Tips For Taking Your Own Birth Photos During COVID-19
Last week, I posted on my social media accounts a few tips for taking your own newborn photos while you don’t have access to a professional photographer due to the current coronavirus pandemic. Today, I want to elaborate a little and help you capture some of those important images during your time both in and out of the hospital/birth center! I’ll be posting this in two parts (Birth and Newborn), but today we will just be focusing on birth photography!
Let me first preface by saying, you do NOT need a fancy camera to get beautiful photos. If you own a DSLR camera, great! If you don’t, no problem! Phone cameras are AMAZING these days (um hello portrait mode) and knowing a little bit about how to use the tools you already have will help you achieve better photos.
When I gave birth to my kids, I didn’t hire a birth photographer because it honestly wasn’t on my radar at the time. I did ask my sister to take photos with my first, and for the others we handed the camera to one of the nurses in the room. And guess what..I have some absolutely beautiful photos from my deliveries! Some might be a little blurry and out of focus, but I don’t even care! Because those images are some of my most treasured photos I own and they bring back memories and emotions from three of the most important days of my life. Do I wish I would have hired a professional? Absolutely! (I plan to write about this later). But if it’s not in the budget or if you literally can’t have a photographer in your delivery room, then taking your own is still a great option!
Here are some ideas to help you prepare for and capture your own birth story without a professional photographer.
Prep
In the weeks/days leading up to your delivery, make a list of shots you would like to have captured on that day. I would suggest breaking it down to 2-3 categories. At the top put your “essential” photos..the ones you definitely don’t want missed. Below that, list some important shots that you’d love to have if possible. And lastly, put the ones that are still important to you, but not “must-haves”. Then PRINT IT OUT! Print multiple copies. Place it with the important papers in your hospital bag or staple it with your birth plan. Putting in this extra bit of work means you can hand this over to a staff member, and you can focus on your labor and delivery! Include the important shots, but try and keep it on the shorter side. Hopefully the staff will be willing to help, but keep in mind they do have a job to do. Worst case scenario, your partner will have the list to refer to if there isn’t a staff member available to be the photographer.
Here is an example of what I would put on my own list! Feel free to use this as a guide and add/remove what you would like on your own list!
If you are planning to use your cell phone, make sure you have plenty of storage left! Go ahead and move all those old photos and videos off your phone and onto a computer or external hard drive to make room! If you have an Amazon account, download the Amazon Photos app and utilize your free photo cloud storage! Don’t forget to pack your cell phone charger (and maybe an extra one if you’ve got it).
If you are using a camera, check that the battery is charged and your memory card is cleared. Make sure you put the battery and memory card IN YOUR CAMERA and pack it in your hospital bag. If you have an extra battery or card, bring them too!
Day of Delivery
When you arrive at your birth place, go ahead and get that list out. Ask your nurse if she or another staff member could please be in charge of photos at the moment of birth. Let them know you have a list to help them know what images are most important to you to capture. Don’t feel bad asking them either. As a former OB RN, I can assure you that our hearts break for you that you aren’t getting the full birth experience that you imagined. Most labor and delivery nurses I know would love to take the role as photographer for a little while if they are able to. If there isn’t an available staff member who can take on this role, your partner/support person can utilize the list to help remind them what to try and capture.
While in labor (or while waiting for your c-section), look around the room and snap some pictures of the little details - the medical equipment, the straps on your belly, dad waiting on the couch, etc. When I’m photographing a birth, I’m constantly scanning the room for anything that helps tell the story of the day.
Another idea while you are waiting is to turn your phone on video and film some little clips! Talk about you feelings, your hopes and dreams for baby, what you think he or she may look like..anything that comes to mind! You could even get a little clip of the sound of baby’s heartbeat from the monitor!
A Few Extra Tips
Here are a couple more tips and tricks for you:
-If it’s daylight and you have a lot of available natural light from a large window, try turning off the hospital lights. You should notice the lighting on your camera or phone screen will be much more pleasant.
-Turn off your on-camera flash (unless you REALLY need the extra light). A camera flash pointed straight at your subject will make for unflattering light/shadows
-If you only own the kit lenses that came with your DSLR camera, use the one that has the lowest number in millimeters (mm). For example, if you have an 18-55mm lens and a 70-300mm lens, choose the 18-55mm. If you happen to own any prime lenses (like a 35mm or a 50mm), those may work better because they will be able to let in a bit more light than a kit lens.
-Set the date and time on your DSLR camera. This will give you a timestamp on each photo and help you remember the timeline of the day later on!
-If you aren’t getting good photos with your DSLR camera, put it away and use your phone! Phone cameras are pretty incredible these days and do surprisingly well in low light! You don’t want to be worried about fiddling with camera settings if you can easily just point and shoot with your phone!
-For video using your phone, remember to turn it horizontally.
Final Thoughts
Overall, the most important part of this day is the birth of your baby! Try not to stress over getting the perfect photos. Even if you only manage to get a few, those few photos will be forever treasured! Hopefully these tips will give you some guidance and help you to capture at least a few big moments throughout the day. But more than anything, I want you to live in the moment and soak in everything from this day!
Malorie is a Baton Rouge, LA area photographer and focuses on maternity, birth, newborn and young family photography. If you would like more information on how you can book your session, please click here or you can e-mail me directly at maloriesitarphoto@gmail.com.
