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I went to Quispamsis to do newborn portraits of sweet Ada. She was dainty, tiny and delicate and very stubborn! She was curious of what was going on around her and didn’t want to settle. Many hours of cuddling, feeding and soothing. We knew she would at some point succumb to sleep, it only required patience. Her mother and I worked together and soon her little eyelids grew heavy and the sound of her mother’s voice lulled her to sleep.

With her mother’s voice soothing her and softly calling her name every time she stirred, we finally we able to not only capture some beautifully posed images but Ada gifted her parents with a couple of her sweet  little smiles.

Ada reminds me how unpredictable newborns can be, they run every photo session. We, photographers, never can make a guarantee to who will sleep and who will do what pose. But the end result of patience is priceless, as her parents will now have sweet pictures in their home of their daughter as a newborn.

I went to Quispamsis to do newborn portraits of sweet Ada. She was dainty, tiny and delicate and very stubborn! She was curious of what was going on around her and didn’t want to settle. Many hours of cuddling, feeding and soothing. We knew she would at some point succumb to sleep, it only required patience. Her mother and I worked together and soon her little eyelids grew heavy and the sound of her mother’s voice lulled her to sleep.

With her mother’s voice soothing her and softly calling her name every time she stirred, we finally we able to not only capture some beautifully posed images but Ada gifted her parents with a couple of her sweet  little smiles.

Ada reminds me how unpredictable newborns can be, they run every photo session. We, photographers, never can make a guarantee to who will sleep and who will do what pose. But the end result of patience is priceless, as her parents will now have sweet pictures in their home of their daughter as a newborn.

I was so excited to meet this sweet little man and baby Beckham did not disappoint! From his full head of dark hair and to his sweet dark eyes I was in love the moment his Mom passed him to me. He is a lucky little boy to be brought into such a large and wonderful family. I have known his mother since she was a little girl and there is only one word to describe her, joy. When Karissa walks into a room everyone looks up and smiles because she has that special something about her and I know that he has inherited this quality from his mother! Even though he was a bit fussy we all kept smiling when we looked at him and when he finally drifted off to sleep, I know I was not the only one, who gasped at his perfection. I loved spending time with the large and busy family. I also enjoyed getting to know a few family members (I got to snuggle 4 month old Lincoln too!) and friends I had yet to meet:) Thank you for the gift of welcoming me into your home and allowing me to be his newborn photographer.  

I was so excited to meet this sweet little man and baby Beckham did not disappoint! From his full head of dark hair and to his sweet dark eyes I was in love the moment his Mom passed him to me. He is a lucky little boy to be brought into such a large and wonderful family. I have known his mother since she was a little girl and there is only one word to describe her, joy. When Karissa walks into a room everyone looks up and smiles because she has that special something about her and I know that he has inherited this quality from his mother! Even though he was a bit fussy we all kept smiling when we looked at him and when he finally drifted off to sleep, I know I was not the only one, who gasped at his perfection. I loved spending time with the large and busy family. I also enjoyed getting to know a few family members (I got to snuggle 4 month old Lincoln too!) and friends I had yet to meet:) Thank you for the gift of welcoming me into your home and allowing me to be his newborn photographer.  

While browsing one of my favourite photography forums, I read a heated conversation regarding newborn safety. It was heated because of a photographer bragging about not using any Photoshop in an image. Why the drama? Well this baby was placed on a surfboard in the water. As a mother my heart dropped and I gasped. The image was gorgeous and artistic but 100% unsafe. All my mind kept asking was, ‘What if?’ What if a wave came? What if the baby kicked? Rolled? The photographer claimed the father was nearby but what if he couldn’t reach in time?

My prayer is that no photographer ever has to learn the hard way. Newborn photography is incredibly popular. There is no question why, newborns are beautiful and gorgeous in their perfect newness. As photographer’s we are pushing our art to be more incredible and sweet. From different poses to different props, we have learned how to tug at our client’s heartstrings with beautiful art created around their children. But at what risk? Babies in glass bowls full of candy, head over to Pinterest and you can find numerous examples. What if that glass bowl broke? Common sense will tell you that glass bowls may not handle more than candy and adding a seven pound weight would possible cause it to break. Babies suspended in slings  hanging from a branch risk a serious injury of the baby falling.  Babies placed in mailboxes, the idea is cute but there is risk.

Those sweet posed babies with their chins propped on their hands and arms? Have you ever seen a seven day old baby do this and hold that pose? No. They cannot naturally, they do not have the muscle strength and there is a risk of injury by straining their little muscles.

So, why are we seeing this in photography? Magic? Well sort of! It is COMPOSITES. Using the magic of photoshop, we photographers take two images and overlap them, erase half the picture so it looks like there  were no helping hands.

