We woke up with the sun on this gorgeous late summer morning to capture Joanna's maternity portraits at one of my favorite places to shoot, Waveny Park in New Canaan, CT. With a 6:30am start time, we hit the peak of golden hour during our session. 

I always recommend that my clients wear what they are most comfortable wearing and in this case, I asked Joanna to stick to neutral colors, natural fabrics, and light tones, and to bring a change of outfits to show off that adorable baby bump. Joanna is very petite and was only 6 months pregnant during this session so we tried poses that displayed her little belly best to capture this beautiful moment in her life. Her skin was glowing and she was a natural in front of the lens as you can see by the gorgeous shots we got.

While waiting for Joanna to arrive and testing my settings early in the morning at Waveny Park, I wanted to share the gorgeous natural surroundings during golden hour. I used my 70-200mm f/2.8 to shoot the almost perfect half moon during the sunrise, cropped to fill the frame.

We couldn't have asked for better conditions and scenery for a memorable session full of beautiful keepsakes.

We started in the fields surrounding the park for Joanna to pose in the long grasses and then moved onto the oriental gardens to capture more intimate shots against the floral backdrop, backlit by the golden sun rising. I primarily used the Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8 for these shots to create a flattering look and delicious bokeh for the natural backdrops . I focused on Joanna's eyes to make sure every image was tack sharp and also on the baby bump for the closeups. 

I choose to shoot during golden hour so I don't need to use artificial light. I love playing with the natural light in my photographs so I schedule my sessions either an hour after sunrise or an hour before sunset. This was my first shoot with Joanna and we had such a great time. I look forward to working with her again and wish her a very happy & healthy pregnancy for the remaining months and a speedy & safe delivery. God bless! 

Joanna was gorgeous and an absolute natural in front of the camera - striking a pose here and there, making my job easy.

“Natasha, I want to thank you once again for doing such a great job this morning. Not only for making me feel comfortable and beautiful but for also being so patient and kind. You really made this such a special moment for me. I’m glad we met and I hope to work with you again down the line! Can’t wait to see all the shots.

— Joanna

I am in love with the light in these maternity portraits. The way the sunlight catches the hair adds so much to these images. 

I wish Joanna a happy & healthy pregnancy and delivery. I cannot wait to meet your son when he arrives in February and am so looking forward to your newborn session. Until then, take care and thank you for having me a part of this special moment in your life :)

“I cannot begin to tell you how in love I am with these pics. They are so amazing and I can’t imagine them possibly looking any better. Thank you SO much for doing such a beautiful job and I can’t wait to have you do Julian’s first shoot too!!

— Joanna