Maternity to labor/delivery...

[danchez]

OK, one of my maternity clients has asked if I would document the labor/delivery aspect also. I don't have any kids, never been in a delivery room... What can I expect?

Anxious,

[reader0428]

You can expect, after a certain pain threshold has been crossed, for the wife to tell you to get the hell out. :)

Seriously, every labor and delivery is different. It all depends on the temperament of the woman giving birth. I have two kids and I tend to be a pretty calm person so both deliveries were fairly low-drama affairs. It also depends on the woman's philosophy toward childbirth - what her expectations are for how she wants to deliver, whether or not she choses to have pain medication or an epidural, etc. The best thing to do is watch several episodes of "A Baby Story" on TLC - that will give you a pretty good idea of what goes on in the delivery room. :)

In any case, it will be a highly emotionally charged atmosphere and you'll need to do your best to stay out of the way. Whatever you can do to avoid popping a flash in her face every 10 seconds would be good too. :) Good luck!

[danchez]

Thanks for the info, this is her 6th child, she says she has never had an epidural and is not planning on having one and I wasn't planning on using a flash at all.

[TXAvi8tor]

Is the delivery to be in a hospital, a birthing center, or at home? Depending, you may need to check with the facility / delivery team ahead of time.

Planning to shoot available light is good from the standpoint of not reminding everyone that you're shooting, and you have an experienced mom, so barring delivery complications, she should be the least of your problems. A Dr or midwife who isn't expecting your presence could be a much larger issue.

[MicWayWal]

Labor and deliver photography is like combat. A lot of boredom surrounding moments of sheer terror. I like it. It is a lot of excitement. Be ready to go 24/7 especially the middle of the night.

Labor rooms look like most other hospital rooms. Lighting can be simple lamps to large fluorescents. Most people opt for the softer light. The room can be large for mom, dad, nurses, doctors, and maybe a couple of guests, to very small doctor's office type of rooms. A lot of standing around waiting. Doctors, nurses, and family coming and going constantly. Being the 6th child, labor can be very quick. Find out how long the 5th labor was. It will give you some idea of how long you will have for labor.

Delivery rooms, depending on the hospital, can be simple hospital like rooms or rooms ready for simple surgeries. There is plenty of bright light for the delivery room. Delivery will happen quick for the 6th. Be ready to rock and roll. When the baby comes out, it is like a battle in a war; you don't know where to shoot next. Find out from the nurses what the protocol is for the hospital. They will let you know what happens and where it will take place.

God forbid it, but If something goes wrong and they decide to do a c-section, they will whisk mom out of the room in a matter of a seconds. A couple of times I have been there when emergency was required, they didn't wait to get me out of the room, they just unplugged the mom from all the connections and flew out of the room. I was left standing there with the family. If that happens act fast.

Good luck.

[danchez]

It is a birthing center, I was going to call them today to find out if there were any restrictions.

Michael, wow, lots of good info... Once she asked me, I put together a "go fast" bag. All my gear is charged and ready to go, I am just waiting for the call.

[suerenee]

Watching tv documentaries about labor is a great tip. I know I watched them when I was pregnant and they are pretty accurate.

Just make sure you are aware of her body as you shoot the actual delivery. 9 years ago tomorrow I gave birth to my 2nd child. The nurse was wonderful and took pictures with my camera. When we got the film developed my father in law picked them up for us. I was horrified to see the photos (after all the men in the family) because there were pictures where you could see EVERYTHING--eek! I think the excitement of the moment trumped the modesty I was desired. Thankfully in the digital age you can crop and delete :)

[danchez]

One of the things we talked about was what kind if images she wanted. I asked if she preferred a modest approach. She said she wanted some taken from the catcher position while the baby was actually being born/delivered. So it sounds like I am going to be in the trenches. ha ha ha.

[reader0428]

Should be very interesting! And a birthing center will be a much different atmostphere from a hospital. From what I've heard from friends who have had babies at birthing centers, it's much more home-like and relaxing, less clinical. +1 on Michael's advice to ask about her past labors. With my first baby we were at the hospital for 12 hours before he was born, #2 came three hours after we got to the hospital. Definitley be ready to go at a moment's notice!

[seamonkey03]

The main thing is going to be for you to always be aware of your surroundings. There's going to be wires coming out of every kind of monitor and power cords for incubators, etc. Then, once pushing starts, act fast. If this is her 6th kid, she'll probably only push a couple times, i.e. 2-3 minutes once pushing starts. This is the important time to keep aware. Nurses are going to be running everywhere. Put your camera on burst, find an angle, snap it a few times, and then get to looking to see if you're in someone's way. And I 2nd (or 3rd, whichever we're on) the watching TLC a little bit. I'm sure it'll be different in real life, but at least you won't be completely shocked by what you're seeing. ;-) Good luck!!

[shannaleigh]

At a birthing center, you won't have to worry about monitors, incubators, or nurses running around everywhere ;-) I shot a birth at a birthing center this past March and I was able to find a ton of videos on youtube to prepare me by searching for home births/birthing center births. One thing to be mindful of is that since you'll be at a birthing center, she can give birth by candle light if she darn well feels like it so that may be something you want to discuss with her before the actual event.

Here's my blog post from the birthing center birth I shot :
Shanna Leigh Images The Birth of Olivia Rose (aka my most exciting, AMAZING shoot ever!)

I shot everything with available light so that I could remain as unobtrusive as possible. I don't even have kids and still, it was truly a life changing experience for me! Good luck to you :-)

[danchez]

got the call this morning, took a ton if images.... I'm still trying to process what happened.... I got there and things were smooth and calm. Was there for about 2 hours with not much change. Was helping her 12 year old daughter with a sudoku when all of a sudden she(mom to be) took a very deep breath and very angrily said "get the Dr. in here now...." Next thing I know Dr. and about 5 nurses came in, I'm snapping away and blamo, kid is out, daughter is crying, mom is relieved and laughing and I have no idea what just happened.... I got some tremendous images, some beautiful true emotion shots of the daughter and the mom. All in all is was an experience I wont soon forget. A question for everyone that has had kids, are all husbands/boyfriends that useless in the delivery room? I felt kind of bad, this poor guy couldn't do anything right. ha ha ha.