Birth Photography is on the rise in Canada!

People will spend thousands of dollars to have their Wedding Day documented and no one questions why.  Why then wouldn’t you want to photograph another important day in the couples life?  The birth of your baby?    Birth Photography is on the rise and couples are now having the birth of their children photographed.   In the United States and elsewhere around the world people have been doing this for several years.  Birth Photography has been in the Vancouver area for 3-4 years and its popularity is now spreading throughout Canada…and for good reason!

I had children several years ago, when the idea of a photographer in the labor room was never even heard of.  When I was born, fathers were not even present in the delivery room.    Birth practices have changed over the last 50 years or so.  Birth was always something that was never discussed and the unknown made people fear birth.

I remember going to the hospital to give birth and was told to take a sleeping pill that they didn’t call it labour for nothing and I needed my rest.  My husband was sent home to get rest.  I ended up delivering my first child before my husband would have left the parking lot.    My second child was almost the same scenario except they had him ‘go get a gown on’ before coming into the delivery room and he missed the 2^nd birth also.

Everything happened so fast and was a blur!  I remember the excitement of holding my newborns in my arms, but I honestly cannot remember anything else.  I don’t remember them looking up into my face or if I counted their fingers and toes.  There was no such thing as the father cutting the umbelico cord or catching the baby.   I don’t even remember the nurses weighing my newborns or measuring them.   All I remember is how frantic the nurses were as they were caught off guard with my quick deliveries.

I think it is such a wonderful thing that parents are having the birth of their babies documented as they are born.  Each birth is a wonderful experience.  To be able to look at a photo album and see the support the mother was given during labor, the room you delivered in, your baby opening their eyes for the first time, the reaction of mom and dad as they seen what sex you were, the details of the newborn exam,  your first cry, falling soundly asleep on your mothers chest, your father so tenderly picking you up and cuddling you for the first time, your first family photo, your first feeding, your first bath etc.    One of the most important days of my life- when I became a mother is lost to faded memories.

Birth Photography has changed that for this generation of mothers.  They can soak up every little detail of their new baby without having to worry about the photos being missed.  Many mothers are not even aware how supportive their husbands are while bringing their baby earthside.  What a treasure to have dad also in the photos to share in the support and excitement during the birth of your child.  Your child’s birth story captured.  These photos are priceless and can never be redone.  Photos you can share with your child to show how much you loved them and gave your all for them.  Photos that say “We did it!”

I belong to a group of Birth Photographers from around the world.  Here is a video they put together,  to show what birth photography is about.  It is called “Hold Her Hand Not the Camera”.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=61SSzjU7BMg

Here is another of Professional Birth Photography

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wJxD79jImL0

Cheryl Chamberlain Photography is located in Central Ontario and covers the Kitchener-Waterloo, Brampton, and Owen Sound areas.  She is a birth and lifestyle photographer.

Website:  cherylchamberlainphotography.wordpress.com

Facebook:  Cheryl Chamberlain Photography

Email:  chamberlainphotography1@gmail.com

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PD Day- Photo Day???

Got a call early this morning that the grandchildren’s sitter was sick today and my daughter needed someone to watch them. Today is a PD Day. That means photo day right? So I thought I better take their photos.

Making Things Urgent. Right Now!

This is a posting from another photographer. This is what I have been saying for a while also.

I’ve re-learned a few things this week.
That the most important things are rarely urgent.
That they don’t bang down your door and demand immediate attention the way bills, taxes, and errands do. But it’s important to make important things urgent. You have to do this yourself. No one will do it for you.

A few years ago, I was home for Christmas break, and I wanted to take some photos of my grandmother. But life happened. The holiday got busy, the photos got neglected, and truth be told she wasn’t really on board with the idea of having photos taken anyway, so there was nothing pushing me to make them happen.

But one afternoon I bit the bullet. I put my gear on my back and walked to her house, a quiet place that sits on a big piece of land just up the road from my childhood home. I’d ridden my pink bike along that stretch of sidewalk as a kid many times, usually returning home with a bag slung over my handlebars, a grocery sack full of fresh tomatoes or raspberries or whatever was in season in her garden.

