Birth videography is a heartfelt journey that captures the profound moments of bringing new life into the world. Imagine the emotions that flood your heart as you hear the first cries of your baby, the whispers of encouragement from loved ones, and the overwhelming joy that envelops the room when your newborn is placed into your arms. These are the fleeting moments that can never be replicated but can be cherished forever through film. Birth videography transcends the physical acts of labor and delivery; it captures the essence of your unique birth story, filled with both monumental and subtle emotions that deserve to be remembered.

How I Create the Birth Video

Mastering my camera is just the beginning — it’s about understanding the heartbeat of your birth experience. With careful attention to detail, I seamlessly transition between capturing video and still images, ensuring that every crucial moment is documented. I weave together moving clips, authentic sounds, and carefully chosen music, creating a film that resonates deep within your heart. The laughter, the tears, the quiet moments of anticipation — I strive to encapsulate it all, preserving the beauty of your birthing story in a way that feels both intimate and timeless. There’s nothing more fulfilling than capturing those once-in-a-lifetime moments during labor, delivery, and the sweet embrace of bonding in that golden hour.

Why Not Just Have Birth Photos / Is Birth Videography Necessary?

Photos freeze a moment in time, but video breathes life into those still frames. The gentle whispers of encouragement, the strength in your breath, your partner’s quiet tears of joy, and the magical first cry of your baby — all captured in motion, emotions woven together as a tapestry of love. Whether this is your first birth or your fifth, a birth film becomes a cherished treasure, a keepsake you will revisit time and again. If you take a moment to watch any of my birth films, I believe the answer to “Is Birth Videography necessary?” will resonate deeply within you.

How Long are These Birth Videos?

Do I capture every single moment over the span of 18 hours? No, but I do focus on snippets of this incredible day, weaving together the melodic sounds of your birth space, the heartfelt words of your partner, and the beautiful cries or coos of your new family member. These birth videos typically last between 5 and 10 minutes, yet they are brimming with love, raw beauty, and authentic emotion. They are not just videos; they are small pieces of art, crafted with care, that encapsulate the incredible journey of welcoming your baby into the world. Embrace the opportunity to hold onto your birth experience forever — let me help you tell this beautiful story.

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These lovelies messaged me about a week before her due date. They were looking for a doula but hadn’t found one. The ones they did find were already booked. This was started months ago. Well, they changed their search criteria and boom, I popped up on Google for them. I am so glad I did!

I let them know I had another birth scheduled, but the chances of two different families having a baby on the same day at the same time were unlikely, but just in case, I worked with a backup. They didn’t mind at all. They would risk it.

I kept them very up to date ion what the other family was doing. When I got the call to go to the other birth, I let them know. This other birth went about 24 hours. Around the 23rd hour mark, I got a call that these ladies were heading to their birth center as the surges were getting very intense.

I wrapped up the first birth, went home, jumped in the shower, slapped myself around a bit and headed off to the birth center. This was at Moxie Birth in Pasadena.

It was a gorgeous sun drenched room, perfect for a peaceful birth.

Active labor wasn’t too long especially for a first time mom! Maybe about 5 hours later, transition hit and it was go time♥

If you would like to see their birth film, I encourage you to listen as well. The audio really makes it all work perfectly.

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We set up a Facetime call with her and her husband. They were such wonderful people. We clicked right away. She asked about my doula services that I combine with birth photography. I explained how being a doulatog works. Turns out that was the service she and her husband wanted. Now, I am newly certified birth doula, but excited and passionate about this important service. If you are curious about what a birth doula does, I have a simple to read blog post explaining it here.

I met with them at their San Diego home as I would with all doula clients. We went over their birth desires and preferences. Some people call this a birth plan, but that tends to create unfulfilled wishes and disappointments. If you have a preference and desire, but keep an open mind if things go a different direction, then disappointment is lessened (generally speaking). We went over breathing techniques, talked about labor stages and what to expect. Practicing labor positions and how her partner was an integral part was also practiced. My job mostly was to teach him how to help her. We stayed together several hours talking about all types of things labor related and personal related.

Finally getting to the hospital

The day had arrived to induce labor. Since the hospital was so full, the date kept getting moved back. Finally at 11pm on August 18th, they were instructed to come in. I met them there at 1am or so and have to hand it to this woman. She did everything under the sun to bring this baby earthside. Her partner was the best as he never left her side.

The Pitocin Drip

They started pitocin soon after arriving at the hospital and slowly increased it over time. Many people think that induction means speeding up the process. While this can be true in some circumstances, more often it is a lengthy process. In this case it was very long.

Complete Exhaustion

Around the 30 hour mark, this warrior mother had had enough. The pain was too much, the labor had stalled and she was exhausted. The baby wasn’t tolerating the pitocin increases, yet without the increase her body wasn’t making the contractions it needed to.

A Cesarean Birth

At 8am she was taken back for a cesarean birth. She wanted it done. The exhaustion was overwhelming and she just wanted her baby girl.

Afterwards

They had a wonderfully happy baby girl and I am so proud of them. I have visited a couple times postpartum and she is amazing. Her parents are amazing and I am so blessed (a way overused word!) to have been part of this. If you would like to see there highlight real, you can find it here.

