In all of human experience, there is, arguably, no more transcendent experience than that of childbirth. It has even been said that merely witnessing the process of seeing a child come into the world is itself sufficient to make a person believe in God. Well, clearly the thing is not so cut and dried, since most atheists we know have children, and they remain atheists, nonetheless. But for the rest of us, the idea seems to have a lot of merit. (And besides, we don’t think you need to believe in God in order to believe in miracles.)
A couple experiencing the birth of a child is obviously too immediately preoccupied in those hours and minutes to savor the moment in a remember-able (so as not to say memorable) way. For some it is all over in an hour or even less, for some it takes many hours — in rare cases even days. But either way, the focus must then fall on the cuddly, loveable, miraculous result of your travails, and the culmination of the months of anticipation that preceded them.
The easy availability of photography in our age has changed all that. You can have it all! Those priceless moments in the childbirth process can likewise be preserved for all eternity (give or take), to be relived over and over and over.
Your photographer Amalya delights in the privilege of serving as your Birth Chronicler. It is all about the emotions — so don’t expect to see much if any blood and guts on your photographic birth panorama. (Unless that is what you want, of course, in which case Amalya will be only too happy to oblige.)
Not least, before you know it you’ll have a Not-So-Little Bundle of Joy, who’ll delight in seeing with her (or his) very own eyes that that whole stork story so flippantly bandied about is nothing more than a convenient metaphoric expedient — the palest of substitutes for the true and exciting fiction-could-never-compare account of how the human species renews itself.
In this just-about-perfect world in which we live, we know that complications do nevertheless occasionally arise. Should your almost-newborn decide at the last moment that a Caesarean section is her preferred way to make the grand entrance, we will heartily support that decision, needless to say. In the medical establishment, however, there are varying attitudes and policies regarding the granting of permission to photograph a Caeserean. In such cases we will photograph as much as we possible can, subject to those policies, and we are confident that you will be gratified by the end product, in any case. But we strongly urge you to consult with your doctor and/or hospital administration to determine those details in advance.
In order to guarantee the finest possible results, Amalya limits the labor and birth photo opportunities of her professional practice to only two or three per month. For this reason, it is imperative that you reserve your place as early as possible. Besides, as the big day approaches you’ll have plenty else on your plate to contend with. So call or write Amalya as soon as possible, for the peace of mind of knowing that this unique and indispensable aspect of your birth experience is in place and set to go.
In addition to this blog, please see Albums->Birth in this same Website for further examples of labor and delivery photography.
