Heartbeat Photography: water birth

Showing posts with label water birth. Show all posts

Monday, September 30, 2013

The Homebirth of Ezra || Northern Minnesota, Tennessee, Birth Photographer

Sweet Ezra was born as I traveled across Tennessee to photograph his birth, coming Earthside about 20 minutes before I arrived. Although I primarily photograph in Park Rapids, Minnesota, I also live in Missouri. Making a trip to see my love as he worked in TN, gave me an opportunity to photograph this lovely family, whom I've captured a birth for before. I adore their sweet family and I always love visiting them! Congratulations Ken & Geneiva! Ezra is such a blessing!

Ezra, born at home. September 2013. Jackson, TN.
By Heartbeat Photography, Leah Chennaux. Park Rapids, Bemidji, Fargo, Detroit Lakes, Duluth, MN Photographer.

Sunday, December 2, 2012

Birth photography: unforgettable.

Birth is beautiful, breathtaking, a miracle, empowering, . . . and, most of all -- once in a lifetime!

Almost everyone wouldn't even think twice about hiring someone to photograph their wedding. . . your child's birth is one of those events in life that should be captured as well! Every smile, tear.... the question is, why wouldn't you want to have photos of the first moments with your new creation? You are literally going to be falling in love in a whole new way with that beautiful, squishy face that you made together! Please allow me to capture those moments! They are beautiful! Not only will having a Birth photographer be an extraordinary gift for you, but also for your child. Wouldn't you love to see every moment of your own birth captured in timeless photographs? Your mother's face as she first saw you, held you, kissed you? Your dad's expressions and heroic help as he became your father? This is truly a gift that will last generations.

Why you should hire a professional photographer? Your husband, mother, etc will be free to help you and experience these wonderful moments rather than be responsible for photographing your baby. No more drained looking photos of new mothers! With color and lighting experience and knowledge you will look the way you really were, instead of looking not like yourself with a flash point and shoot camera. Dad can take photos of you and baby -- but who is there to capture him? Who is there to capture the new Grandma's face as she meets her grand baby for the first time? Who will have the skill to photograph perfectly the tiny tear that slides down dad's face as he holds his baby for the first time? These are unforgettable moments, truly -- and they deserve to be captured. I have never met one person that has regretted having a photographer at their birth, but I have met many many women who are disappointed that the moments of their child's birth are a blur to them now -- and that they never want anyone to see the 'horrible' picture of them that was taken by grandma of their fresh, new family.

Questions

Why should we hire a birth photographer?
Who cried? Who smiled? What did my husband's face look like as he saw our baby for the first time? Professional photography during your baby's entrance into the world will capture every moment possible so everyone is free to enjoy this experience rather than worry about documenting it.

Will we meet before the birth?
YES! This is the most important part! I ask to meet with you right after you contact me to ensure we are a good fit. I also suggest booking your maternity (and newborn) photos with me so we can feel comfortable with each other and 'know' each other more.

My husband is a bit hesitant to have someone else at our birth.... I guess I am a little bit too. What should I tell him??
Giving birth is definitely a very personal and emotional experience... it is also one that should be captured! I can assure you both that I will be as discreet as possible, and leave you two alone to bond and love each other. Privacy is my upmost concern and I will always respect your needs and wants during your birth.

When is it best to book a birth session?
As soon as possible.... Babies can be born a month early or even a month late! I only take on three births per month and spots will fill up fast -- so please book with me as soon as possible!

When do you arrive and how long will you stay?
Once you are sure you are in early labor, I will prepare to come to your birth. When you are ready, I will come to your place of birth. I will stay about an hour or two after the birth, depending on what all is happening or what needs to be captured. Times are so very flexible and I never leave at a certain number of hours. If you have a 30 hour labor, I'll be there! If you have a 4 hour labor and spend 5 hours doing a bath, introducing baby, breastfeeding for the first time, etc -- I'll be there! We will discuss all this at our first appointment and of course, go with the flow on birth day!

What if I go into labor in the middle of the night?
My phone will be on at all times and if you go into labor at night, I will come at that time. :) I will be on call 24/7 before your birth.

