“However motherhood comes to you, it’s a miracle.” ~Valerie Harper
Today I got to meet with two of my colleagues, Landon & Katie Shephard, to meet their newly adopted son, Isaiah. Though we all work at Valencia, today was my first time meeting the Shephard’s and it was such a pleasure to meet their son for his first photo session.
Out of the 38 newborns I’ve photographed in the last two years, Isaiah is only the second baby that I’ve photographed that was adopted. I have to tell you that again, it was one of the most special sessions to me personally and definitely one I will never forget. Perhaps my emotions are still on overdrive since miscarrying last month, but I have always found adoption to be so special. Perhaps in part due to my own challenges over the years with both miscarriages and conceiving and knowing there have been moments Jason and I even considered adopting. I suppose it’s a little more special also in having my youngest sister to have given up her second child for adoption without anyone ever knowing until she had her third child. Until I began photographing newborns I always thought more about my sister’s situation where she found herself as a single mother challenged with how she’d provide for two children on her own with little support. And though everyone in my family wishes she would have come to us to ask for help, I have come to admire the fact that she has given such a special gift to another family who was likely challenged somehow in having a child of their own. So for me meeting with the Shephard’s today was certainly a reminder of how special adoption can be, knowing this special little boy now has an amazing family that loves him so dearly.
From the moment we laid Isaiah down for his first photos I could sense it would be a great photo session. He was very calm, but just a bit unsettled, which is typical when I first begin to photograph newborns. Katie proved to be such a comforting mother early on.
While Katie fed Isaiah he was so content that I was able to capture some pretty awesome macro shots of his little feet.
He was so still that I managed to capture macro photos of his toes too!
At just 10 days old Isaiah was still very curly.
I’m starting to believe babies love to be surrounded by color. Isaiah looked too cute against blue and brown.
And here he is wrapped like a cute little burrito.
The Shephard’s have truly been blessed with such a perfect little boy. I admired his precious little face.
There’s no doubt that this little guy is a miracle.
I was so impressed with Isaiah today, especially after trying to pose him in one of the most challenging positions. I usually try this position every session, but only on a few occasions have I managed to have babies content enough to stay still for a moment to capture the shot. In the past I’ve been known to spend as much as 15-30 minutes alone trying to get a baby into this position. Little Isaiah decided he’d cooperate and we managed to take this photo in only a minute or so of trying. Seeing these really helps us realize how much character this little guy has already.
He seemed quite content in the antique bowl as well.
I’ve had a lot of people ask to see a few photos from behind the scenes at some point during the photo session. Sometimes I know it helps put into perspective what goes into capturing these photos. Hope jumped right in and took a few photos while I was photographing Isaiah.
When we tried the second wrap and bowl Isaiah wasn’t as content. He really wasn’t fussy for us today but he was a little more squirmy when we switched wraps and bowls.
Landon was a huge help today. I really enjoy having fathers in a session as helpful as he was today. With his help comforting Isaiah I was able to capture more photos of Isaiah.
There’s no doubt that Landon and Katie are proud of their new son. He’s definitely loved.
We decided to try Isaiah in another challenging pose, in his daddy’s hand. I’m not so sure we could have gotten “the shot” without Landon and Katie being so helpful and patient.
There’s something so special about seeing such a tiny little baby in his father’s hand. Something tells me the bond between these two will grow tremendously in the months and years to come.
I really don’t need to say how happy Landon and Katie are now that Isaiah is here – it’s so evident in the photos from today.
Even in the comforting moments when Isaiah needed a little extra attention, the love they share with this little boy was so special to see.
And if the session wasn’t special enough already, I just knew the moment they walked in the door that it would be even more special because they brought an adorable little panda for Isaiah to take photos with. Of course my family has just a bit of an obsession with pandas so it just made today’s session that much more special. I was told Katie’s father gave the panda to Isaiah as a gift, after she was given a panda when she was a baby. It was great to see another family with such a special connection to pandas.
Landon & Katie I hope your family and friends enjoy seeing Isaiah’s photos. Best wishes to your family – Isaiah is such a special little guy. I feel very blessed to have had an opportunity to photograph your son.
by Amanda Kern
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