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A couple things may happen at this point. Either the prices are going to be there or you have to “contact” for the price list. Either way, you get your answer and you ARE BLOWN AWAY. Why on earth would birth photography be so expensive and in some cases rival that of wedding photography? This is the question I am here to answer, but before that, let me explain the why we do this work.

I am going to tell you we all have a passion for birth. We love it and if we could give it away, we would, because we believe it is that important. Alas, it is hard work and we need to feed our families and we need to charge accordingly.

On Call time

Imagine for a moment, someone asks you to photograph their wedding. They give you an approximate date, but tell you in could happen at anytime a couple weeks around that date so you have to be ready. Heck, the wedding can be in the middle of the night, so be ready! Don’t be sleeping the night away or out at a party skunked. It doesn’t matter if we are throwing a birthday party for our kids or it’s Christmas morning, when we get the call that the wedding is now, we must go. We are owned for the 2-3 weeks prior to an estimated date.

Challenging Lighting

Buckle up Buttercup, it’s going to be a dark ride! Ok, so we have grabbed our gear and snacks. We have placed our kids at a babysitter (who by the way are expensive since they are on call too) and rushed to the home/ birth center/ hospital only to see the lights so dim that one can barely make out the zipper on the camera bag.

Going back to the wedding scenario, not only do we not know when the wedding will be, but we will be asked to shoot in the dark, by dimmed light, those twinkle lights and then that dreaded ultra bright spot light doctors use during the delivery.

We, the photographers, need to know how our camera works. We don’t shoot in “AUTO” mode, we need to get creative with shutter, aperture and ISO. Most use full manual mode to create the beautiful images you see. If a flash is used, knowing how to use it is imperative. Most flashes are also in manual mode to burst the right amount of light for a given situation. This flash is bounced and never pointed directly at anyone especially a laboring mother or newborn. Flash is bounced from the ceiling, a side wall or even a wall behind us. We go through great pains for the laboring mother and those attending not to be aware of the flash.

Where do you think that knowledge comes from? For some, how to use a camera comes from schooling. For others, it’s self taught. Equally important is the camera equipment. The camera absolutely needs to be able to handle low light situations and the flash should have manual mode as well. The batteries within the flash should be lithium so each burst of light has the same power and consistency.

The walls might be painted a relaxing earthy green, a calming blue or a combination of colors. What’s the big deal you ask? Well, whether flash is used or not, the dreaded color cast on the birth pictures is a real concern.

Labor Can Be Quick or Take a Long Time

Ok, so we have arrived at the mystery wedding (your birth!), but we have no idea how long we will be there. Labor can be quick or take several hours. Birth photographers stay no matter how long. We aim to arrive when you are in active labor (around 6 cm) and stay around 90 minutes postpartum or after the baby exam. The length of time in between is anyone guess. We may miss birthdays and holidays with our family. We could miss vacation time, recitals, plays, actual weddings, you name it.

As a birth photographer, we may have booked a couple of births within a month. It is not unheard of to finish one birth to begin another right afterwards. Sleep? What is that?

Editing Time

Are you tired of the wedding scenario yet? I hope not, because here we go! Birth is an event as big as any wedding. There are many many hours of editing to do. We are not done because the birth is over. However; unlike a wedding, parents want those images like yesterday. We edit, edit edit. Circling back to the wall color, this can take many hours if we have to edit out color cast from faces. Granted this is more documentary than a wedding is, but the same effort is given to each image.

So There You Have It

As much as we love this genre and believe in it on a visceral level, it is a lot of work. It’s not something we can give away even though we absolutely love it. It is time consuming and technical. I haven’t even mentioned camera costs, flash costs and software for editing. We also have business licenses and insurance to keep current. There are workshops to help us continuously improve our craft, organization dues and website maintenance costs. We are business owners. We love our business, but we need to treat as a business.

So yes, it can be expensive. I fully understand that. But now, I hope you have an idea why.

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A doulatog is the best of both worlds. It’s a winning combination of a doula, providing pregnancy support, and a professional birth photographer. My goal is to support and empower you and your partner in having a safe and positive birth experience.

Having a doulatog eliminates the the number of people attending your birth as well. We all know hospital rooms can get cramped really quick. Homebirth can be the same. A person wearing two hats (doula and birth photographer) can reduce the number of people present.

A doulatog can also help financially. It is a terrible position to want both services but know that a budget only covers one. Having someone schooled and knowledge in both disciplines is a definite win!

If you would like to know more about this service I offer, please take a look at my package page and then contact me today.

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A professional birth photographer understands first and foremost how to shoot in low light. Most home births and birthing center births have low lighting. This is used in order to make a calm birthing space. Hospitals also tend to have low lighting except for the exceptionally bright hot spot light aimed your lady bits. Now that is challenging light! In any case, we need to know how to utilize the light and we need to have the correct gear to accomplish that. For those that use flash (I do), they need to know how to use it correctly as to not disrupt the the birthing person and the birth space energy.