This is the same for babies suspended over any amount of space/height, babies in props like baskets. Where ever there is the slightest possibility of the baby moving, there should always be a hand on the baby. I have had sessions with babies that are easily startled. In those instances I have Mom or Dad sit next to the baby and one hand on the baby, they lift their hand 3-5 inches off of the baby and I snap my picture. If  the baby moves there is no risk.

If a prop or scene has a slight risk even with composites I will refuse to do that scene. I don’t care how much a parent wants that image. If I feel it is risky I would rather lose a client than risk their child. I also feel it is my responsibility as a professional photographer to KNOW the risks. Going back to the image of that baby on a surfboard, it could have been done in the name of safety. Take an image of the surfboard in the water. Take an image of the baby on a surfboard on the beach in the same lighting situation. Photoshop and voila! More work for the photographer but no risk to that infant and the end result is a beautiful picture.

When hiring a photographer for your newborn portraits, ask questions! How much education do they have? What courses have they taken?  What steps do they take for safety? Do they use composites?

Below are a few examples of the behind the scenes and reality of my newborn poses. You will see how Mom and Dad hold their son’s head safely in place for the ‘Froggy Pose’, this was a little baby who was in a DEEP sleep (for certain poses they need to be sleeping very deep). He was also a baby that in the womb he had his little feet up around his head. When I was posing him I found he was SUPER comfortable in the position compared to having his legs stretched out. Many babies will not pose like this, it all depends on the individual baby. The second image is him with his head propped on his folded arms. Newborns do not have the neck strength to hold this position without risk to their necks and spines. With a gentle finger on his head (not on his temple!) Mom is holding the weight of his head on her finger tip.

During editing these helping hands are erased to create the newborn art that will adorn their walls.

While browsing one of my favourite photography forums, I read a heated conversation regarding newborn safety. It was heated because of a photographer bragging about not using any Photoshop in an image. Why the drama? Well this baby was placed on a surfboard in the water. As a mother my heart dropped and I gasped. The image was gorgeous and artistic but 100% unsafe. All my mind kept asking was, ‘What if?’ What if a wave came? What if the baby kicked? Rolled? The photographer claimed the father was nearby but what if he couldn’t reach in time?

My prayer is that no photographer ever has to learn the hard way. Newborn photography is incredibly popular. There is no question why, newborns are beautiful and gorgeous in their perfect newness. As photographer’s we are pushing our art to be more incredible and sweet. From different poses to different props, we have learned how to tug at our client’s heartstrings with beautiful art created around their children. But at what risk? Babies in glass bowls full of candy, head over to Pinterest and you can find numerous examples. What if that glass bowl broke? Common sense will tell you that glass bowls may not handle more than candy and adding a seven pound weight would possible cause it to break. Babies suspended in slings  hanging from a branch risk a serious injury of the baby falling.  Babies placed in mailboxes, the idea is cute but there is risk.

Those sweet posed babies with their chins propped on their hands and arms? Have you ever seen a seven day old baby do this and hold that pose? No. They cannot naturally, they do not have the muscle strength and there is a risk of injury by straining their little muscles.

So, why are we seeing this in photography? Magic? Well sort of! It is COMPOSITES. Using the magic of photoshop, we photographers take two images and overlap them, erase half the picture so it looks like there  were no helping hands.

This is the same for babies suspended over any amount of space/height, babies in props like baskets. Where ever there is the slightest possibility of the baby moving, there should always be a hand on the baby. I have had sessions with babies that are easily startled. In those instances I have Mom or Dad sit next to the baby and one hand on the baby, they lift their hand 3-5 inches off of the baby and I snap my picture. If  the baby moves there is no risk.

If a prop or scene has a slight risk even with composites I will refuse to do that scene. I don’t care how much a parent wants that image. If I feel it is risky I would rather lose a client than risk their child. I also feel it is my responsibility as a professional photographer to KNOW the risks. Going back to the image of that baby on a surfboard, it could have been done in the name of safety. Take an image of the surfboard in the water. Take an image of the baby on a surfboard on the beach in the same lighting situation. Photoshop and voila! More work for the photographer but no risk to that infant and the end result is a beautiful picture.

When hiring a photographer for your newborn portraits, ask questions! How much education do they have? What courses have they taken?  What steps do they take for safety? Do they use composites?

