You don't have to birth in the hospital for you first in order to "see how it goes".

As a mom who also had her first at home, a first-time mom who plans to birth at home will always have my heart.

I love this birth story for many reasons, but I want to talk about something that this birth had, that many of my inquiries face: the husband who doesn't want photos.

I was hired to photograph this birth a mere week before she went into labor.

Upon getting to know her at our consultation, mom expressed to me how her husband had not been on board for birth photography, and she had been begging for practically her entire pregnancy. But this isn't uncommon in my line of work - many men find the prospect of having yet another person in the birth space intimidating. Will she get in the way? Will it make this intimate experience feel awkward? All totally valid thoughts and reasons to not want someone in their space during this sacred time.

But something happened in those final weeks of pregnancy;

As you will hear for yourself - dad said he changed his mind when he finally realized just how important these images would be for his wife.

There was a moment after birth when they were cuddling in bed, where dad looked up at me and expressed how happy he was that I was there to capture all of those moments. He confided in me that he hadn't originally been comfortable having a photographer at the birth (a stranger he had not met yet, no less) but remarked that he hardly noticed my presence at all and that none of his actual fears or reservations about having me there came to fruition.