My Recent Maternity Photoshoot

In my last post I mentioned that I was going to do a maternity photoshoot now and then again later when I was further along because how you're going to look and feel is not promised as your prgnancy progresses. Well,  a few weeks ago I shot at Venture Studios in Knightsbridge UK with my husband and then did a bunch on my own.  My photographers name  was Jennifer, ironic- and she was amazing. She made us feel so comfortable and had some great ideas that we bounced off each other to create what I think are some of the best maternity pics I have ever seen... and I'm not just saying that because their mine LOL.  Venture Studios is a great company BUT, I must say I wasnt happy with the packages they offered after the shoot and I should have done my homework and looked into it further before I decided to shoot. Heres why-
As a studio they are amazing. Their equipment is state-of-the-art, they are all knowledgeable of the different lighting techniques and so on...The outcome was AMAZING but when you want prints of the gorgeous pictures you just took, you can ONLY choose their frames- which none of them I liked. They do not offer you just plain prints in any size you want that you can take home and frame yourself  and to get all of my beloved images on a USB to have for years to come I had to pay 2400.00 pounds- which is $3,604.00 on top of the approx $400 I paid for the shoot. The shoot which is a great price at $400 for 2 full hours also came with  a free session to return once baby Niko is here... I probably wont be going back. To me, having to pay additional for pictures of ME that I feel I should have rightfully owned was BS. AND, the images on the USB can only be blown up to about 5x7"... So to say Im completely satisfied who be a lie.. I AM completely satisfied with how the images of ME came out, but everything else was a let down....

Back to my shoot- So this shoot was also the first time in my entire life that I shot nude- EVER! And I must say I never felt more beautiful or comfortable in my own skin. Theres just something, to me anyway, that makes you feel completely beautiful. Sure Ive gained weight and my boobs are huge and everything is bigger- arms, thighs, BUTT, boobs and belly, but I never truly felt more beautiful than I do now.

Before my shoot I searched the internet for maternity pictures that I would want to use as inspiration. Some of the pictures out there are just so cheesy. To me, the pictures of woman holding their boobs with their hands, or their husbands holding their boobs from behind were just NOT for me. I had a very specific vision for my shoot- calm, angelic, pure happiness... I guess to mimic how I'm feeling inside  and I feel like I accomplished that completely.

So here I wanted to share some of my maternity pictures with you and hope that you will get inspired for your next maternity shoot.

Wearing the jewelry from my wedding day

A little update on my pregnancy-
Im now just about 25 weeks pregnant and this journey has been amazing. Ive been really lucky throughout my pregnancy to not have not even 1 day of morning sickness- but I did suffer from migraines until I realized that chocolate was the causing factor. I dont have any stretch marks ( Thank god ) and to keep my skin moisturized I have been using Olive Oil, Coconut Oil and a little body butter I made myself which I will blog about in my next post. I have however gained more weight than I wanted, or thought I would have gained in my entire pregnancy ( sighs ). I did start really underweight and I truly believe my body NEEDED food my first trimester to make my pregnancy a strong one, and since my baby has had no issues I believe the extra weight was a blessing for him.
The second trimester my cravings have slowed down a lot. It went from craving bread , cheese and hearty foods- to craving fresh fruit, juice, and veggies. I couldn't workout my first trimester due to Dr's orders but once I hit 12 weeks I was allowed to. With the move to London from California and just being tired, cold, and not used to my surrounding I haven't been exercising as much as I thought I would either. Luckily, there are 6 floors in our London home so I do get a pretty good workout daily just by going up and down them- and Ive tried Prenatal Yoga but haven't stuck with it. I do go to a gym and just walk on the treadmill occasionally for 30 minutes and I have just started lifting light weights at the gym to keep my arms and legs toned, everything is starting to look really soft. The day Im going to give birth I will weigh myself and post a picture of the scale. LOL
My goal is to deliver Naturally and Id like to try to go without an epidural like my mother did.
I also plan to breastfeed for atleast a year- or pump towards the last few months.
Has anyone ever heard of Placenta pills ?!?!? Ive been going back and forth with blogging about this but I may just put it out there.
If I had to list the things I crave and eat the most in my second trimester, it would be-
-Fresh cut mango
- Unhomogenized Milk
-Scrambled eggs with cheese
-Kiwi
-Oatmeal with honey

Ill do another post soon on my favorite products that I have been using as well as Whats on my baby registry. Anything you would like to know or for me to discuss please leave me a comment.

xoxoxo
Jennifer