Atlanta Birth Photographer | The Waterbirth of Brooks at Atlanta Medical Center with Intown Midwifery

The lead up to this birth was an exciting one! Atlanta experienced a wild ice storm, and I was on pins and needles hoping that baby boy would hold off his arrival so that I could make it to the birth. As an Atlanta birth photographer, snow and ice aren't something I have to contend with very often! I had my backup plan of taking MARTA or just walking to the hospital if necessary. The main concern was that his parents would be able to make the trek to the hospital from their home! Baby boy decided to cooperate with all of our hopes, and I got the call the evening of January 29. It was a little icy on the roads to the hospital, but nothing I couldn't handle. 

This couple was a Bradley couple expecting their second child. They were patients of Intown Midwifery, and delivered at Atlanta Medical Center in a waterbirth. When I arrived, mom was laughing and smiling and continued to do so all the way up to transition. Her husband was a wonderful support to her, and it was awesome to watch them labor together. She was a rock star as she managed to work through her contractions and hold off of pushing long enough to finish her antibiotics. Once that IV drip was done, she wasted no time in delivering her sweet boy! Baby Brooks was born at 10:46 PM and was an 8 pound bundle of squishy perfection. 

If you are considering reserving The Birth Session, contact me right away. I meet with all interested couples in my studio for a no obligation consultation for about an hour. Fill out this form here to get started. Birth photography is a personal experience and an investment: be confident in your choice! 

Atlanta Birth Photographer | Kaelen's Waterbirth

This birth was such a special one because it was out of state, and because the couple chose to wait until their baby was born to find out if they had a son or daughter! I love births when the parents don't know because it's so exciting to find out at the end if it's a boy or girl!

I got the call that mom was in labor, and drove 4 hours from Atlanta to Fort Mill, SC to a free standing birth center to photograph this birth. I arrived right after mom and dad did at around 2 PM, and mom was already in the tub laboring. She was in the zone managing her contractions, so I quietly set up and starting taking photos.

This was a Bradley couple and they had also hired a doula to assist them. Dad was super supportive of mom and was in and out of the tub holding her, putting cold washcloths on her head and neck, and just being a strong and silent supporter. I was so impressed with the love and dedication he showed to his wife as they worked hard to deliver their baby. In the births that I have attended, I would say this one was probably one of the most difficult labors I have seen, but this couple rocked it!

Women in labor are so, so, so beautiful to me. They are doing one of the most physically difficult yet most rewarding things a woman can do. They're bringing a new life into the world. As a birth photographer, to be present in the room documenting this process always humbles me. It's such an honor to be invited, and I don't take it for granted.

The contractions were very strong in mom's back, so it was not a comfortable labor for her. Since her water had not broken, baby was taking time to descend. Eventually, mom left the tub to labor outside of it for a while, and her water broke then, finally bringing the baby down. After 4 hours of pushing, mom delivered at 6:30 PM, and found out she had a SON! A beautiful 9 pound 11 ounce baby boy measuring at 21 inches long. The name they chose was Kaelen, which means "Warrior". He's too little to know if he'll live up to the meaning of his name, but his mama certainly was! 

If you are considering reserving The Birth Session, contact me right away. I meet with all interested couples in my studio for a no obligation consultation for about an hour. Fill out this form here to get started. Birth photography is a personal experience and an investment: be confident in your choice! 

Lily Sophia Photography specializes in newborn, baby, maternity, and birth photography in Atlanta, Georgia and surrounding areas.

Atlanta Birth Photographer | Why I hired a birth photographer

I had my first daughter, Lily, in a waterbirth in 2011. It was a wonderful experience, but there are hardly any pictures. Birth photography wasn't really a "thing" here in Atlanta so I didn't know of any photographers offering the service. Plus, I didn't have any photographer friends who could just drop everything and come to my labor and delivery whenever it actually happened. So I decided that I would just set my camera to automatic and have our doula take photos when she could.

