Check it out! I’m the featured photographer over at birthphotographers.com

I am really excited about this website created by Lyndsay Stradtner, it’s a resource for expectant parents and photographers. The website will help expecting parents find a birth photographer in their city/sate. This resource was so badly needed – just search “birth photographer” and see what I mean. I get emails from people asking me for referrals for a birth photographer near them and I just don’t have an extensive list so I am really excited about this directory. So photographers please join if you are already photographing births. And if you are an expectant parent looking for a birth photographer please check it out. The site also features birth related articles writing  on a wide range of topics, and there is a detailed Resource Center that can help you find a midwife, doula or birth center in your area.  You will also find a suggested reading list! This is a huge asset for the birth community!

I was super excited to return from Idaho yesterday and find the new May issue of Seattle Woman magazine out on stands. This issues features some of my photos from the beautiful home birth of Waldron Dain Peterson from last summer. Jessica and her family were very generous in sharing their images from their sons birth. The accompanying story about doulas is equally interesting and explains a lot about what a doula does. Seattle Woman is a free publication and you can pick it up at coffee shops, grocery stores, and community gathering spots. If you are not in the Seattle area you can download the PDF version of the magazine from their website http://www.seattlewomanmagazine.com/.

I am really pleased that doulas a getting a lot of press lately and I hope that this trend encourages more women towards knowing their options for birth and seeking out a supportive network.
My Portfolio | Contact Me | Follow Me @emilyWbrown

Here is Miss Hayven’s beautiful baby girl. Born early yesterday morning. She is a beautiful chunky little thing!

Olive got a bit stuck on the way out and gave us a good scare as she didn’t “start” imideatly on her own. But after the quick attention of her midwives she started breathing and then screaming on her own and we were all quite relieved.

Ivy watched the entire birth and was so excited to play with her baby, and request to “walk her around” almost imediatly.

Well done Hayven!

My Portfolio | Contact Me | Follow Me @emilyWbrown

I witnessed a beautiful hospital water birth this morning. And yes you read that right, hospital water birth. No, the hospitals around here a not suddenly changing their policies in the light of research (that will be wonderful when it does happen though). This  birth happened in the water quite by accident. This little one was just in a hurry to get out. It was beautiful!

Introducing baby C.

Isn’t she beautiful!

This month has seemingly revolved around all things birth related! I have feverishly been working on several birth photography related projects for my own business but more on that later. Right now I want to mention something really exciting happening for birth photographers everywhere. You may have noticed that it is a growing trend for parents to hire a photographer to capture their birth experience. This is no surprise to me, the birth of a child is one of life’s most significant events and it is worth documenting. More and more photographers are stepping up to the challenge that this exciting  style of documentary photography presents.  Not a week goes by that I don’t get questions about what lens I use or what one should  know before photographing a birth. So I am honored to be a charter member of The Birth Experience – Lyndsay Stradtner’s guide and mentoring program for birth photographers.

Lyndsay Stradtner is one of the most accomplished birth photographers in the industry. Her birth photographs capture the energy and emotion surrounding the growth of families – in short she is no less than amazing.

Not only has Lyndsay laid out all the details in her written guide but she has also created a forum for birth photographers to connect and share their images and ideas. In addition The Birth Experience will also provide a Member Directory to aid expecting parents in finding a birth photographer in their area. So, if you are an expectant parent looking for a birth photographer this part is for you. Likewise, if you are a birth photographer or  interested in becoming one please check out The Birth Experience! I look forward to seeing you there.

This is what I was photographing last night/this morning. The beautiful birth of Lilliana, at the Puget Sound Birth Center. Lilliana arrived this morning at 1:10am, she was greeted by a cheering crowd of extended family.

Just a few hours old being measured and weighed.

She was very alert but very calm during her newborn exam and I was able to get some great open eye shots.

one proud mommy – after a lot of work.

What can I say, the birth of a baby is a beautiful and miraculous thing. Lilliana is surrounded by so much support and love she is truly a blessing.

My Portfolio | Contact Me | Follow Me @emilyWbrown

I loved photographing this birth for many reasons. It’s so difficult to be just an observer, and though I strive to photograph the birth as though I wasn’t even in the room I still get pulled in. Before a birth I meet with my client’s to discuss their wishes and get to know them. (I don’t want to be a complete stranger showing up one of life’s most intimate and raw experiences.) This meeting and the subsequent emails usually leads to friendship and before long I know all about their previous birth stories and all of their hopes and dreams for the birth that I will photograph. So I can’t help but cheer on the moms while they work hard to birth their babies. With Jessica it was no different. Jessica is actually a former client of mine who is now also a professional photographer. I know that she really values photography as an art form and that having the birth of her second child documented in photographs was really important to her.  But even more than that, I knew that the birth of Jessica’s oldest child did not go as she had hoped. She ended up with a healthy baby girl but also a lot of interventions that she didn’t want and it made her feel like she had failed. I had no doubt in my mind that Jessica would be able to birth her second baby at home naturally as she had planed but I so wanted it to go perfectly for her so that she would have a sense of redemption over all that happened during the birth of her daughter.

