything is going to be okay, that we will figure this out as long as we are healthy, happy and have a roof over our heads. I am so grateful for my little ‘home’ on the internet, your visits and kind words have kept me going and they still do, I feel very, very lucky to be part of this community and hope to continue to be for many moons. Thank you kindly.

P.S. My last check-up on my heart had the cardiologist in awe. He said, (and I quote), “You dodged a bullet.”  My heart rate was that of an athlete-slow and steady, my blood pressure was close to ‘normal’ and there was nothing for concern, we are out of the danger zone. I am now six months pregnant and look 9 and I am most definitely feeling very pregnant!

My memory of February is still achingly fresh in my mind.  While I was on the plane back from the West coast headed to my country house in the woods of North Carolina I decided that I was going to tell my husband that I wanted to stop trying. I needed a break, I was taxed beyond reason and each month that I did not see a positive sign on my pregnancy test after over 24+ months of trying was heart breaking; I could not take another month of disappointment and grief.  Unless you have been there, you can not comprehend the despair, especially if you have been thoroughly checked and feel like you you are just doing it wrong, wondering why it’s not working or happening for you. My husband and I have always discussed the very real possibility that I may not be able to get pregnant, after all I met my husband late in life and thus time was not on my side.  We made a pact that if f I could not get pregnant that we would not seek out fertility treatments nor adoption, but that I would get a miniature animal farm or at the very least another puppy and become a crazy dog lady.  I secretly had no doubt that I would (until time was proving otherwise). I am Latin and besides the Roman Catholic thing being why there are so many babies in our family, I believe Latin women, especially in my family to be extremely fertile at any age. For years, I avoided direct eye contact with the opposite sex, because you just never know, a wrong glance could prove the next immaculate conception. I had heard of an aunt that got pregnant at 54, a cousin once removed getting pregnant with twins (possibly triplets) at 49, so I figured I had time. After over two long years, I had resigned myself to the fact that I also had my father’s genes and maybe they just weren’t as fruitful as mi madre’s side of the family. I came home from the trip and for the sake of not having a rogue pregnancy test staring up at me from my bathroom drawer for the next six months I decided to use it, of course it read negative, it wasn’t a surprise but one last disappointment.

A couple weeks later I realized I should maybe take another test, things were not on time, but I chalked it up to the travel + stress, we were getting ready to move cross country again and at the time we did not know where. I picked up a test took it and left it on the counter, I didn’t want to see the results and get crushed another time.  My husband went into the loo and about 3 seconds later called out, “Hon, you’re pregnant”, my husband is very matter-of-fact.  A few things went through my mind–1) I thought it was cruel to joke around like that and 2) if it were true I wasn’t going to be able to come up with a charming + clever way to let him know, I wanted it to be a surprise.  No worries, as I walked into the bathroom and he held the test with the very clear words ‘pregnant’, I could see he was most definitely surprised. So many emotions took over–elation, fear, shock, the gamut.  I had an uncontrollable urge to lift my fists in the air ala Rocky Balboa and jog around the house in victory.  We had done the seemingly impossible.

And this my friends is how I am announcing that I am pregnant, knocked up, bun in the oven et al!  I am at this point very pregnant, no one would mistake me for having eaten a large lunch type of pregnant.  We know it is a girl, which suits me well, according to everyone that knows (just a tiny coterie of family & friends). We were convinced it was a boy, so we have had to start getting used to the fact that it is a girl and go back to the drawing board on names.  I am getting excited to meet her in December and welcome her to the world.  I am terrified too and my greatest hope is that we raise a healthy, kind, intelligent, brave and creative individual. This story has a part deux that I will share tomorrow as I am going to dedicate this week to baby, please allow me to indulge myself as I have never been known to keep a secret and it feels grand to finally be able to divulge to you my great news!

I have been thinking about this post for a little bit now, how I would present it and how I could make it work; I am not sure that it can but in my highest of hopes I believe it will, but I will need your help. As you all may be  aware of already I have a passionate pinning obsession.  I had pinned the above delicate ring by Erica Weiner, a beauty if ever there was one, it was a re-pin from my friend Maybelle who has fab taste.  About a month later I got an email from the ever creative Hope asking for my mailing address, she had something that she wanted to send to me–a surprise.  I like a surprises, you?  I then received a note in the mail, I would have been thrilled with just a handwritten card (Hope is a talented designer and lettering artist), but inside my note was the ring I had pinned!  Hope wrote that she saw that I had pinned it and had one that she bought in New York at the Erica Weiner store and wasn’t wearing and thought I would like.  I am still in awe of the kindness, the thoughtfulness and generosity. This my friends is what makes me believe in the goodness of people.  This feeling has not gone away, the feeling of complete and utter delight and appreciation and I was hoping that we could all get on board and experience something like I did. Maybe you have seen a fellow pinner that you follow or are one you are friendly with, pin something that you own and are not using or have extra of and would like to pass along? Or maybe you have the desire to make someone’s day by gifting them one of their pins, or a service (ex. say you have an Etsy store of prints and one got pinned) either way would work, all you need to do is choose a person, choose one of their pins and send them an email then send off your parcel!  I am going to be looking for someone today and I was hoping that you would want to join me?  I was thinking the way it could work is if you asked the recipient to ‘pin it forward’ and pass on the kindness you presented to them to another lucky person and hopefully they are so overcome by your gesture that they do exactly that.  I would love to hear if you end up doing this or if you end up being a lucky recipient that receives something. I can attest that there is nothing quite like getting a special surprise delivery in the mail, it doesn’t have to be extravagant, it could be as simple as passing on a book that you just read to someone that has pinned it. I do hope you join in and I am excited to hear the stories of kindness spread far and wide!

Have an amazing weekend!