Cape Town Birth Photographer » blomerusphotography.com

Its still surprising to me, and it might be to you. Many of my followers and then prospective clients have lived through years of infertility or loss. Its surprising to me the sheer volume of couples living with this reality. Its more common than any of us think. Its surprising to me that they follow birth stories, and (through the sting) celebrate these new baby arrivals. That’s a remarkable amount of maturity. I just want to say, I see you and if ever your day comes, I would love to document your birth story.

Sarah really wanted to share her story with the world, both in celebration and if it was at all helpful to another person. It was recently published in Your Pregnancy Magazine and now I’m publishing it here for you to read or share. Its remarkable the long fight and the surprising discovery she made along the way.

I share this story with caution. I don’t want to be one more person in your life that says something careless and ridiculous like, “Just have a glass of wine and relax, then it will happen or put an essential oil on!” I know you have tried just about everything. You might be exhausted from trying.

This is not a prescription for what works. It is simply her story. It takes vulnerability to share it publically.

Here it is with the imagery of the day they finally met their long-hoped for, long-awaited, long-loved daughter.

I’ll let Sarah take it from here:

Find a partner, get married, have a baby! Easy right? Not so much! After 9 IUI’s, 6 IVF’s, 5 donated embryos and a sperm donor we were down and just about out!

We used to sit in the fertility clinic waiting room and joke about potential baby names that would befit the journey that we had been through. Names like Persevere and Nevergiveup were at the top of our list!

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If you have followed me for years, you might recognize Tracey as the mom of Parker-Grace. Here’s that birth story. If you are new here, meet Tracey from the Milk Memoirs, one of Cape Town’s best and most keep-it-real bloggers. If you have never read her blog, you are missing out! She is so honest and approachable. You will nod your head in recognition and from time to time snort out laughing. She holds nothing back. Her birth stories are a great place to start if you like reading those. She’s also blogged most of this pregnancy, including the honest emotional process of a gender reveal that didn’t go as hoped with kid expectations. You will enjoy pouring through her blog. It’s one of my favourites.

The goal was to actually post this session before Tracey’s birth. But like all third babies, they tend to be wild cards and surprise everyone. The day I was supposed to post this, wouldn’t you guess it, was the day she went into labour.

So here we go much later than planned. We headed out to Silvermine, braved the cold, and documented their expectancy. Their family of four soon to be five. The light was perfect, the wind held off (unlike the last time), and they brought their beautiful relationships for me to capture. Any kissing moments? Those aren’t directed by me, that’s the girls egging it on! Tracey was capturing it on her phone behind the scenes. It was a blast, and I hope they keep making babies.

That’s one thing that really stood out to me in post production of this shoot. Their daughter’s personalities are vivid and honest and unique to each of them in almost every frame. This is what I love about including children in a maternity session. You are capturing this chapter in the story, and their little bodies and honest faces such a perfect mile-marker. I assure you that Tracey’s blog about this session is even better than my own – go check it out!

Mini-maternity sessions are offered complimentary with all my birth packages. Its 30 minutes, quick for the men or the kids (like ripping off a plaster…), one location, and 15 gorgeous high quality images for you to treasure long after you are done being pregnant. Or if I’m fully booked for births, I do offer a select number of maternity/newborn combo packages. Inquire here.

My thanks to Jasmine Selembo for her on-location assistance.

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The journey from pregnant to parents is one I specialize in capturing. I know its full of joy, trepidation, expectation, and blur of time gone too fast. Before you know it you are so deep in toddler land, this chapter is gone!

I documented this family’s complete journey from pregnancy, to birth, to their life with a newborn.

Here’s their soft and overcast Kirstenbosch Botannical Gardens maternity session. If you’ve dreamed of a session here, there are s0-many-incredible backdrops and it changes with the seasons. Its not called Africa’s most beautiful garden for nothing.

Then we move to their Bishops Court nursery with gorgeous wall art and natural tones. We did their whole newborn session in there. Nurseries and bedrooms make the perfect backdrops for getting beautiful photos at home with your baby. No need to go anywhere. Their dog even joined in too, because yes pets are welcome!

