Birth Photography

It Feels So Good to be Back in the Hospital – Indianapolis Birth and Fresh 48 Photography

August 19, 2022 by kristeenmarie Leave a Comment

I miss being at the hospital all the time to capture those fresh new babies! I used to do a bunch of Fresh 48 sessions and Indianapolis birth photography. With the COVID restrictions that has been difficult these last few years. However, the hospitals are finally starting to open back up which is super exciting and refreshing. Most hospitals in the Indianapolis area are now allowing 4 support people. All 4 have to be the same throughout labor and delivery and only 2 can be in the room at one time. But this means that I can be in the room with your significant other and take pictures during labor and delivery or for a Fresh 48 session!

That is what these clients decided to have me do. This is their third little one and they had Fresh 48 sessions for the other two babies. They couldn’t dream of missing this special time for their new little one. Luckily, they didn’t have to miss it! This Fresh 48 session was dreamy. I completely over shot the session (took too many pictures) because I was excited since it had been too long since I was last in the hospital. They had a lovely room with lots of light, an adorable new baby boy, and both parents were overjoyed to welcome their third little one into this world.

While I’m obsessed with the 100+ images in this client’s gallery I’m even more obsessed with the Fresh 48 video I produced for them. If that video doesn’t give you baby fever I don’t know what will!

What a perfect time in this little guy’s life for pictures.

Now that the hospitals are opening back up, let me know if you are interested in doing an Indianapolis Fresh 48 photography session! I would love to get back into the hospital as much as I used to in those pre-COVID days!

Filed Under: Birth Photography, Carmel Indiana Newborn Photography by KristeenMarie, Fresh 48, Newborn

A year in review – Was 2021 the redeeming year?

January 18, 2022 by kristeenmarie Leave a Comment

2021 was supposed to be the redeeming year after the madness that was 2020. Professionally it was! I didn’t have to shut down at all and instead had one of my best years yet getting to photograph more families then ever (265 to be exact). Personally, it was a bit rough but we will get to that. So was 2021 really the redeeming year? Keep reading ALL the way to the bottom to find out.

But before we get to that, let’s start with the good stuff! In no particular order here are a few highlights from 2021.

23 Milestone Sessions – One of the best parts of my job as an Indianapolis photographer is watching kids/families grow. One way I do that throughout baby’s first year is though milestone sessions. I do 4 month session (baby holding head up), sitter sessions (around 7 months), and 1st birthday cake smash sessions (more on those later). Some clients even do milestone sessions for years 2+ after baby’s 1st year. These sessions are always fun and full of lots of baby personalities.

2 Birth Sessions – COVID didn’t completely keep me out of the delivery room this year (although it did severely limit my access). Towards the middle of the year, I was permitted to photograph births as long as I was the couple’s 2nd support person. This means the couple could have no other guest in the hospital besides myself. It was a huge honor and privilege to be this person. For the families that had me in the delivery room, I’m extremely grateful as I adore birth photography. If birth photography life wasn’t so unpredictable I would be at it all the time. But, with two little ones at home and COIVD restrictions at the hospital constantly changing that makes things a little harder. For now, I’ll be grateful for these two Indianapolis birth photography sessions and hope for even more next year!

99 Family Sessions – Oh how I love family sessions! We had a beautiful Spring and Summer for family pictures this year. The Fall was a hot mess (so wet and rainy), but what are you going to do about it?! Somehow we still ended up getting everyone in. This year included Spring, Sunflower, Creek Side, Urban, Fall and Tree Farm Minis. There were also lots of full family sessions in that mix too. Thank you to all the amazing families who allowed me to document their family this year as your Indianapolis family photographer.

52 Cake Smashes – That’s an average of one cake per week. That’s a lot of cake! I adore the whole process of these cake smash sessions. I love creating custom set-ups for each tiny one year old I have in the studio. Most of these one year olds I’ve had in the studio throughout their whole first year which makes these sessions extra sweet.

14 Maternity Sessions – Look at all those lovely baby bumps! I love capturing pregnancies. I would love to do even more Indianapolis maternity photography. Each and everyone of these bumps were a joy to photograph. There is always so much excitement and love for these new lives during these maternity sessions.

Birthday Pictures – I love doing special pictures for my little ones on their birthday. I try to pick something that represents where they are in life of what their passions are. My son turned 5 (and started kindergarten). He is super into science experiments. So he had a science themed birthday shoot and party. Brynn turned two. She loves to make messes, crafts, and painting. There is no doubt that she had fun with her 2nd birthday paint smash.

