Fairhope, AL Birth Photographer | Baby Boy C

The first time I chat with potential birth photography clients, one question each asks is some form of the following:

"When do you come to the hospital?", "When should I call you?", "How do I know when to call you?"

My answer is always the same - my goal is to be with you, camera in hand, "birth photographer hat on", by the time you're dilated 6 cm - or just before you enter the transition phase of delivery.

I ask that my Pensacola birth photography clients call or text me as soon as they think labor may be starting. This doesn't mean I'll automatically head to where you're laboring and/or delivering. What this does is give me a heads up that today might be the day, and allows me to hear Mom's voice and gauge how she's feeling. For some clients, this call may be a false alarm or the first of several check-ins throughout the day or night, but for other clients, like Alison, a birth photography client in Gulf Shores, AL, that call may come as she's getting in the car, being rushed to the hospital by her husband.

Sometimes labor progresses slowly.

sometimes labor goes really quickly!

Alison warned me at booking that her two previous labors had been very short, so I was on red-alert leading up to her due date with baby number three. I knew that she would have a 30 - 40 minute drive from her home in Gulf Shores, Alabama to where she planned to deliver at Thomas Hospital in Fairhope, AL, and it would take me a minimum of 45 minutes to drive from my house. When Alison called me about 7:30 that morning to tell me she was headed to the hospital, I asked how she was feeling and if she thought I should go ahead and head her way or if she'd rather I wait until she got checked in. She said I should hurry.

* Note* When I'm on call for a birth photography client, the "uniform" I wear for births is always at hand, as well as all of my photography gear, a water bottle, snacks, and cash for the vending machine. (Yes, they go in the car with me anytime I'm out and about during on-call times as well.)

And thank goodness she did! I was changed and out the door in under 5 minutes. Zipping across Baldwin County, Alabama, I arrived at the hospital 45 minutes later (thank goodness for valets) - only 10-ish minutes after Alison and Sean's arrival at the ER. I sprinted across the hospital to the Labor and Delivery elevator. By the time I arrived at their room, Alison was already deep in the transition phase, even though less than an hour before that she had been going about her morning like normal.

But their baby was coming, and he was coming now!

Four minutes after I arrived, Alison's OB arrived from his office next door, only to tell her it was time to have her baby.

Four minutes later, their baby boy was in her arms!

Every pregnancy is different. Every labor is different. Every birth is different.

But I will do everything in my power (and break a few speeding laws) to get to you in time to be the best birth photographer I can be when at all possible (safely).

Another question I'm often asked when being booked as a birth photographer is how long I stay after the birth. The short answer is 1 - 2 hours. The longer answer is: I stay to document golden hour as you bond with your baby. I stay to capture baby's first weight and length and footprints. I stay to capture baby's first latch (if that's the path you decide to follow). I stay to capture your partner's face as they look at you in awe, as well as their first time holding baby. I stay and quietly click away, capturing all the special moments and details while the oxytocin courses through your body as you breathe in your new baby.

And sometimes, when it feels like the right thing to do, I stay a bit longer...