Brett & Kelly: A Maternity Shoot

Every so often I get asked if I photograph anything besides weddings and engagements. The answer is always 'yes, but I rarely advertise'. See there's a school of thought that aligns itself with the theory that if you project yourself as a generalist, you'll never get taken seriously as a specialist in any given field. I've found that since I stopped promoting myself as a photographic jack (jill?) of all trades and started focusing in on weddings and engagements, I've been able to work on my craft, hone very specific skills, and settle into a niche (a very LARGE niche, but a niche nonetheless). And guess what? I haven't lost business as a result.

On those occasions when I'm asked if I do more than weddings, the follow-up question is usually one that includes a request for maternity/baby/family/corporate/promotional photographs. And if there's room in my schedule, then of course, I'm always on board. I enjoy the opportunity to branch out of my comfort zone, test other waters, and of course, build relationships with others through photography. As of recently, I've been getting quite a few requests for maternity & baby sessions, and since winter is a tad slower as far as weddings go, I've made room to honor a few of these requests.

Some of these shoots will be featured here on the blog, and since I wanted to put some space between featured engagement sessions, I thought I'd go back to an end of summer shoot that took place with our friends Brett & Kelly here in Livermore, California. Enjoy!

Isn't she a total rock star??? Kelly was a natural in front of the camera and is easily one of the most photogenic pregnant women I've ever photographed.

Don't they look great together?! Brett was pretty relaxed in front of the lens as well. They made my job ridiculously easy!

One word about Kelly's dresses: 'ruching' . All that lovely gathered fabric can do wonders for any figure, whether one needs it or not, but what I find myself swooning over in these two B&W shots is how beautifully the ruching leads the eye around Kelly's maternal curves. And both the rings and her necklace punctuate the flowing lines quite nicely. GOR-GEOUS.

(And they're just as fun as they look...we love having them as friends!)

Of course the shoot wouldn't have been the same without a glimpse of their little guy.

And since Brett & Kelly are major baseball fans, we headed to a nearby ball field for a few shots.

This last photo on the right was the result of an idea I had the night before the shoot. Love how it turned out with the white T's! Thanks guys for the awesome shoot. So glad that the little guy is doing well and growing like a weed!

I realise that these photos were all done 'on-site' and would love to hear feedback from viewers/readers as to whether they prefer maternity shoots on-site or in the studio. Which do you favour?