If you have scene the movie The Business of Being Born there is a seen where one of the OBs being interviewed states in so many words that the process of birth is unimportant that it’s the outcome that is important – a healthy baby and a healthy mom. And while he is correct that a healthy baby and a healthy mom are always the most important end result he is dead wrong about the process. The process matters – immensely. Physically the birth process is extremely important for the long term health of the mother and the baby, emotionally and psychologically the birth process will affect a woman for the rest of her life.

And so Jessica prepared for a better birth, for herself and for her son, and for her daughter who watched her demonstrate how truly strong and amazing women are. She surrounded herself with women who believed in her, who knew she would be able to do it, And she did it!

If you have ever taken a birth class or read a book on labor and delivery you will find that most recommend that you have an “early labor project.” An early labor project is some sort of activity or task that will keep your mind off the fact that you are starting to have regular contractions and that you will soon be holding your little one. It keeps your mind preoccupied so that it can stay out of the way and let your body do the real work. Jessica, choose baking bread as her early labor project, not just any old loaf of bread but one of those crunchy crust artisan loaf’s that you buy in the bakery section of the grocery store – the kind of loaf that I have never been able to pull off. The best part about this birth was that the baby beat the bread out of the oven. Not only did he beat the bread, he also beat the midwife.  Jessica told me later that even though the rest of us in attendance were terrified because there was no midwife there and she was pushing out a baby all on her own, that she never once felt panicked or worried and that when it was all said and done she was very happy with how things went. With the birth of her daughter she felt like everything was done to her and she was merely an observer and this time she did it all herself – including catching her own baby.  Just as Jessica had pushed out the baby’s head a student midwife showed up and just after she got him all the way out her midwife walked though the door. Then we all sat around and marveled at the perfect little creature that had just joined us in the world and the oven timer went off so we all ate fresh bread and lived happily ever after : )

So with out further adieu here is…

>>The Birth of Waldron Dain Peterson<<

I want to point out that this is a link for a slideshow with all of the photos set to music. It was brought to my attention the last time I posted a birth slide show that most people missed the link. So this time I am making it big and bold. (So click it and watch it!)

My Portfolio | Contact Me | Follow Me @emilyWbrown

What I have learned from photographing births is that life rarely goes as planned and your best off learning to just go with the flow. Laurie and Kunga were planing a natural birth center birth, however, Laurie went into labor at 32 weeks. Plans changed – and Laurie labored and delivered in hospital so her baby could have immediate access to the NICU. What was amazing to me was how serene, peaceful, and beautiful Laurie and Kunga were throughout this process. Having a baby 8 weeks early is scary – baby’s lungs aren’t ready to breath on their own, and it can be months before you can take them home.  Laurie had only attended one birth class, they had not purchased all of the baby necessities (car seat, crib, etc) but Laurie kept calm and collected and and birthed her son like a fertility goddess. I was so impressed. Immediately after birth Alex was whisked away to a pediatrician and neonatal team that suctioned him and got him breathing – I was not allowed to take photos of this process. After Alex was stabilized his mom got to hold him briefly before he was taken straight to the NICU where he weighed in at 4lbs .03 oz. Today Alex is doing very well, he is still in the NICU but he is now over 5lbs and is learning to nurse, his parents anticipate being able to bring him home shortly.

So without further delay here is Alex’s birth story (CLICK BELOW FOR THE SLIDE SHOW)

The Birth of Alexander Kesang Tsering

Laurie’s birth support team included her husband, her mother, and her doula Emily Fontes.  I also should mention her OB (assigned to her by chance) who was was very progressive and supportive of Laurie’s desire to have a natural childbirth. Unfortunately in this day and age it seems that Doctors like him are few and far between. So if you are looking for a progressive OB who is pro natural childbirth try Dr. Matthew Banfield.

Thank you Laurie, Kunga, and Alex for allowing me to be a part of your very intimate experience.

I know that if you have been following my twitter and facebook feed that you have been waiting for these photos. This little guy was in no hurry to get here.

Baby Henry, born last night at 7:25 pm. After 4 days of labor – 75+ hours. This Mama deserves her prize. She was so strong and so brave, and I am so happy that she finally gets to hold her beautiful baby boy.

Congrats W. Family on your beautiful baby!

I was not even there for half of it and I am still exhausted, even after a nap today.