Andrea contacted the studio at the end of her second trimester to learn about our maternity sessions. Since she and her husband are both in the medical field, she also asked about our COVID precautions. I’m so fortunate that about half of my clients work in some area of medicine/health! When news started coming out about COVID, I got ahead of it and emailed a selected few of my clients who work as pediatricians, OB-GYN’s, infectious disease doctors, ER physicians, and general practitioners. I asked them for advice on what I should do to keep myself and my clients as safe as possible, and they all sent me a list of their recommendations. This was long before the CDC had even come out with anything, and I’m pleased to say that their advice was actually beyond what the CDC recommended. After learning about all our safety procedures, Andrea knew she definitely wanted to book a maternity session with us, and chose the park location for their late September session.
HOW TO BOOK YOUR MATERNITY SESSION (it’s easy!)
We make it really, really easy for our clients. In fact, our clients frequently tell us how pleasantly surprised they were by how easy we make everything. This is intentional! You deserve to be able to enjoy your pregnancy without worrying about anything or dealing with complicated stuff.
Because Andrea had contacted us later in the game, we were already completely booked for weekend dates. We found a weeknight date that worked for her husband’s schedule, and because it was still early on in the fall, the sun was not setting until 7:45 PM. That meant that the session start time was 6:45, which allowed plenty of time for him to finish with work and for them to get there on time.
If you’re also a last minute client stressing about whether you’ll be able to book with us because you waited so long, please know that we often do have weeknights available. A lot of clients will just leave work a bit early to schedule a weekday evening session depending on what time the sun is setting on their session date. I always begin outdoor sessions about one hour before sunset. So, to find out what your session start time would be, just enter into the Google search box: “sunset time on X date in Atlanta”. The results will give the sunset time. From that time, subtract an hour, and that’s the general time for your session start!
Caroline, our studio manager, sent over Andrea’s electronic paperwork to secure her session date in the calendar. After Andrea remitted it, her session was officially locked in! Caroline then scheduled her maternity fitting here in the studio and e-mailed a short list of what she should bring along with her. She also gave her directions to our studio in intown Atlanta. We’re located right on the Beltline very close to Old Fourth Ward and Poncey-Hihglands. We are conveniently located by Ponce City Market, next to two.urban.licks and Bully Boy. There is a free parking lot available (and lots of street parking if our lot happens to be full when you arrive).
WHAT TO EXPECT AT YOUR MATERNITY FITTING
Your maternity fitting will be scheduled to take place 1-2 weeks before your session! I want to make sure you have lots of time to decide what to wear, as well as time to pull together the other outfits for your partner and/or children. You’ll choose up to 2 looks for your maternity session, unless you’re at the mountain location - then you’ll just choose 1. Our mountain location rules (enforced by rangers to protect the flora) no longer allows me to bring up our changing tent.
Your baby bump isn’t likely grow too much in two weeks to not be able to fit in your final choices! Most of our dresses have some stretch to them as well, but there are a few that' don’t. If you fall in love with a dress at your fitting that is close to not fitting and doesn’t have any stretch, you will pick a backup option for it just in case it doesn’t fit you anymore on your session date.
Usage of the studio wardrobe is not required but roughly 95% of our clients do borrow from it! It saves you lots of time on online shopping and returning what you don’t like, and eliminates a lot of stress. Even if you end up not choosing to borrow from the wardrobe, coming in to look through is GREAT for inspiration and to get to know me.
As an added bonus, a LOT of my maternity clients also find what they want to wear for their newborn session when they’re in for their fitting! So many of my client closet pieces pull double duty and can be worn as a maternity or regular dress.
I strongly recommend that you come in to see me beforehand even if you are planning to wear your own clothing. If you are just not able to do that because of logistics (I have tons of out of town clients), let’s schedule a virtual meeting via Zoom or FaceTime instead! Clients who spend some time with me before their session are MUCH more relaxed and start having fun a lot sooner. Why? Because I’m not a total stranger they’ve just met for the first time and they start off the session feeling comfortable since we’ve already broken the ice.
When Andrea and Paul came in for her fitting, they were surprised by the number of options available in the wardrobe. We have a LOT! She had been worried we wouldn’t have options for her as she’s very slim in build. Our studio wardrobe has outfitted women ranging in heights from 4’10” to 6’3” and size 00-16, so if you fall into those ranges, we very likely have something for you! When they arrived, we chatted for a bit about her style preferences and favorite colors, and I started pulling some of our pieces for her. She tried each of them on and Paul assisted by taking an iPhone photo of her in each one so they could review and choose later. While she was trying on pieces, Paul and I chatted and got to know each other, and I walked him through how to dress as well. He had a few questions for me about newborn sessions and how I did those, which I was happy to answer. They had not yet booked a newborn session at this time, since they were still considering whether or not to do that and wanted to see the studio and hear more about how they worked first.
When it comes to making your choices, you don’t have to decide at your maternity fitting! That’s why iPhone photos of you in each dress come in handy. You’ll need to have your final selections sent to me 4 business days before your session date. That allows me to have your options dry cleaned and back in time if another client wears one of your choices in the same week, or to pull your selection and put it aside if I have a session the day before or day of yours.
After looking at all her options and showing her husband, Andrea decided on a pretty teal lace gown that brought out her eyes and the popular “magic” dress - a backless boho dress with a crochet top that somehow looks amazing on very single skin tone and fits a wide range of sizes. It’s a client favorite for a reason!