Below are a few examples of the behind the scenes and reality of my newborn poses. You will see how Mom and Dad hold their son’s head safely in place for the ‘Froggy Pose’, this was a little baby who was in a DEEP sleep (for certain poses they need to be sleeping very deep). He was also a baby that in the womb he had his little feet up around his head. When I was posing him I found he was SUPER comfortable in the position compared to having his legs stretched out. Many babies will not pose like this, it all depends on the individual baby. The second image is him with his head propped on his folded arms. Newborns do not have the neck strength to hold this position without risk to their necks and spines. With a gentle finger on his head (not on his temple!) Mom is holding the weight of his head on her finger tip.

During editing these helping hands are erased to create the newborn art that will adorn their walls.

This is my first letter in a series called, ‘Letters to my Daughter’, published on the 10th of every month.

Dear Cecilia,

My fourth baby. Everyone told me I should be an old hand at this, after all having three babies prior, I seriously and confidently assumed I had seen it all. I envisioned a nice, easy, quick and natural labor…I saw myself handling my life, my small children’s lives with ease…after all, I knew what to expect. I also felt with certainty you were a ‘he’…

After all of our birth plans went out the window and 47 hours, you arrived peacefully and we joyfully discovered another daughter in our lives. Your siblings cheered with joy on the phone.

Only hours old I couldn’t shake the feeling that something was wrong but being an experienced mother, the nurses and I poo-pooed the concerns. Only a week later you were fighting for your life. For the first time I questioned all my abilities as a mother, my instincts were telling me the opposite of what the doctors and nurses were prescribing and I followed.

Sitting in that hospital room, 3am in the morning, I felt lost. I was homesick, I was heartsick over the situation and I felt as if I didn’t know you. All you could do was lay in that hospital bed, I felt as if we were losing time and had lost those moments of bonding. I felt immense guilt as if I had failed you in some way. I couldn’t make you better, our families were frustrated and everyday brought new doctors who suggested new solutions.

What I did do in the hospital was pray. I prayed for you, I prayed for me, I waited and you waited. Bringing you home was more exciting then your first homecoming! I even went out and bought you another new coming home outfit. You may have been the fourth but a second homecoming was a first!

Once at home, you grew stronger each day and we finally found our rhythm. Slowly we reintroduced ourselves and became better acquainted.

I knew you were a fighter and a cuddler but in the past month I have found you have a sense of humor and are terribly ticklish, you have a temper and hate to be burped because you feel the food should flow constantly.

As I stare at your long eyelashes (which you obviously did not inherited from me), big blue eyes and long feet (which we tease you about)…I wonder for your future. I know it will be bright, I know you have a few little obstacles, no more then some but too many for me, I know you will be my baby longer then your brothers and sister were.  For now I will enjoy this special time; how your eyes light up when you recognize me, your big smiles and coos which melt my heart, how you instinctively snuggle against me and your sweet baby smell. I could stare at your for hours, your total perfectness and marvel at you; my little miracle, my little daughter.

If you enjoyed this you can go to my friend Heather Meyer’s blog at Heather Meyer Photography to read her ‘Letters to my Daughter’

This is my first letter in a series called, ‘Letters to my Daughter’, published on the 10th of every month.

Dear Cecilia,

My fourth baby. Everyone told me I should be an old hand at this, after all having three babies prior, I seriously and confidently assumed I had seen it all. I envisioned a nice, easy, quick and natural labor…I saw myself handling my life, my small children’s lives with ease…after all, I knew what to expect. I also felt with certainty you were a ‘he’…

After all of our birth plans went out the window and 47 hours, you arrived peacefully and we joyfully discovered another daughter in our lives. Your siblings cheered with joy on the phone.

Only hours old I couldn’t shake the feeling that something was wrong but being an experienced mother, the nurses and I poo-pooed the concerns. Only a week later you were fighting for your life. For the first time I questioned all my abilities as a mother, my instincts were telling me the opposite of what the doctors and nurses were prescribing and I followed.

Sitting in that hospital room, 3am in the morning, I felt lost. I was homesick, I was heartsick over the situation and I felt as if I didn’t know you. All you could do was lay in that hospital bed, I felt as if we were losing time and had lost those moments of bonding. I felt immense guilt as if I had failed you in some way. I couldn’t make you better, our families were frustrated and everyday brought new doctors who suggested new solutions.

What I did do in the hospital was pray. I prayed for you, I prayed for me, I waited and you waited. Bringing you home was more exciting then your first homecoming! I even went out and bought you another new coming home outfit. You may have been the fourth but a second homecoming was a first!

Once at home, you grew stronger each day and we finally found our rhythm. Slowly we reintroduced ourselves and became better acquainted.

I knew you were a fighter and a cuddler but in the past month I have found you have a sense of humor and are terribly ticklish, you have a temper and hate to be burped because you feel the food should flow constantly.

