Heather contacted the studio right away when she found out she was pregnant because she wanted to make sure she could get a spot. As a long term client, she knows how far in advance we book sessions! Heather enrolled in our popular First Year Collection which includes newborn, sitting milestone, and First Birthday sessions, and added a maternity session as well. Our First Year Collection program is limited to a certain number of babies each year, so be sure to ask about whether we still have room if you’re interested in preserving the first year of your baby’s life in beautiful photographs!
I first worked with Heather and Jason throughout the first year of their older daughter’s life, so she was already super familiar with how everything works and was SUPER excited to work with me again… and trust me, the feeling was mutual! I have a LOT of returning clients each year and it’s so much fun to work with them again and again as their families and children grow.
You can see Heather and Jason’s first maternity session here, their newborn session here, their daughter’s six month old milestone session at the park here, and their daughter’s First Birthday session here. I’m SO excited to photograph another year of beautiful memories with their second daughter!
BOOKING YOUR MATERNITY SESSION
We make the booking process SUPER easy and stress-free for our clients. Clients often tell us how pleasantly surprised they were by how seamless the experience is, not to mention that we take care of all complicated stuff so you can enjoy your pregnancy without a worry.
Because Heather had contacted us so early in her pregnancy, she essentially had her pick of weekend dates, and we coordinated add on hair and makeup services for her as well.
If you’ve waited until the eleventh hour to book a maternity session and are now wondering about whether you’ll be able to book with us, please know that we often sometimes have weeknights available. A lot of clients will just leave work early for an outdoor session on a weekday evening. I always begin outdoor sessions about one hour before sunset. So, to find out what your session start time would be for any date, just enter into the Google search box: “sunset time on X date in Atlanta” and get results for when the sunset is. From that time subtract an hour of so to figure out a good starting point for your shoot with me outdoors.
Caroline, our studio manager, sent over Heather’s electronic paperwork to secure her enrollment in our First Year Collection along with her maternity session date in our studio calendar. After Heather remitted everything, she 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 along with directions to our intown Atlanta studio. 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 available with virtual parking passes issued after 4 PM and on weekends.
YOUR MATERNITY FITTING | WHAT TO EXPECT
Your maternity fitting will be scheduled to happen approximately 1-2 weeks before your session date! I want to make sure you have plenty of time to make decisions on what everyone is wearing. You’ll choose up to 2 looks for your maternity session, unless you’re at the mountain location - then you’ll choose 1. Our mountain location rules (which are strictly enforced by rangers to protect the flora) does not allow me to bring up the studio changing tent and I am limited to my camera bag only.
Your belly is highly unlikely to grow to the point you can’t your final choices in just two weeks! Additionally, lot of our studio pieces have a bit of 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 barely fitting and doesn’t have ANY stretch, I will have you choose a backup option for it juuuuuuuuust in case it doesn’t fit anymore at your session.
You are NOT required to borrow from the studio wardrobe for your session! Roughly 95% of our clients do borrow from it and love having it available to them! It saves you a ton of time and stress in avoiding online shopping and having to return what you don’t like. 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 a bit before stepping in front of my camera.
As an added plus, so many of my clients also find what they want to wear for their newborn session when they’re in for their maternity fitting! The majority of my studio client pieces pull double duty and can be worn as a maternity OR regular session dress.
I highly encourage you to come in to the studio to see me before your session even if you are planning to wear your own clothing. If you aren’t 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 when I’m not a total stranger they’ve just met for the first time.
When Heather came in for her fitting, I already had a ton of options pulled for her to try on. Since I’ve worked with her so many times previously. I knew what would work for her skin tone and her preferences, so it was easy to do. I’m always adding to the wardrobe, so even though Heather had already done four previous sessions - there were some things she hadn’t yet seen!
Our studio wardrobe has been used by clients ranging in heights from 4’10” to 6’3” and sizes 00-16, so if you fall into those ranges, we probably have something that will work for you! Heather tried dresses on and I assisted by taking an iPhone photo of her in each one so she could review with her husband and choose later. While she was trying on pieces, we chatted and got caught up on life.
When it comes to making your final selections, you don’t have to make a decision right then and there. That’s why iPhone photos of you in each dress come in handy! You’ll send photos of your final selections to me at least 4 business days before your session date. That lead time allows your options to be dry cleaned and back in time if another client wears one of your choices before you.
