I was the first to arrive around 7:20 pm. Followed by the midwife, student midwife, doula and nurse. Christina knew she was in for a difficult labor because even though her baby was facing down, he was not flipped properly. She was incredibly strong the entire time I was there. I've never seen a birth outside of my own sons so it was a whole new perspective. Having my son made me want to document the birth process because there are so many moments that lead up to the actual birth.
Christina spent time laboring in the bedroom as well as in the living room. She ended up in the birthing tub about halfway through where everyone took turns boiling pots of water and adding it to the tub to keep her warm. After a while the midwives had her get out of the tub to try some leg motions to try and help the baby rotate. At that point the midwives encouraged me to go try and get some sleep downstairs. I went downstairs but at that point I had consumed 3 cups of full caffeinated coffee, which I'm pretty sure I haven't done since college. So I was A W A K E. I started getting a little sleepy around 5:00 am and it was shortly after that Christina decided she wanted to head to the hospital.
At that point I went home since I knew from then on it was going to be a time for close family and medical professionals only. I feel so fortunate that I was able to be a small part of this birth. And while I didn't end up witnessing the actual birth, it was still incredible to see how powerful and strong women are. Her support system was also incredible. Jessica, her doula, was on Christina the entire time. Massaging her, encouraging her and just being an overall calm presence. Justin was very strong and stoic the entire time. I can't imagine how difficult it is to see the person you love the most in pain. He too was close to Christina helping her through, and it was a beautiful thing to capture.
I was incredibly nervous and full of adrenaline and emotion the whole time. In a normal family session I will shoot anywhere from 200-300 photos in an hour. Let's be real, kids move fast so I shoot a lot. But over the 10 hours I was there for the laboring process I only shot 189 photos. I tried to be as non-invasive as possible and make every photo count. I wanted to go unnoticed if possible. If you've ever been interested in Birth photography but thought it was just a gore-fest, take a look at these and they will change your mind.
I have already booked my second birth for February and I am so excited. I never thought this was a direction I would go in but I am looking forward to this new adventure. Thank you again to Christina and Justin taking a chance on me and for allowing me to capture this very precious time.
