Winston Salem Birth Photography

As a Winston Salem birth photographer, I’ve had many people, women and men, ask me “why in the world would anyone want a photographer during labor?!” as if I were suggesting that they have a live feed on social media of their baby being born. I understand that birth photography is not for everyone, maybe not even most people, but it can be a really beautiful thing for some. While you may never want to share these images with the world, you may want to share them with your children one day. Imagine how amazing it would be to see actual images from the day you were born (see more in point #3)?!

1. These are your child’s very first moments in the world.

People are often baffled by the idea of having a photographer capture the birth of their child. But, quite honestly, I’m baffled by the idea of NOT wanting a photographer to capture the birth of a child. These are your baby’s very first moments in the world, in your arms – why would you not want that photographed? While the idea of wedding photography or family photography is a “given,” birth photography seems to be fighting for it’s place in this world and I don’t quite know why. Your wedding is the beginning of your life together – of course you’ll have that photographed. So, to me, it seems obvious that your child’s birth is the beginning of your new life as parents – of COURSE you should have that photographed, as well!

(Click HERE to read Coven’s full birth story)

2. Labor and delivery is a beautiful, amazing journey.

For many women, labor and delivery is a source of fear and anxiety, especially in our culture. I wholeheartedly believe that this journey into motherhood can be empowering if we respect it and are respected in it. We were made for this. Our bodies were made to create life and give birth. While this may seem like common sense, our society seems to have convinced us that we need medical interventions and lots of help in order to get our babies out.

Let me be clear. Medicine plays an important role in modern childbirth and I’m so grateful for it when it’s needed. I also don’t think there’s anything wrong with using medicine to bring your child into this world, as long as that is what YOU want. That being said, if our doctors would respect laboring women and teach us to trust our bodies, we may not need interventions as much as we thought.

I could go on and on – I’ll save that for another post – but my point is that we get to experience the amazing miracle of birth and that miracle is definitely worthy of being photographed.

3. These photos will be a family heirloom.

Imagine being able to see the first moments of your life. Now imagine being able to share your child’s first moment’s with them when they ask about their birth day. How amazing would that be? When you tell them the story of how they arrived in this world and wrecked your heart in the best way, you’ll have pictures to go along with your words. I plan to pass those images down for generations to serve as an heirloom. They’ll be a documentation of the beginning of a legacy.

(Click HERE to read Adaline’s full birth story)

4. You may need a reminder of how strong you are.

Some days as a momma, you may need a reminder of how incredible you are. Ok, LOTS of days you may need this reminder. It’s easy to get lost in the day-in and day-out of motherhood. For me, my birth photos have served as a reminder of the battle I faced to have the honor of holding the title “mom.”

5. Your memories may be a bit foggy.

I don’t know about you, but the memories of my day and a half of labor are a bit foggy. Thank goodness I had my doula to record things as they were happening. I also had an amazing birth photographer by my side during my son’s birth. It’s all just a bit of a blur. I remember specific moments here and there, but overall “foggy” is the only way to describe it. The 36 hours leading up to Finn’s birth were foggy and I’m so grateful to have photographs from that time.

(Click HERE to read Giuliana’s full birth story)

If you were on the fence about birth photography before reading this, I hoped it helped to clear things up. My goal is to show you how beautiful birth can be and to help you document that. Your birth experience may not be exactly what you envisioned, but I hope that photography can help you to see the beauty in it.

Contact me at lauren@laurenjollyphotography.com for more information about Winston Salem birth photography. I also serve the Greensboro, Statesville, and Chapel Hill areas.