A portrait from a really special maternity boudoir session

Friends, I get to share a really special story with you today. 

I worked with a client a few years ago for a boudoir session. This client has a huge heart, is a delight to be around, and cares deeply about other people. Working with her during her boudoir session was really lovely! She later shared with me that while she initially did the session as a Valentine’s Day gift for her husband, she felt really empowered afterwards and found the experience to be personally meaningful.

About a year ago, she sent me this email: 

"When I first started planning for my boudoir session it was in hopes of having a special Valentine’s Day gift for my husband. I really didn’t think I would feel so empowered after. A few months later, I became pregnant for the first time and unfortunately suffered a miscarriage. I was devastated and felt like there was something wrong with me. The photos from our session continually reminded me of my strength, as a woman and a wife. It reminds me of joy and beauty in a time when I felt most down and in darkness and continue to struggle with infertility. I got so much more out of that session than I ever could have imagined. I am so glad I will have that memory and those photos for years to come not just for my husband, who adores them, but also for me."

I sobbed reading this. I felt so grateful that we got to work together and so honored that she let me know how much her pictures had helped her during this hard time. I replied to her and thanked her profusely for sharing this with me. 

Fast forward to last fall: this client reached out to let me know that she was pregnant again and expecting a baby! She shared that she felt so happy about this pregnancy and really felt how precious and magical it was. She wanted to do a second boudoir session, this time focusing on celebrating her pregnancy and honoring her pregnant body.

It was such a joyful, happy email to receive!! We did some planning and talked about everything that she was feeling. She shared about how excited she was to create portraits to remember this really special time in her life. 

Even with folks who share a lot of their story with me, I know that I only see a little snippet of their lives -- a small window into what they’re feeling and experiencing. It’s always such an honor when I know the backstory of what makes a client’s boudoir session personally meaningful to them. 

With this client, I knew how much the experience of being pregnant meant to her. I knew how powerful it had been for her to do a session a few years ago, and then to get to do that again in a totally different chapter of her life -- especially having been through some really hard things --  was just so incredible.  

We had a really beautiful maternity session. She had wanted her pictures to feel soft, tender, and loving. The pictures turned out so special! She chose to keep most of them completely private, as they’re just for her -- with one exception. 

She decided that she was comfortable with me sharing this picture and her story. In this picture, the light in her hair, the brick wall behind her, and the contrast of her lace bra with the cozy textures of her sweater all make for really beautiful visual elements. But my very favorite part is that even though you can’t see her face, you can tell from the angle of her hair that she’s looking down and smiling at her baby. 

She was talking to her baby when I snapped this photo. Towards the end of the session, I said that if she was comfortable, I’d back away and take candid photos from a distance while she talked to her baby for a second, telling them how she was feeling, what she was thinking right now, or the things she hoped for them. I zoomed in with my lens so that I could give her plenty of space to just be in the moment without me overhearing.

I love what resulted so so much. It’s a photo, yes, but on that day, it was also a really beautiful moment between her and her baby. To me, this picture embodies the warmth and the tenderness of this session, and knowing the incredible meaning it held for her is the deepest honor. 

To my client: from the bottom of my heart, thank you for trusting me with your portraits and your story. You are such an amazing, kind, and warm person to be around! It has been such an honor to photograph your journey throughout the past few years. Thank you so much for sharing your heart with me.