After looking at all her options and getting her husband’s input, Heather decided on a beautiful off the shoulder boho blush pink dress that looked amazing with her skin tone and eye color. We also looked through a few dresses from the children’s wardrobe for Ava, and she chose a sweet off white eyelet dress that looked perfect with her dress!
EFFICIENCY IS THE KEY TO SUCCESSFUL AND FUN SESSIONS
An outdoor session should absolutely 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 stressful and are not enjoyable….the exact opposite of what I want for my clients!
I’m incredibly efficient, and I make sessions enjoyable (and sometimes even fun). I will lead you through the entire experience. I will instruct you on what to do with your hands and your legs, and physically demonstrate it for you when needed. 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 but kind tell-it-like-it-is approach. If you have kids involved, we’ll be working around their moods and interest and giving them some fun games to play with you that will produce beautiful photos of your connection!
My focus, and the heart of my business, is capturing the emotional connection between my subjects. If you were drawn to the interaction you see in my photographs, you should know that YES, that’s 100% real and not forced or staged.
BUT.
And there is a but. Most of my clients can’t get to that natural interaction on their own in the beginning because MOST people are very camera conscious and tend to freeze up like a deer in headlights.
No need to worry though! I’ll get everyone positioned, and tuck back stray hairs /adjust clothing if needed ….and give you a simple and easy to understand prompt. That prompt will spur your natural interaction and THAT is where the magic for your photographs begins.
When you choose me as your photographer, you don’t need to be nervous about not knowing what to do, where to look, if you should smile or not, or if your husband looks like a dork.
Your images will be a true reflection of your relationship and affection for each other. They’ll beautifully highlight the love you have for this brand new baby on the way. Oh, and you’ll also look absolutely stunning…and your husband will NOT look like a dork. ;)
YOUR MATERNITY SESSION | WHAT TO EXPECT
I already mentioned that my maternity sessions aren’t unnecessarily long. I block off 1 hour for outdoor portrait sessions and we will begin one hour before sunset. It’s SUPER important to be on time, because while I shoot efficiently, I cannot keep the sun from setting.
When we get started and the camera is out and pointing at you, you will probably be feeling nervous and awkward. Let me assure you that this is 1000% normal! Let me also reassure you that I will take excellent care of you. I frequently shoot 20+ maternity sessions (studio and outdoor) each month, year round. Additionally, I’ve been photographing pregnant moms for almost 9 years now - so you are in the hands of a maternity session expert!
Most of my clients are feeling much more comfortable in front of the camera within ten minutes. I call those first few minutes the warm-up, and get you used to it! Sometimes the photos I take at the very beginning of your session will meet my standards and they’ll make it into your proof gallery, but most of the time they don’t because they just don’t compare to the ones taken after you’re comfortable!
I direct my pregnant clients in such a way that moves them around as little as possible during their session. Your back may be aching, your feet a bit swollen, and growing a baby is HARD work! So I will not drag you all over the place. The goal here is not to make you feel like you barely survived a step aerobics class with Richard Simmons by the time we finish.
If you ever need a break or to sit down for a minute at any point, all you need to do is let me know. We’ll resume right back where we left off when you’re ready to go again, and there is absolutely nothing wrong with you if you need break. Your comfort is my top priority when photographing you.
HEATHER & JASON’S MATERNITY SESSION
The evening of their early spring session was beautiful and sunny and a tiny bit cold. We really lucked out with some gorgeous blooms at the park as well! I can’t predict when the flowers at the park location will bloom because it’s different every year. Heather changed into her dress, got Ava dressed, and we got started shooting!
I spent some time photographing Heather solo and having Jason and Ava step in and out. I made sure to get mother and daughter images with just Heather and Ava, as well as some couples photos of Heather and Jason. Ava was interested in participating for about the first five minutes, and then not so much. This is pretty normal and I also plan my sessions around this fact. My immediate goal when a toddler is involved is to get ALL the important images with them involved FIRST. That way they’re done and they can happily play close by while we finish up with just mom and dad. And this is exactly what happened…. Ava was busy playing with leaves and sticks close by and within sight and stayed happy and occupied.
We had a great time during their session, and their gallery images are just full of so many sweet moments. They’ve since welcomed baby girl #2 into the family, and I can’t wait to share her newborn session on the blog!
If you’re reading this and considering booking a maternity session, a huge 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 Heather, Jason & Ava’s family 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.