If you are expecting and I’m fully booked for births or birth photography isn’t quite your thing, you can always book maternity/newborn sessions with me like this one. All of my packages include most gorgeous luxury heirloom album for you to enjoy all your photos off your screen and in your hands. Inquire here.

Enjoy this couples’ images. My thanks to them for hiring me.

Maternity Session gratitude: Kerry Reddiar Make Up Artistry and Stephanie Chesterman for her on-location assistance.

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The glamorous #LifeofABirthPhotographer includes false alarms. I got a quick no filter #ElevatorSelfie a few weeks ago on my way out from a hospital after being sent home because “today was not the day”. This is one of the many ways where birth photography departs from other forms of event photography. Imagine your wedding photographer dashing to your wedding with no-notice only to discover it will be another day (to be determined)? When I am hired by a birth client, my packages include my *unlimited* time from active labour until 2 hours post baby being born. This means sometimes its 6 hours. Sometimes it’s 70! I believe in a premium service. Sometimes it’s running out to be sure “not to miss it” only to realise it was a false alarm in the end. This is always included at no extra cost because I build these factors into my packages.

It’s already a bummer for a mom to think her baby was on the way and then realise not yet. She doesn’t need the added stress of feeling like her birth photographer isn’t 100% on her team. I use good communication with a client and my instinct to hold back sometimes and not come when it seems too early. I also use my instinct to dash out when that little alarm is going off in my head. I have had many clients call me to say “come now!!!!”, then shocked to find out I am already downstairs in the hospital cafe knowing that call was coming. It’s taken years of experience to get to a point where I really trust my instincts and rarely get it wrong. That said, I still sweat it every-single-time.

It’s taken years of experience to get to a point where I really trust my instincts and rarely get it wrong. That said, I still sweat it every-single-time. Oh, and I got a new colour of scrubs for my collection. Fun to mix it up a bit. For more behind the scenes check out #BehindTheScenesWithMarysol on Instagram. I’m sharing a ton over there.

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In an effort to spotlight exceptional birth professionals for expectant parents researching their options, I’ll be interviewing some of the best I work with (see the complete on-going series here).

We have incredible midwives in Cape Town, but not nearly enough. Every woman should have access to a midwife if she desires one. So as a general rule, if you are hoping to hire an independent private midwife, you should contact them early. They tend to book up quickly because they support fewer births a month than an obstetrician would. This is because they support a woman side by side throughout her whole labour, delivery, and just after birth, which requires more hours than just being present for the delivery. Independent midwives are specialised in low-risk natural births.

Meet Susan Lees. She is a 3rd generation midwife. I’ll let her share more about that. She has a wealth of experience and constantly educates her patients through the process of childbirth.

I’ve watched her at work. She doesn’t steal the show or make it about her. She’s like a pillar of strength, guidance, and reassurance upholding a woman who sometimes might not feel she can do it. She often infuses confidence to her client. Watching her work makes your heart ache, it’s so beautiful. 

If you are interested in Susan (with Birth Options Midwifery) being a part of your birth team, here’s how to contact them.

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  • Shanaaz Tito

    Hi, I have 3 children,
    My first, a girl was a normal vaginal delivery at 40weeks weighing 3.12kg,at the age of 20,
    2 years and four months later i had my second, a boy at 39weeks 6days via emergency c section weighing 3.7kg, doctors said he was to big to come out normally.
    My third, another girl also via c section, born at 37weeks weighing 3.070kg, reason for this c section doctor thought she was going to be bigger.
    My question, i would really really like to experience another normal birth, i know no doctor will accommodate me because i have had two c sections already. What advise do you have for me? Do you think it is possible to have another normal birth?ReplyCancel

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    […] care provided by Susan Lees and Angela Wakeford of Birth Options Midwifery Team, who yes, can practice at Tokai Melomed if you […]ReplyCancel