Katie and her husband, Jimmy, have been together for nine years, married for three, and are expecting their first child in October. Alex and I joined the two of them on Labor Day (ironically!) to photograph Katie at a private residence near downtown Raleigh.

It was an honor and a lot of fun to be there with them for this very important photo session. I also have the pleasure and privilege of being Katie’s doula for the birth.

Katie is a cardiac nurse at a local hospital. Through her nursing experience helping people die peacefully, she believes that big life transitions deserve respect, reverence and supportive love. So they decided to seek out a doula for encouragement during this important transitional time along with support in labor. I was lucky that Katie and Jimmy reached out to me at Heart in Hands Doula Services to provide them with that support during her birth journey.

Being able to use my decades of experience as a professional photographer to record this moment in her life also has an added benefit for both of us. “It’s great that you can offer these services together, to allow more time to get to know one another,” Katie noted. 

It’s definitely a nice, casual way to become more familiar with each other before the birth.

We photographed Katie in a variety of poses in a number of places around the area. She was radiant, and perseverant, as the afternoon was steamy and a bit buggy. Her exquisite belly was done freehand in henna by the brilliantly-talented Stephanie Hallmark of Sparkle Body Arts.

The result: Pure beauty.