Yesterday I had the distinct honor of documenting Marianne and Ryan’s maternity pictures at Cleveland Museum of Art. I photographed Ryan and Marianne’s wedding at Stan Hywet in 2012.
Not many people see me as a maternity photographer. I’ve marketed myself so well as a wedding photographer, that when folks need maternity photography or family photography, they don’t even consider me.
This was apparent when past bridal client, Marianne, contacted me to inquire if I knew of anyone that could document the birth of her and her husband, Ryan’s first child. My first thought was “I can totally do that”. I’ve written about it -HERE- on my blog post about the birth of my second son, Simon.
I realized that, even though we had a great experience together, and Ryan and Marianne continue to refer their friends to me, they never saw me as anything other than a wedding photographer. When I first started out, nearly 20 years ago, that was my intention. Hyper focused on weddings and weddings only. But as I’ve progressed as a photographer and an artist, I realized that I was limiting myself and my work. So I started pushing family photography, baby photography and now, birth photography.
I strongly believe in providing my clients with the best that I can deliver. That is why my birth photography is all inclusive with a maternity session, the day of the babies birth, and a newborn session. My clients don’t need to sacrifice the birth photography because they want maternity pictures. No need to eliminate birth pictures because you want newborn pictures. Everything all in one package.
Weddings are still my first love, but I will take limited sessions for families, maternity, and babies.
I am super excited to meet Ryan and Marianne’s new one next month and I’m honored to be the one to document it’s first moments on our planet.