CAPTURING THE MOMENT
Birth photography has spawned a new business.
The drama of birth can be tumultuous, harrowing, exhilarating, graphic and painful — not exactly the stuff of family snapshots.
But parents are lining up to capture their birth stories through professional birth photography. The trend is changing the way we see birth, giving families an opportunity to see moments they may have forgotten, and providing opportunities for healing when things didn’t go exactly as planned.
“The birth of a child isn’t just one moment, but a series of moments that tell a story. I’m there to capture that story,” said Jaydene Freund, a professional birth photographer and doula who works in the Fraser Valley and Vancouver area.
Freund, a mother of two, was a practising doula when she began to incorporate photography into her services. After she saw the first set of labour and birth snapshots she took, she says her world changed forever.
“I looked at the photos and knew that this was what I was meant to do.”
Freund said the new mom was moved when she saw the photos. “The photos helped her process her birth, and experience the joy of it. When moms are in that moment of labour and birth, they are not observing, and often not fully understanding what is going on. We focus on the emotions of the process, the laughter, frustration, joy, tears.”
What Freund doesn’t focus on is almost as important as what she does. “When I first started, I was begging friends to let me photograph their births.” There was an “eww” factor — everyone had heard some horror story of the enthusiastic amateur birth snapshots. It took some convincing, but the photos she collected in her portfolio soon spoke for her.
“Birth photographers find complimentary angles. The mom might be fully naked, but we are snapping from angles that show other things.”
Freund meets with the clients beforehand to discuss the birth plan, and what kind of photographs the parents want — whether or not they want
That’s what I’m there to capture. That journey into motherhood, and that journey into life.
JAYDENE FREUND PROFESSIONAL BIRTH PHOTOGRAPHER
a photo of the baby emerging, or the baby’s first breath. “During labour a mother pushes herself farther than she ever thought possible, and she gets the biggest reward possible. That’s what I’m there to capture. That journey into motherhood, and that journey into life.”
The business is so busy, Freund has curbed her doula services to focus on the photography, and developed strong relationships with doctors and nurses at local hospitals, including B. C. Women’s, where photographers are allowed for most C- section deliveries.
C- sections are particularly important to document, said Freund, because the mother is often partly sedated, and her view is blocked.
Morag Hastings is a Vancouver doula who incorporates birth photography as part of her doula services, and she’s so busy she is booked six months in advance.
She points out that the intensity of the experience can be so overwhelming and exhausting, mothers and partners often forget exactly what happened.
“I get to give my clients’ story back to them. It’s really special to see how happy they are after they get the photos .”