The birth photographer also needs to know where and when to move around. This really comes with time and practice.You should have seen my first birth, I was in everyone’s way! Thankfully, they were all very gracious and I learned. Along the same lines if you are squeezed into a corner, a seasoned birth photographer will know how to work that corner. Trust me, I have been there too.

Finally, a professional birth photographer will make the images look good. What that means, is that we know the angles, the lighting and how to capture it in a way that is tasteful yet authentic. Documenting your story in its entirety is our goal. You are your story. Your partner, your birth team and how your amazing fortitude and strength brought your child to your arms is your story.

If you would like to know more about the birth photography services I offer, as well as pricing, please click here.

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At the end of the crazy year known as 2020, a gentleman from the magazine ShoutOut LA contacted me. He asked if I would like to be interviewed for their start up magazine. I gave them a resounding Heck yea! It seems I always have so much to say! However; they shot me some real zingers that I really had to think about. I had to be brave and really tell my story of how I came to Los Angeles and continued my work as a birth and maternity photographer.

I invite you to read my interview with ShoutOut LA Magazine here

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So 2020 has been a bit of a whammy, hasn’t it? I have really neglected my beloved blog. Being the last day of 2020, it is fitting I make this year in review type of post. The last entry was in July and so much has happened since then! I have had several maternity sessions during COVID.

With hospitals not allowing birth photographers in and birth centers doing a reduction in support people allowed to attend, I have turned my focus to three things.

Doula Certification

The first is I am in the process of getting certified as a Doula. This is something I am really excited about! It not only allows me to grow as a birth worker, but will further my skills in holding space for the laboring person and partner. What does that mean though-holding space? It simply means being physically, mentally and emotionally present without judgement. “The person who is holding space helps set the tone for a kind, curious, and judgment-free interaction where the other person can be vulnerable, and like the term says “have space.” 

Maternity Sessions During COVID

The second thing I have focused on during 2020 is studio maternity photography. Maternity sessions during COVID are alive and well. Several online courses and webinars have led me to really excel in this genre. I have also been entering images into photography competitions which is something I have never done before. Winning a bronze in the RISE International Photography Competition motivated and pushed me to excel.

Website optimization

Finally, I have worked hard on this website. If you are visiting again, you will see it is much faster loading. There was a time for most of 2020 that the website was as slow as this year was long! My invaluable website builder, Tom, has put up with endless emails and phone calls from me and, well, I am incredibly indebted to him for what you are seeing now.

I look forward to a wonderful year ahead filled with growth, love and births!

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Let me start this blog post hoping you are all doing well. I hope you are safe from the virus, enjoying your life and practicing self care. Boy, isn’t that term practicing self care  thrown around a lot and ever so important during this crisis. My hope for you is that you are  doing things that make you feel good and granting yourself grace for the things that are not going so well.

At the beginning of this pandemic, I was on call for a home birth.  I would check in with mom  making sure she was doing well and to make sure she felt I was still essential to her birth. The call came about 9pm on March 24th asking if I had been to any hospitals. I had not.  I had been self isolating because of the order and because I wanted to make sure I was healthy for the home birth. She said that she and her partner were ready for me to join them. I kissed my son goodnight and off into the empty night streets I went.  I arrived a little before the midwife, Catherine of Homebirth Services. While the powers that be may not deem my profession essential, this mother and her partner did and had enough faith in me to come and photograph the birth healthy.

This was my first quarantine baby birth. As I drove, I thought about other births where parents were not going to have the birth they wanted. They were not going to have their birth photographer, their doula and some were not even going to have their partners with them.  I let my mind wander to how this was going to affect birth. How was it going to effect birth photography as a whole?  I wondered if we would see a surge in home births.  As a birth photographer, I love home births. In most cases, they really do tell a larger story.

Here are some images of the home birth. I have also added their highlight reel. I hope you enjoy.

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Happy October!!

While most of the country is getting pumpkin spice lattes and bonfires, here in Los Angeles we are still sitting at the beach. This is where I found myself pondering my own birth. There were many items I didn’t bring. It was like my brain fell right out of my head. It made me think; what are the essential items to bring when having a baby?

Essential Items to Bring When Having a Baby

I put up a Facebook post asking people what they would bring if they could do it all again…here are some of their responses…

“I’m so picky when it comes to pillows, so definitely a pillow or two from home”!–Lauren

“Coins for snacks, comfy but cute clothes and makeup and hair stuff for photos (i was swimming with my first and my water broke and we left right away to the hospital… i had messy chlorine hair lol. a macbook for movies for downtime. my own swaddles or cute etsy swaddles that would be pretty for photos! i love the idea of bringing essential oils, i never had done that but i know how helpful those can be”–Bree

“Cash/checkbook! At our hospital, we had to pay cash or check for the birth certificate and we didn’t remember to bring it!”–Christi

 “I feel like my time in the hospital went so quickly! I sort of wished it had slowed down and I could’ve set up twinkle lights or my diffuser! ? But the item I absolutely missed the most was my pregnancy pillow I had been sleeping with for months! I really wish I had brought it with me!!”–Liz

“Coloring books or more activities for my older kids”.–Sarah

“A doula!!!!!”–Ashley

“A robe!”–Stephanie

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