What kind of photographs do you take?
My birth photography style is photo journalistic, I desire to capture your baby’s birth in a way that tells emotion and story. I will capture however much of the birth as you feel comfortable. I can capture everything modestly or capture everything -- it is totally up to you. I can also assure you that no one but me will see your photos as I edit them and I always edit birth photographs in private. You choose what ones will be shared on FB (if any).

Do you do homebirths?
OH yes! Homebirths are my favorite! I also will do Unassited/Freebirths as well -- but only after a few consultations with you
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What if I have to have a Cesarean?
Scheduled or unscheduled, having a C-section can make photographing your birth even more important. I will be there to capture all the things that you, on the operating table, will not get to see or get a good look at. My ability in the room is up to the anesthesiologist or OB, but I will advocate for myself strongly. During our meeting, I will also discuss ways to talk to your Doctor if you have one.

Are you going to post my pictures on the internet?
Beautiful and discreet photos will be posted for you to enjoy. I never post anything of a sensitive nature, unless you specifically ask for them. I do offer a complete privacy option, if you'd like -- and you can preview your sneak peek photos if you wish. :)

Other: Ask about Adoption photography as a gift for birth and adoptive families. Teenage or young mothers can receive birth and other photography for extremely discounted prices -- contact me to inquire. In the case of an emergency or loss/sickness, I also do NICU and stillbirth photography.

Have any other questions? Please contact me to discuss the possibility of your birth being captured!

Thursday, November 29, 2012

The home water birth of Starlette : November 19th, 2012

Brandi text me around 7am on November 19th to tell me that she thought "it was the day!" So I got all my things ready and was at her house around 9, with all my children in tow -- as my husband had school and he couldn't take it off. Henry (her husband) and I, fed the kids and started to get things ready. I stayed away from Brandi as she labored quitely upstairs in the bathtub. I knew that if she needed me, she would ask for me. I prayed for her as I cuddled my babies on the couch and just really felt at peace an no need to be with her at all upstairs. At one point, I brought up my camera and phone into the bathroom, so they were up there and ready. I saw Brandi but we really didn't say anything to each other -- she was doing SO well on her own -- just relaxing in the bath and occasionally walking around upstairs. I went downstairs again and was getting a few more things ready when she came down and said that she could feel the bag of waters now -- meaning she was fully dilated and probably going to be pushing very soon. Henry and I both stayed downstairs for a bit, and then he went upstairs to be with her. I stayed downstairs and fed my littlest, getting him to go to sleep. A few minutes after that, I got up and I heard a noise upstairs and I heard Brandi cry out "Henry!" and then her breathing hard and making small moaning sounds of relief. Lily said " I hear a baby up there", and I said back to her "I don't think so.... but maybe" And went to the bottom of the stairs to listen, it was then that I heard a little cry ring out from the bathroom and I ran up the stairs as fast as I could. I opened the door and saw my brother with a surprised smile on his face, and sure enough -- Brandi was holding a little baby in the tub! I immediately grabbed my camera and started taking pictures. The story you'll see now in pictures, as I missed the labor and the birth -- but I feel that it was meant to be that way - just Brandi. Henry had actually been in the girl's room settling them down, and Brandi said that Star was born so fast she couldn't say anything to anyone. As soon as she pulled her up she yelled for Henry, who ran in the bathroom to see his wife holding their new precious baby. Brandi gave birth all by herself, pulled her baby up from the water, it was beautiful. When I got into the bathroom tears of joy were running down her face. She told Henry she was sorry, it happened so fast. . .

As you may have noticed, Brandi couldn't bring Star up onto her chest, as she had a very short cord.
You see in the following picture that while waiting to birth the Placenta, they had to have Star on the floor.

After the placenta came, they burned the cord. They chose to burn the cord instead of cut it, as it is done in other countries and babies are notably more calm, often falling asleep during the process. This was definitely true for Star, as you can see; she was very calm and just sat there the whole time at peace, never made a sound or barely moved. It was pretty neat!