Birth Photo Tips From Your Birth Photographer
>> 5/28/2010 –
Birth
While you are laboring, the last thing you may be thinking about is whether or not you are photogenic at that moment. Who really cares at that point, right?? :) Well, with a little preparation & planning beforehand, your birth photos can turn out better.
Step 1. Wear a black tank top or black sports bra. Imagine that "Little Black Dress" look, only for a pregnant (laboring) woman. Black is always a good color for portraits, and birth is no different. Black is simple, not distracting, and has got style! And black creates contrast between the skin tone of your face and the color (black) of your shirt. Those of you going to the hospital, this applies to you too. You know you don't have to wear that drafty hospital gown, right? Just because the staff wants you to wear the gown, doesn't mean you have to. And leave your shirt on. Unless you want your n*pples in the pictures....?Step 2. Use dark colored towels for when the baby is born. Again this creates contrast and more importantly, draws attention to the baby's face. The baby should be the center of attention, not the blaring white towel or receiving blanket.
Step 3. Leave a light on. Because I desire to be non-distracting at births, I do not use my flash. This does get interesting when a woman is laboring in the middle of the night and wants to labor in the dark. Some women prefer it to be dark, some don't care, it's a personal matter. But just know that if you hire me, and you want to labor in complete darkness, it will have an affect on your photos. So please, leave one light on. The hall light, the bathroom, the closet, whatever, just leave a light on! :)
These are all, of course, my personal recommendations for the quality and well-being of your birth photos. However, it's all a personal matter, especially when it comes to birth. You have your own personal preferences, such as laboring in the dark, or in your favorite t-shirt, or listening to your favorite band, etc, etc. The things I have said here may not be that appealing to your personally, but for your photo's sakes, these are my recommendations.
Step Two. Pick a wardrobe, location, and props that you know (assume?) your child will be happy with. Don't try to make your kid where a hat or headband for a portrait if they've never worn one before. Do pick a location that is interesting and has room for exploring (i.e. running around) in between poses. I will continue shooting while the child explores and we can usually get some really fun shots out of it. Do pick toys (props) that you don't mind them being in the shot with you. Notice the ball in the above picture and the puzzle in the below picture. And please, don't pick bribery snacks that end up running down their faces. Ew.
I recently randomly came across a story about a quilter who was using a discount store fabric. As she neared the end of her quilt, she realized she needed more fabric. She asked around and one of her quilting friends had the same fabric, only the friend's was purchased from a quilt shop. The small amount of quilt shop fabric was noticeably superior (brighter colors, cleaner design) to the discount store fabric! This quilter was agast and embarassed at her own blunder. She said the quilt shop fabric stuck out like a sore thumb! She & her friends now saw the difference between buying good quality fabric, and buying a cheaper lesser quality product. 
I looooove Hazelnut gelato. Ten years ago in Europe, I discovered the smooth heavenly-ness of hazelnut gelato. Love. Love. Love. The bad thing is my local grocery stores don't carry plain hazelnut, they carry Chocolate Hazelnut, which I don't think would be quite the same (I know you chocolate lovers are all appalled that I won't buy it). So when I saw the Whole Foods gift card, I knew exactly what I'd be using it on! (or at least one of the things I'd be buying...) Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!!
You know, I have certain shots that I feel are essential and I try to do them at every wedding, but it's really nice when I try something different and it totally works out. Like the following. I can honestly say this is the first time I have ever done these two shots! 
