A beautiful birthday
After photographing my first labor & delivery(check it out here: http://www.baumanimages.com/blog/2016/4/6/happy-birthday-to-you )I felt like I learned a lot. I was able to take that experience & felt I would be better prepared & be able to capture the next one with more skill, more knowledge, & more peace of mind of what I was asked to be a part of for the next family.
When someone comes to you & asks you to capture one of the happiest most vulnerable days of their life it's an amazing experience, when they come back a second time it's truly an honor. Well as it turned out my second labor/delivery was for the same family & nothing could have prepared me for it.
Why do I say that? Mostly because life doesn't go as we plan sometimes. We can imagine how things are going to go, & we often times like to think we are in control but that's not reality. Reality is epidurals sometimes don't happen. Reality is babies don't always arrive perfectly pink & crying at the top of their lungs. Reality is sometimes it's obvious that even medical professionals aren't in control & the only one who is, is Jesus. Is there a brand new beautiful, healthy little girl here now? Yes. Do the pictures I took tell a little bit of their story, & what her birthday was like? Yes. But it was in the moments leading up to her arrival, and the eerily quiet few minutes after her birth that my images, & my words can't describe. So I'm not going to try.
What I will describe is what I, as the photographer, as a fly on the wall, saw that day was strength. I watched a couple unite in a way that still brings tears to my eyes, as the reality of what she was going to have to do without the anxiously awaited epidural sank in. I witnessed a young, powerful woman display insane amounts of strength without ever losing a drop of her natural beauty & grace. And I witnessed God's complete sovereignty as He breathed life in to a precious child. Her first breath quite literally took everyone's in that room away.
So here are some images from that day. Sweet Roeh's birthday was intense to say the least & my images will never convey the emotion & reality that took place in that room. But I hope that for Matt & Ashley they will be a wonderful reminder of that day. I hope they will be able to look at these pictures and remember the way God gently whispered I've got this, I've got you, & I've got little Roeh in the palm of my hand.
It was a beautiful day to experience with this family, & I am once again completely in awe of the miracle of life. Happy birthday to Roeh Jordan. Her newborn images will be coming soon, so check back in a week or two!
Enjoy!