Doulas provide support to moms in labor, so I don't have very many good photos of my labor process. I so wish that I did, but my doula supporting me was the priority. I needed my doula to do the job I had hired her to do. If she had been taking photos, she wouldn't have been able to do that. Once our daughter was born, our doula grabbed our camera and did the best she could. We knew she wasn't a professional photographer and didn't have high expectations at all. We have some very sweet photos from the day, and since I'm a professional photographer with editing software I was able to edit the photos. 

When I saw the photos that my doula took for us with my camera, I thought to myself "I'm so happy that I at least have something to look back on and show my daughter someday." I also thought, "Gosh, I wish a professional birth photographer had been an option, because there are so many things and small details about Lily and that day that will fade in my memory." Make no mistake, I am not criticizing our doula! She never presented herself as being a professional photographer of any sort and I didn't have high expectations. Even if she HAD been a professional photographer and doula, she wouldn't have been able to get any more photos since I needed her support so much. 

What your baby looks like minutes after being born is hard to freeze in your mind. They change so quickly, even in the first couple of hours! Since I was recovering from labor and delivery and enjoying my sweet new baby, getting up and taking all of those small detail shots wasn't an option for me. A birth photographer would have been able to capture all of that for me.

I attended my first birth in 2012 as a birth photographer for a dear friend, and I absolutely loved it. I realized that this was something that I wanted to offer, but I just wasn't at a place in my life where I could offer birth photography here in Atlanta due to having a one year old and another on the way. 

Between the births of my daughters, birth photographers became available in Atlanta. I decided to hire one for the birth of our second child, and I'm so, so, so glad I did! Our doula returned for round two and was glad to have the weight of photographing our birth off of her shoulders so she could solely focus on supporting us. Having a separate person dedicated to each role was important to me, because I did not want to risk any precious photo opportunities being missed. Birth cannot be reshot!

I look at the images from Violet's birth and they take me back to those first moments with her. I look at her features frozen in the photographs and can remember exactly how cute her little nose was, her little fingers, her little toes. Even better, I was able to share those photos with my grandmother, my mother, my sister, and my best friends. Looking at them allows them to feel like they were there when Violet entered our lives. I also love the photos of me holding my daughter. A professional knows how to shoot the post birth bonding photos from flattering angles. :) 

Birth photography is my passion! I love nothing more than grabbing my gear bag in the middle of the night to get to a mom in labor. If you're considering birth photography for your birth in the Atlanta area, I would love nothing more than to talk with you more about being your birth photographer!! I've given birth to two children and know exactly what you'll be going through. I know how to respect your space while you're in labor while still getting beautiful images. I know the moments that you're going to want to remember years from now when your baby heads off to college or walks down the aisle, or welcomes their own baby into their arms. I consider it such an honor and privilege to be invited to document birth stories.  Watch this 3 minute film and get an idea of what the experience is like with me as your photographer. 

If you are considering reserving The Birth Session, contact me right away. I meet with all interested couples in my studio for a no obligation consultation for about an hour. Fill out this form here to get started. Birth photography is a personal experience and an investment: be confident in your choice! 

Lily Sophia Photography specializes in newborn, baby, maternity, and birth photography in Atlanta, Georgia and surrounding areas.

Atlanta Birth Photographer | 5 Reasons to Hire a Birth Photographer

One of my fantastic colleagues in the International Association of Professional Birth Photographers wrote an article titled "5 Reasons to Hire a Birth Photographer". I thought it was perfect to share with anyone considering birth photography! If you're looking for a birth photographer in the Atlanta area or just have questions, please contact me! 

As a side note, I'd love it if you'd become a blog follower to keep up with the latest and greatest at Lily Sophia Photography!

Post by Lily Sophia Photography.

Lily Sophia Photography specializes in newborn, baby, maternity, and birth photography in Atlanta, Georgia and surrounding areas.