Our maternity photography revels in your expectancy

Many of our families recognize how phenomenal the changes during a baby’s first year are and make the commitment to document the miraculous milestones as they occur, starting with maternity photography in our First Year Collection.

Your belly as a portrait of art

Pregnancy photography captures the beautiful forms of maternity. Photos can highlight the curve of the belly, the arc of the back, the life pulsing through the hands… These are striking elements that create an art portrait. A pregnant belly in the abstract becomes a piece of art, symbolism of maternity. Portraits based on art are common requests, and on what our reputation is built.

Why is maternity photography so important?

We’ve found that pregnancy photography allows Mom to internalize the point where her life begins as a mother. After birth, shapes reminiscent of pregnancy, fluttery feelings in the belly, and that intimate connection with the child inside become a soft memory. A portrait is the perfect way to savor that experience for years to come.

What some of our mamas say:

“My maternity photography session at Campbell Salgado came at the point in my pregnancy where I was feeling huge and pretty uncomfortable. I was self conscious about my body and hesitant to have portraits done. As soon as I entered the studio, I began to relax and to relish in my ‘ripe’ state. They made me feel radiant and beautiful and I quickly remembered what a miracle it was that I had a new person growing inside me. By the end of our time I was completely at ease and ready to show off my big belly proudly. My son is now 8 and my pregnancy portraits hang in his room. They are simply priceless!” — Amy

“I had a really challenging pregnancy and didn’t feel good for much of it. I even considered not getting photos taken as I didn’t feel that pregnancy glow and was concerned the maternity photos wouldn’t turn out well. But, Kim made me feel so comfortable and even beautiful! Now, looking at those photos, I can remember some things I did enjoy during my pregnancy.” — Savannah

“I felt it was so important to document that snippet in time when my body was accomplishing something so miraculous. And also to get to see what my pregnant body attracted from the rest of my family. I only got to see it from the inside, now I can view my portraits of my family around my huge belly and smile with all the memories.” — Beth

“Time stood still while we focused on each other and our baby girls in my belly. Today, our photos bring back those moments in time -joy of living with anticipation of the day our babies would arrive and the excitement of little feet rolling through my belly with my husband’s hand feeling the slightest movements.” — Michelle

“Because this was likely my last pregnancy, I wanted to remember it in a beautiful way. I loved capturing the pregnancy in that anticipation stage of loving our baby already. Seeing my son gaze up at me and loving his sister already. Capturing how large I got while still feeling like a piece of artwork worthy enough to hang on the wall…I show the kids the photos and tell them, ‘This is where love grows, and then we had you!’” — Kimberly

Whom should we include in our maternity photos?

With Original Portraits™ – Signature Series & Associate Edition sessions we compose combinations of subjects that will document the pregnant mama alone, with her partner, and her children. Occasionally, grandparents slip into the maternity photography appointment to express their delight about the family addition.

In Original Portraits™ – Light sessions consider focusing on family images, partner or solo pics. We’ll focus on your favorite groupings for this session.

The Body: Nude, Clothed, Draped

It’s up to you whether you’d like to be nude, wear snug clothing, or be draped with beautiful fabrics in your pregnancy photography session.

If you want to wear clothes, we suggest that you bring:

• clothing that fits snugly across the form of your body.
• fabric choices that allow skin to show through; sheer tops.
• a colored tank top or shirt that bares the shoulders.
• under-the-belly jeans or yoga pants if you like a casual look.
• a button-front or tie-closure shirts to show off your bare belly.
• simple clothes with texture. For example: jeans, layered shirts, hand knits, corduroy, and wraps with a loose weave.
• colored clothing in medium-dark tones.

If you love the artistic look of fabric, have a wide scarf, or body wrap you’d like to try, bring it. Otherwise, we have a variety of fabrics ranging from stretchy knits to romantic, filmy fabrics for your maternity portrait.

Clothes for the kids

We think it’s important to have children’s clothes reflect their personality and age near the arrival of a new sibling. But have fun: tu-tus and superhero outfits can be a delightful contrast in character from the beauty of maternity.

However, keep in mind simpler clothing is better for accentuating your child’s expressions in finished portraiture. Emphasize bare shoulders and arms (sundresses for girls and short sleeve t-shirts with jeans for boys).

If you are not sure, bring a selection of clothes for your kids, and your photographer will help you style the clan.

Clothes for the partner

We prefer people to bring more than one clothing choice to their photo session, it helps us coordinate the backgrounds and mood of the maternity portrait.

Be sure to bring at least one short-sleeve and long-sleeve shirt in different colors. Medium-dark tones tend to work best for these sessions.

Jeans always photograph well but if your partner tends to be more dressy choose slacks in navy, grey or brown.

Got an idea for your pregnancy photography session?

You might be just as creative as we strive to be, and we’re happy to integrate the ideas of parents-to-be with our own. Think fashion: a woman covered in carefully scattered rose petals, dressing in your husband’s shirt, loosely knotted tie and suit jacket with a bare belly peeking out.

Bring fresh flowers, always an artistic touch which can reflect the season of your pregnancy. Large, beautifully shaped blossoms (like lilies, irises, tulips, cherry blossom branches, etc.) have an exquisite effect in black and white photography.