Looking back many years later at the experience of birthing at the Civic and having a birth photographer.

This post is inspired by a comment I saw online, “I’m not hiring a birth photographer because I’m having a hospital birth and it won’t be beautiful”. I felt my heart jump forward to the commenter and I wanted to message them and say “Wait Wait!!!

The Ottawa Birth and Wellness Centre offers families a place to birth in Ottawa where they can enjoy many comforts of home, large showers, a beautiful birthing tub and lots of space to move around in their own private room.

Supported by her midwife, doula and partner - these birth photos from the OBWC offer a window into what it’s like to birth at the centre.

...she continued to rest on the bed in the breeze of the fan. The shadows were in beautiful contrast to the slits of light coming in through the curtains. So I turned up my ISO (how sensitive the camera is to light) way up and began.

She rocked and swayed and danced as baby made her way down - and when the pool was filled she settled in to the pool. She trusted her body and moved in ways that her body and baby called for. The room was very dark but a few dim lamps and the light from the hallway.

He was born on the stairs right into Dad’s hands!

A birth photographer will take care of that photo.

When you have a birth photographer at your birth you can be fully present in your experience - you can catch your baby…and I’ll take care of the photos.

There are little details that I see as the photographer that I knew at that moment mattered. The way Dad’s huge hands looked holding such a tiny soft-skinned newborn was heart-melting and powerful.

Imagine sitting on your couch with your children and telling them all about their early years. Sharing images is a great way to come together and tell the stories that make up your family's legacy. Breathe In Photography offers beautiful albums that will last for years and years.

Five images to be sure to capture in the first few hours after birth of your newborn.  Examples from Breathe In Photography - Ottawa Birth Photographer.

Ottawa based Birth Photographer discusses the benefits and experience of having a back up photographer.  Your photos are important, be sure your photographer has a back up.

Birth Photography is about YOUR unique story - the little moments, the connections, the details that make your family yours.  Ottawa Birth Photographer, Breathe In Photography, will capture your child's birthday as it unfolds.

Cesarian Births are photographed by professional birth photographers as often as we are able to.  This short video is a tribute to the beauty of belly birth.  Every birth matters.

How long does it take to see my birth photos? Why wait 6-8 weeks before looking at your birth images? Insight from Jennifer Gillean of Birth Story Healing in Ottawa Gatineau.

Ottawa Home Birth Story:  A precipitous birth and some questions and answers with Mom one year later.

Labour and birth is a dynamic process - almost a choreography between mom and baby. Baby instinctively knows what they need and mom responds, moving her body in a way to help baby...

"Sometimes you will never know the value of a moment until it becomes a memory." - Dr. Seuss wrote it perfectly.  Birth Photography is about more than the moment a baby is born - it's the details, the nuances, the connections.  Here are 12 images that show how the moments fill the story of your baby's birth.

Quite a few months ago, I met with a potential client to get to know each other and to chat about her interest in birth photography. She walked in with that beautiful glow that pregnant women have and she asked me a really important question.

Are you curious about water birth?  Are you curious about using water to manage labour?  Learn more and explore a resource list of birth pool suppliers in Ottawa and Gatineau.

Why am I a birth photographer?  Good question.