I enjoy maternity sessions where moms-to-be bring in their significant other, their kiddos, their mom or dad, or even a squad of best friends to cheer them on! Having people in the studio can help moms feel comfortable, and it can be helpful to me when it comes to moving props and maternity gown trains. But there’s something special about a solo session with moms. Somehow, the sessions feel a little less rushed and a little more personal for mom. Plus, it lets me get to know a little more about the moms that I would with others around. Taylor’s solo maternity session was a truly personal session that allowed me to connect with her with full color and black and white maternity photos.
Here’s a peek into her maternity session!
A Natural Beauty
I love Taylor as a person. She’s warm and vibrant, and it was so nice to get to know her during this maternity session. I also loved Taylor’s gorgeous, naturally red hair. I wanted to really highlight her natural beauty, including her hair, and this dress was just the ticket. A pale white-green with eucalyptus accents, the subtle green brought out the red in her hair.
For the background of the photos, we went with a plain background with no pattern. This brought out the textures of her dress and her hair.
As you can also see, coming solo to the studio didn’t hinder Taylor from getting dramatic shots with the train of her dress. Normally, another person would hold the train and drop it for her. Then, during edits, I’d edit out the person who dropped her train so it looks like the train is flowing through the air on its own. For Taylor’s session, I just left the train drop as is. The result was some serious fairy princess vibes.
But we didn’t really need to do too much fairy princess posing for Taylor to look absolutely stunning.
She did that well enough on her own!
Bold Colors On Black & White
We eventually moved on from the natural greens and coppers and on to a bolder maternity gown. I like to give my clients a few different types of gowns to change into throughout their maternity session. This allows the moms-to-be an opportunity to showcase different sides of their personality.
Was that ever the case with Taylor! While the white and green eucalyptus maternity gown had a calm, ethereal feel to it, this red maternity gown brought all the spice. I especially love this look she gives to the side of the camera. It begs the question, “why can’t maternity photos be sexy?”
Full Black & White Maternity Photo Elegance
Taylor’s maternity photos weren’t complete without a set of black and white photos. I enjoy including black and white photos in maternity sets, because it steps up the feeling of elegance.
For black and white, lighting and contrast is key. You can see between these two photos that lighting can make a difference in the feel of the photo. The above photo has a lot more bright white light, whereas the photo below has more stark shadows. How do the lighting differences change the emotions of these photos for you?
Although we can use colored or patterned fabric for black and white photo shoots, black and white colored clothing does a wonderful job of providing contrast. Just look at this photo below of Taylor in a black dress. Even though the photo has no color, you can see the contrast on the dress.
I also wanted to make sure that Taylor’s hair got the highlight, even in her black and white photos. It’s just too pretty to ignore. To do this, I positioned a light above her head, which cast a shadow on her waves and also brought out the texture of her hair.
These black and white photos were a personal favorite for me. They emphasized some of the things I like the best about maternity photography — documenting not only the maternity period, but also the raw confidence and beauty of moms to be.
Thanks to Taylor for letting me share her maternity photos. Click here to book a session at Hello Photography!