EFFICIENCY IS THE NAME OF MY GAME
An outdoor maternity session should NOT take 4 hours. That’s a crazy length of time to shoot a regular portrait session without a newborn involved. Overly long sessions are why a lot of first time dads come in assuming they’re going to hate the entire experience and it’s going to be one of those things they have to grit their teeth and get through for the sake of making their wife happy.
NO WAY. That’s not how I operate. I’m incredibly efficient, and I make sessions enjoyable (and sometimes even fun). I will lead you both through the entire experience and literally tell you what to do and when to do it. Your partner will be given direction and be told what to expect next. Dads HATE sitting around not knowing what’s happening or what we’re doing next, and I eliminate that entirely with my direct tell-it-like-it-is (but in a kind way) approach.
My focus, and the heart of my business, is capturing the emotional connection between my subjects. You know that interaction you see in my photographs? It is 100% real and not forced or staged.
I’ll be totally honest: most of my couples can’t get to that natural interaction on their own because MOST people are very camera aware and freeze up a little bit.
So….I’ll get you both positioned just where where you need to be. I’ll tuck back stray hairs and adjust your clothing if necessary ….and proceed to direct you with a simple prompt that spurs your natural interaction and emotion. THAT, my friends, is when the magic for your photographs will begin.
When you choose me as your photographer, you won’t need to be nervous about not knowing what to do. You will never have to think to yourself, “We will never look like we are in love and connected like those other couples on her website .” You will, but it WON’T look like “those other couples”. Why? Your dynamic with your partner is absolutely exclusive to the two of you! Your session pictures SHOULDN’T look like any other maternity session. If that were the case, you’d just have a cookie cutter shoot, and who wants that?!
Your images will be a beautiful and true reflection of your relationship and affection for each other, and highlight the love you have for this brand new baby on the way. Oh, and you’ll also look absolutely stunning. ;)
WHAT TO EXPECT DURING YOUR MATERNITY SESSION
I already mentioned that my maternity sessions aren’t needlessly long. I block off an hour for portrait sessions that don’t involved a newborn, and we will begin one hour before sunset. As such, it’s important to be on time, because while I shoot efficiently, I don’t have the power to keep the sun from setting.
When we start your session, you will likely be feeling a little nervous awkward. Feeling this way is 1000% normal! You can be confident that I will take excellent care of you. I frequently shoot 20+ maternity sessions (studio and outdoor), and I’ve been photographing pregnant moms for over 8 years now - so you are truly in the hands of an expert when it comes to maternity sessions!
Most of my expecting couples start hitting their stride within ten minutes of being in front of my camera. Sometimes the pictures I take at the very beginning of your session will meet my standards and they’ll make it into your proof gallery, but most often they don’t. I intentionally plan for the first bit of your maternity photos to be the warm-up for you! When I can see that you and your partner are beginning to relax, I ramp it up and that’s when I start getting those natural and unforced images for your gallery.
I have my pregnant clients move around as little as possible during maternity sessions! I am acutely cognizant of the fact that you’re pregnant! I know that your back might be aching, your feet might be a bit swollen, and that being pregnant and growing a baby is HARD work. So I refuse drag you all over the place and make you feel like you competed in a triathlon by the time we finish. Instead, I have your partner be the one to jump in and out of the frame.
During your session, if you ever need a break or to sit down for a minute, all you need to do is let me know. We’ll pick right back up when you’re ready to go again, and there is absolutely nothing wrong with you if you need a minute. Your comfort is my priority and at the top of my mind when photographing you.
ANDREA & PAUL’S MATERNITY SESSION
The evening of their September session was warm, beautiful and sunny. When I arrived to the location, I got a text letting me know Andrea and Paul were running a few minutes late to their session. Andrea was a bit flustered when they arrived because of being late and very apologetic, saying she hoped this wasn’t messing everything up. I reassured her that it was totally fine, and because they were already comfortable with me we wouldn’t need very much time to warm up. While I would always prefer for clients to be on time, life (and Atlanta traffic) sometimes happen! All it means is that I will get even more efficient with my shooting and move things a little bit faster to make sure we get what we need in the time we have. Andrea changed into her first dress, and we got started shooting!
I spent some time photographing Andrea solo and having Paul step in and out. The two of them have a very lovey-dovey relationship naturally, so not much direction was needed to get that out of them! We really had a lot of fun and laughter during our time together, and their gallery images are just full of so many sweet moments that really showcase their affection and love for each other. At the end of the session, Andrea and Paul told me how much fun everything was and asked if they could go ahead and reserve a spot for their son’s newborn session after he arrived. I let Caroline know they wanted to proceed with a newborn session, so she sent over the information to them that same day to get them locked in.
If you’re reading this and considering booking a maternity session, congratulations on expecting your baby!!! I know that this is such a special time in your life and you are so excited about everything that is to come. I would absolutely love for you to contact us to chat about your vision and how we can best serve you and your growing family!
Enjoy some of my favorite images from Andrea & Paul’s maternity session at the park !
If you're expecting a baby or already a parent and looking for a newborn, maternity, or family photographer, I would love to work with you to create images that you will love for a lifetime. Watch this video to hear about my philosophy and see how I work in the studio so you can determine if I'm the right fit for you. I can't wait to meet you!
Lily Sophia Photography specializes in newborn, baby, maternity, and family photography in Atlanta, Georgia and surrounding areas.
