Baby G had a speedy delivery at Overlake Childbirth Center in Bellevue, WA. His parents were so excited to meet him, and his new dad was moved to tears. I just love it when the love and joy of a new parent is visible when baby arrives! As a Seattle birth photographer, I understand what a great honor and privilidge it is to photograph the birth of your child! It is no small thing to be invited into your birth space to document the event, and I am grateful for each birth I attend.
Driving to Overlake Medical Center in the middle of the night
I got the call to head to the Overlake Medical Center around 11pm and arrived to the hospital’s pregnancy and birthing center shortly thereafter. The hospital was peaceful and quiet, since I was arriving at such a late hour.
Pro tip: If you need to go to a hospital after normal business hours, just go through the emergency entrance, since the main doors are usually locked at this time.
Baby G quickly enters the world just a few hours after I arrive!
When I arrived to the childbirth center at Overlake, my client was getting an epidural. The new father-to-be was so excited and nervous, and I could see it in his eyes!
The pregnant mother labored a bit longer, and baby arrived at 2am. I think this was one of the fastest births I have been to so far!
The first hour after birth (AKA, the golden hour)
“The golden hour” is the first hour after birth when a newly born infant has uninterrupted skin-to-skin contact with it’s mother. This is so valuable, because it helps to regulate the baby’s temperature, helps to promote breastfeeding and also helps with bonding (oxytocin hard at work!)
I also love getting beautiful photos of the golden hour after birth. These images are so special and will be cherished for years to come!
Finally, some time with an excited new Dad!
This new dad was filled with joy, and he couldn’t wait to hold his new son.
I continued to take birth photo of baby G being measured and weighed. I also got some pictures of baby G getting his footprints taken! Typically, I stay two hour postpartum to make sure I get all of these special moments.
After getting all of the important shots, I headed home. I returned home around 4:30am, and my own family was still sound asleep! How fun to leave after my kids have fallen asleep and return before they even wake up! This has been my shortest birth yet, as most of the births I attend are much longer!
Are you delivering at Overlake Childbirth Center in Bellevue?
If you are delivering on the Eastside in Seattle (or any other place in the greater Seattle area), I offer birth photography and videography for parents who want to remember their birth story. You can even add professional birth photography to your baby registry!
An album filled with beautiful (and tasteful) photos of the story of your child’s birth day make an amazing bedtime story for your child as they age. Birth photos are also a special gift to give to your children when they are all grown as well! I know I would have LOVED to have images of my mother holding me for the first time when I was born. Just to see the look on her face or the emotions she experienced as I was born would be priceless.
Contact me to see if I have availability for your due date. (I take a limited number of births each month, so the sooner your contact me, the better!) Or if you want to learn more about birth photography, what it entails, read some FAQs, and get more details, check out my page on birth photography.
Speaking of babies, if you are interested in baby milestone photography, my colleague Lisa wrote a post about capturing your family’s most important milestones!
Such beautiful documentary work at the childbirth center.
Such incredible moments captured through birth photography!!
These photos are precious! I know the family will cherish these birth images!
These are so gorgeous! That image of baby being held up immediately after being born really gets me! Stunning!