birth :: judah

it was the middle of the night. we knew that when he decided it was time to be born, he would waste no time doing so. so i drove like a speed demon down the dark highways up to the oakes' home north of the city, turning a normally 30+ minute drive into something closer to 20. when i came in the front door, kathy looked up from the work of her labor and said, "you must have flown!," then she got right back to work. 

kathy and ben's older children were all awake, snuggled sleepy and pajama clad on the L-shape sofa around the birth pool, silently watching. ben was right by kathy's side, offering gentle touch and cool drinks, and midwife leslie also hovered always at hand with her confident support.

within 15 minutes it was evident that birth was imminent, and i patted myself on the back for having arrived so quickly so as not to miss it. 

the midwife gently suggested a move to the birth stool because the water in the pool was a bit low and there wasn't time to replenish it. kathy obliged, but sat on it all of two minutes -- all the while pounding her palms onto her knees and saying "uh-uh, uh-uh, no, no" -- before she went right back into the soothing water, and there proceeded to give birth to her son completely on her own. she focused hard, reached down, and delivered him out of her body, through the water, and up to her chest. 

soon she was surrounded by the attentive help of her midwife and assistant and all the children who came closer to see their baby brother.

judah completes this beautiful family. and it was such an honor to be present for his arrival, particularly as i have such history with this couple! i've known kathy since kindergarten, and ben nearly as long, as we all grew up going to the same small private school! we never could have guessed then that we'd be sharing such a moment together in our 30s! :) 

birth :: campbell elyse joy

Crystal reached out to me toward the very end of her pregnancy, having found herself suddenly in need of a birth photographer. I agreed to it and we got all the papers signed and payments arranged, then we set up a date to have early morning tea together so that we wouldn't be strangers in the birthing room. However, our tea date (which was actually scheduled on her EDD because she was so sure she wouldn't give birth that day) was not to be, because she spontaneously went into labor the night before. Instead of having tea, she had a baby! 

Crystal and her husband Steve traveled a long road to get to this little girl. She is so valued and so loved. They named her after Joseph Campbell for his wisdom that has meant a lot to their own worldview, and she shares a middle name with her much older sister, which connects them in an enduring way. 

This thoughtfulness that is so evident in all of Crystal and Steve's choices extended to their preparation for birth. Crystal shared, "I had my dream birth. I credit that to an amazing team, tremendous preparation of mind-body techniques, and luck." A yoga and meditation practitioner, I have to say that I have never seen a woman so centered, present, and in command of herself during labor. Even at the most intense parts of labor she was checking in with her birth team to make sure we were all doing ok. It was astonishing to me, her doula, and her midwife. We were all in awe! 

Crystal birthed her girl with such power and peace, and it was awesome to see. 

Now you get to see a little glimpse of it, too. Crystal shares with me the hope that telling her story and letting others see this portrayal of a mindful, natural birth -- even in hospital -- will encourage women to know that this IS possible. As Crystal said, "I switched to Advanced (midwifery/OB group) at 35 weeks because my care just didn't feel right. I didn't feel empowered or acknowledged by my provider. I would promote for women to seek the care they know they deserve and listen to their intuition."

Also, as a total photography nerd side note: Crystal had a request to have her birth photography done all in color. As you may have noticed, I tend to do mostly black and white for birth photography for various reasons, which means that my editing techniques are down to a science for b/w, but not so much for color (it's quite challenging to get it right, particularly in nighttime births like hers). I'm really grateful to Crystal for "forcing" me to grow and develop a way of editing birth photos in color. This is a tool I now have in my tool kit with much for confidence than before, and I'm not sure it would have happened without Crystal's request! <3

life with a newborn :: lily marie

it's a lucky dad who gets to raise TWO sweet daughters. it's obvious that jason agrees. this excited dad was the initiator of setting up this session celebrating his family's life with two daughters. and i have to say, that as the photographer who almost exclusively gets contacted by women/mamas, this was pretty awesome! i love to see men get excited about documenting their families!

jason and andrea are doing such a good job with the little family they've been entrusted with. they are incredibly present and patient as parents. 

so this is emma, a high energy, goofy 3 year old, and her baby sister lily, just weeks old... along with their awesome mom and dad.. during a typical little slice of time on a weekday evening.

family photojournalism :: the N family

diana and jeff are so easy to be around. every time i see them, they treat me like a familiar friend. their very selves radiate natural hospitality, wherever they are. plus they're funny. and they're raising these three fantastically playful and joyful children. i'm so glad this isn't the first time and probably won't be the last time i've had the honor of photographing them in their natural habitat. 

here's a short little story about an afternoon at home with them. 

personal :: my own family (by Suzanne Gipson Photography)

This is a long post featuring a lot of photos I didn't take. This is my own family, photographed in the way that I strive to photograph others. It's a visual record of this season of life in our home, with all the quirks that that entails. 

Hiring Suzanne Gipson to do these photos was honestly one of the best financial investments we have made this year. Why? Because these photos hold up a mirror to me, showing me with fresh eyes what is always there but which I sometimes lose sight of: all the goodness of God to our family, the gifts He's given us, the redeeming and renewing work He is doing in each of us individually and relationally. We aren't perfect. Gosh, in some ways this year has been one of the more stretching ones, with lots of hard conversations and interactions. But when I see these photos I see that the hard stuff isn't the whole story. These photos create a fresh wave of gratitude in me for the people that I'm living this life with, whom I call my family. 

If I can do something like this for my clients, I will have succeeded. It's what I pray for before every session, guys. It's what drives me as a photographer. 

smile :: the bylsma family

Kristen and Ben and their two boys live south of the city on a working farm, where they grow -- amongst other things -- hothouse tomatoes via a unique irrigation method and keep chickens. They're the early risers, the makers of wholesome local fare, the wrestlers and runners, the humble kind-hearted ones. It's a joy to be in their presence. 

I joined them at sunrise on their farm one October morning and this is a glimpse of the magic that unfolded in their unscripted smile session.