I walked into her house and found her in the living room, sitting as she often did by the window. I took several photos of her, surrounded by a few beloved possessions – her spinning wheel, her books, her scriptures, a photo from her wedding. The images weren’t perfect, I didn’t have “the right gear” with me, and I was in a hurry.

But these images still brought tears to our eyes as we celebrated her life at her funeral this past weekend.

Even in their imperfection, even though she hadn’t liked the way her hair looked, even though I had been flustered and rushed when I took them, feeling guilty each time I pressed the shutter that I didn’t have the time to “do it right.” None of that mattered – I have the images now, and as far as I’m concerned, they are perfect. And I can guarantee you, whatever it was that I rushed off to after that photo shoot was not nearly as significant or memorable, no matter how urgent it seemed at the time. I couldn’t even tell you now what it was.

Most of all, I can’t describe to you how grateful I was this past weekend that I TOOK TIME to take these photos two years ago. It was like discovering a big fat savings account I forgot I had, one that had been sitting there gathering interest and gaining value the whole time. Or teetering on a tightrope and suddenly remembering – oh yeah, I took the time to set up a net beneath it, so everything’s going to be okay.

Pick your metaphor – I was just glad the photos were there when I craved these memories the most.
I blogged about this photo shoot shortly after it happened over on my photography blog. Here’s part of what I wrote:

We don’t have to pull out the camera every single day, or call long-lost friends every single day, or blog, or bake, or write postcards, or any other good thing every single day. The point is, rather, that we need to take time to do such things. “Take” implies that it’s intentional, you’re doing it on purpose, not just “waiting until you have the time” or seeing if life leads you around to doing it. The urgent will always crowd out the important, and unfortunately, urgent things aren’t usually scrapbookable….

Urgent stuff doesn’t care about what you’ll want in five years, it cares about NOW. Urgent things bully us into neglecting friendships, foregoing happy afternoons, not creating something that will be best enjoyed later. Urgent things convince us that because we didn’t have time to do that important thing yesterday, there’s no sense in bothering with it today, either. Meanwhile, important things wait, but eventually slip away. Some stories we only get one chance to write.

Today, I ask you:
If there’s someone in your life that you’ve been meaning to take photos of – a grandparent, an aging aunt, a dear friend, or even your spouse – please take time to do it this weekend. Yes, THIS weekend.
And I’ll even make it urgent for you: The first person to do this, blog about it, and post a link to their blog post in the comments on this post, will get a 30-min one-on-one Skype session with me. (I’ll want to hear all about it).

But I hope that even if someone “beats you to it,” you’ll recognize that the urgency is still there. Even if your world or calendar won’t crumble immediately if it doesn’t happen, it’s still there, and it’s still pressingly important. It’s up to you to make that important thing urgent. Some stories we only have a short window to write. If you can’t take the actual photos this weekend, sit down with them or call them and make an appointment you both know you will honor. Whatever it is, do it this weekend.

Hugs from my hometown (Boise, Idaho!!),
Jenika

P.S. Please share this post with fellow photographers. Because we all need reminders to take pictures of our own family and document our own lives. We can’t expect clients to act like photos are critically important if we habitually neglect them ourselves. This week, let’s practice what we believe

I am a birth and lifestyle photographer from Central Ontario. I serve the following areas: Brampton, Kitchener, Owen Sound.

Welcome Baby Briar – Palmerston Baby Photographer

What is Birth Photography?

Birth Photography captures the story of your child’s birth in candid photos. It is mainly comprised of the labour, caregivers and support systems helping you through the transition and the measuring, weighing, and swaddling the baby. Photos of the mother feeding her baby for the first time, reactions of other family members, the entire birth story documented in a photo journalist style.

I am a Birth Photographer in Central Ontario serving the Brampton, Kitchener and Owen Sound areas.