Maternity Portrait With Juliana

Juliana contacted me for a maternity shoot, and I was excited right from the get-go.  It was quickly apparent we had a common vision for how the images should look.

I have to admit, I felt quite a bit of pressure, and became decidedly jittery and nervous during the four days preceding the shoot date.  For starters, Juliana had invested in a really fantastic, custom made plumb-coloured dress.  I wanted to to it some justice!  Also the end of May in Antigonish can serve up some pretty unpredictable weather.  The expected forecast had been back and forth calling for rain, and then not, and then rain again.  At the same time, I didn’t want to reschedule because this baby was coming in just a few weeks.  Weather and babies.  Are any other variables harder to control?

That said, I was excited for the shoot and had very positive expectations about it.

We started in Arisaig Provincial Park for a few images.  The black flies were driving me nuts and attacking my lighting assistant as well.  “They aren’t really bothering me”, answered my very pregnant subject, as she patiently walked around between shots.

Then, we moved on to Arisaig Warf and Beach where we spent another two hours.  It was cool and windy with rough terrain and bramble patches.  Again, not a word of complaint from my serene subject whose attire was not as well suited for the elements as that of the photographer and assistant!

I think a maternity shoot should be about a baby, but also about a mother and child and yet at the same time, it’s the story of a woman and her journey.  This understanding informed my approach to these images.  I hope you enjoy seeing these photographs nearly as much as I enjoyed capturing them.