photo's anyone?

[mamaof3tobe]

I'm getting ready to do a photo shoot in a couple weeks. Has anyone done one so far? I'm needing idea's!

[wombatclay]

This time I'm having a professional photo shoot with this photographer. We've had two pre-shoot meetings to discuss ideas and make sure the final photos reflect "me" and my birth hopes. For example, she asked me to write a haiku about pregnancy and birth as a way to focus my intent and give an idea for what sort of images would speak to this pregnancy.

Shape of a Mother has both it's own website here and a flickr site here. (it's run by an mdc mama!) There is a huge variety of images, some professional some not, that might inspire you.

You might try something similar to the poetry project, or imagine what image you'd like to submit to SoaM... do you feel better indoors or outdoors? In water (pond, stream, shower, tub, ocean, swamp, rain puddle), a garden or tree (and are we talking formal garden? herb garden? kneeling in the dirt? sitting in a tree? hugging a tree or laying on a blanket in the shade?), naked or clothed or semi-clothed (bathrobe, draped fabric, a costume of some sort like a tiara/evening gloves/fan, strategic bits of tree branch or mud or body paint, a favorite outfit, a big white shirt open to show off your belly?), laying on a bed or couch or sitting on your kitchen counter surrounded by "baby stuff"?

Maybe just brainstorm a list of things you find interesting and see if they lead you someplace. Although the photo shoot I'm planning is going to be naked/outdoors/in a stream/covered in clay/involving the haiku I wrote we also discussed pictures with lots of books (I'm a librarian and feel the most "at home" surrounded by books). And in past pregnancies I've had photos taken with top hats and evening wear, mostly naked with gauze/fabric draped over me, standing in front of windows, standing in my garden, even naked and covered with apple blossoms!

Just have fun and enjoy the whole process!

[Spring Sun]

I have done two photos shoots so far, one at 20 weeks and one at 27 weeks. So bear with me, I am an over the top example, but I know it is fun for my friends to have a pregnant model who is also a photographer that they can ask to do whatever pose they want.

I have a trade with photographer (I did her maternity recently, too, here) and I think we will do that one around 34 weeks (I don't know her too well, so that will be my "real" one). She actually did a shoot a couple months ago for mothering magazine! Here is her site. I may do something naturey for that one, maybe by the creek or in the mts.


And then I have an assistant that wants the practice and she did my 27 week ones here and here. I want to show her how to do the sweet, b&w ones with a black backdrop. Those are the kind I will blow up and put in the baby's room. I like outdoor ones for fun, but the really intimate, black and white ones are my favorite. They show a connection between me and baby, kwim?

And then I have a friend who will be photographing the actual birth and we'll do something really fun and funky at maybe 36 weeks (think rollar skates and old cars). She did the 20 week ones.

I am getting my belly hennaed at 31 weeks so I think I will do a studio shot of that myself.

I am really open to funky or unusual ideas, so if anyone has any that they would love to do if only they could afford it or felt brave enough or whatever, list them here and I will do them, I really want some more ideas since we have all this time.