As I stare at your long eyelashes (which you obviously did not inherited from me), big blue eyes and long feet (which we tease you about)…I wonder for your future. I know it will be bright, I know you have a few little obstacles, no more then some but too many for me, I know you will be my baby longer then your brothers and sister were.  For now I will enjoy this special time; how your eyes light up when you recognize me, your big smiles and coos which melt my heart, how you instinctively snuggle against me and your sweet baby smell. I could stare at your for hours, your total perfectness and marvel at you; my little miracle, my little daughter.

If you enjoyed this you can go to my friend Heather Meyer’s blog at Heather Meyer Photography to read her ‘Letters to my Daughter’

Funny how life throws your curve balls…the plan and expectation was we would wait for mother nature to decide when the baby would arrive, baby was due Sept 1 but given my record for overcooking my kids I assumed mid Sept. Due to some dangerously low fluids they began inducing…47 hours later she arrived.

Once home I looked forward to some normalcy…the sleep deprived kind. But somehow this time it was different. She is my 4th child and I felt very confident that I should know what I was doing but instead we spent days in bed, me trying to coax her to eat and her crying and fussing and refusing…and something else felt off. So off…she would go very still and limp. From screaming to nothing.

A couple of doctor’s appointments later my fears were confirmed, she was not doing well. So, we moved into the regional hospital.

The diagnosis was failure to thrive, even with being tube fed she still lost weight and faced a few other health issues. There is nothing scarier than a doctor shaking their head and saying they didn’t know WHY.

Her blood pressure is unstable, her heart is misbehaving, she is having ‘grey spells’ and the doctors are as frustrated as we are. She is down from 7 lbs 11oz to 4 lbs 11oz.

So, Cecilia and I walk the halls at the Regional Hospital, we walk up and down paediatrics, chatting with nurses, getting to know other inmates/residents…we had long and deep conversations about fighting hard and the importance on eating. (My aunt commented she is the first girl in our family we prayed would gain weight)

After 5 weeks we are finally seeing some progress! New medications seem to be helping and she is calmer. I miss the kids, I miss home, I miss my bed. But we are where we should be. Thank you for the meal train and visits from my friends. We are hoping to get some day passes soon and come home.

Cecilia at 3 months old

Funny how life throws your curve balls…the plan and expectation was we would wait for mother nature to decide when the baby would arrive, baby was due Sept 1 but given my record for overcooking my kids I assumed mid Sept. Due to some dangerously low fluids they began inducing…47 hours later she arrived.

Once home I looked forward to some normalcy…the sleep deprived kind. But somehow this time it was different. She is my 4th child and I felt very confident that I should know what I was doing but instead we spent days in bed, me trying to coax her to eat and her crying and fussing and refusing…and something else felt off. So off…she would go very still and limp. From screaming to nothing.

A couple of doctor’s appointments later my fears were confirmed, she was not doing well. So, we moved into the regional hospital.

The diagnosis was failure to thrive, even with being tube fed she still lost weight and faced a few other health issues. There is nothing scarier than a doctor shaking their head and saying they didn’t know WHY.

Her blood pressure is unstable, her heart is misbehaving, she is having ‘grey spells’ and the doctors are as frustrated as we are. She is down from 7 lbs 11oz to 4 lbs 11oz.

So, Cecilia and I walk the halls at the Regional Hospital, we walk up and down paediatrics, chatting with nurses, getting to know other inmates/residents…we had long and deep conversations about fighting hard and the importance on eating. (My aunt commented she is the first girl in our family we prayed would gain weight)

After 5 weeks we are finally seeing some progress! New medications seem to be helping and she is calmer. I miss the kids, I miss home, I miss my bed. But we are where we should be. Thank you for the meal train and visits from my friends. We are hoping to get some day passes soon and come home.

Cecilia at 3 months old

Yes, I suck at blogging!! Partly because I have never been consistent at diary keeping or it could be I have been a wee bit preoccupied. One August 31, it was a special night…not only a blue moon but it brought us our fourth child, another daughter, Cecilia Elizabeth. Born at 7:13am, 7 lbs 11oz:)

The past 5 1/2 weeks have flown by…with many tales to tell but perhaps if I hold back it will force me to blog about it…

Please note the first photo, is NOT mine…it is from my sweet husband:)

Yes, I suck at blogging!! Partly because I have never been consistent at diary keeping or it could be I have been a wee bit preoccupied. One August 31, it was a special night…not only a blue moon but it brought us our fourth child, another daughter, Cecilia Elizabeth. Born at 7:13am, 7 lbs 11oz:)

The past 5 1/2 weeks have flown by…with many tales to tell but perhaps if I hold back it will force me to blog about it…

Please note the first photo, is NOT mine…it is from my sweet husband:)