72 Newborn Session – It’s no secret that newborns are my favorite! So I saved the best for last. This year I got to cuddle lots of adorable newborns. We had lots of baby smiles. Some that were followed by a little bit of baby poop (but that’s a small price to pay). The studio was brimming with all these beautiful babies. However, I like to also remind people that I offer in-home lifestyle newborn photography in Indianapolis along with Indianapolis outdoor newborn photography. I love photographing your little ones outdoor, in your home or in my studio. You can choose one location or more than one. It’s totally up to you! Just let me know if you would like to get your due date on my calendar as I would love to be your Indianapolis newborn photographer for your new little baby.

A Little Extra that Can’t Be Forgotten – While this year was a fantastic year professionally it was also one of the hardest years of my life. At 17.5 weeks pregnant we lost our baby Ellie. I won’t go into too much detail here. However, I think it’s important for so many reasons to talk about pregnancy loss. If you are interested in reading more about this you can do so here.

Was 2021 the redeeming year?

In some ways yes, and in others no. Nothing is black and white these days.

Now is the point where I get a little sentimental on you. This year has taught me to be grateful for everything in my life. Life is fleeting and nothing is guaranteed. I’m so incredibly thankful for each and every one of you (my clients, followers and fans). You allow me to capture these amazing milestones in your life. You allow me to support my family in a way that I love. You gave me purpose in life when everything else was madness. I love my job more than words can express, and what I do wouldn’t be possible without each and every one of you. So thank you, thank you, thank you. And I hope to see all of you again next year.

Filed Under: Birth Photography, Cake Smash & First Birthday Photography, Family, First Year Milestone Session, In-Home Newborn Photograpy Indianapolis, Newborn, Outdoor Cake Smash

It’s a BOY! – Indianapolis Birth Photography

October 1, 2021 by kristeenmarie Leave a Comment

I almost missed this birth! Mama went from 4.5cm to 9.5 in less than an hour. When she hit 10cm she called me and I bolted for the car. When I arrived in the hospital room after having my car valeted and having to be screed for COVID they were all set up and ready for Mom to start pushing. Mom pushed one time and baby arrived! It’s a good thing I didn’t hit any traffic on my way in.

This family has 3 beautiful little girls at home. I’ve at the joy of photographing all of them since birth. This family decided to wait until the baby was born to find out if it was a boy or girl. Surprise genders are always fun!! This one was extra exciting as you can tell even the nurses were jumping up and down in excitement after finding out it’s a boy.

This was also my first birth I was permitted to attend post-COVID (not that we are done with COVID, but for right now the hospitals are lifting restrictions slightly). It felt so good to be able to be a part of this family’s major milestone. What a privilege.

It really is an honor to be able to photograph clients during this amazing time in their lives. If you are looking for an Indianapolis birth photographer don’t hesitate to reach out and let me know. I would love to be a part of your birth team.

Filed Under: Birth Photography

Baby Corinne Meets Her Big Sisters – Indianapolis Fresh 48 Session at Community Hospital North

April 29, 2019 by kristeenmarie Leave a Comment

I think every family should book a Fresh 48 session. It doesn’t matter if it’s your first baby or 5th. There are just so many memories that happen in those first few hours of baby’s life that you will want to remember! Your baby will only be this tiny this one time. Trust me, you will not regret doing a Fresh 48 session after your little one is born!

This session met all the check boxes for a perfect Fresh 48 session. These are long time clients and it was a day after I just photographed this little baby girl’s birth. I had the joy of being able to also capture this little one meeting her two sisters for the first time. This little newborn baby was so easy going and she let her sisters love on her all they wanted!

Don’t miss the Fresh 48 video at the end of the post. There are even more goodies and video clips in it. Ga!! What a great session. Send me all those new babies in the hospital please!!!

Here is the in-hospital Fresh 48 video. There are some great clips of all three sisters interacting together. What is not to love!?

Welcome to the world, little one! I can’t wait to continue to document your growth over the years. Stay tuned for an in-home newborn session for this little cute.

If you are looking for an Indianapolis birth photographer feel free to reach out and let me know. I love capturing birth (including labor and delivery) and/or Fresh 48 sessions (in-hospital sessions soon after the birth of baby).

Filed Under: Birth Photography, Community Hospital North Indianapolis, Fresh 48, hospital

15 Highlights for 2018 from KristeenMarie Photography – Indianapolis Photographer

January 18, 2019 by kristeenmarie Leave a Comment

This year was truly a great year both personally and professionally. I feel like I was able to really hit strides with my work/life balance. I made a point to provide top notch service to my clients and to my own family at home. I did this by cutting back on weddings and weekend shooting and working more closely with and providing additional services to the clients that I have.

I love and adore every single client and I’m honored that each client choose me to capture this time in their lives. I know you have lots of choices when it comes to photography in Indianapolis. So thank you, thank you, thank you for allowing me to be your Indianapolis photographer!!

Here are a 15 highlights from the year. They are in no particular order.

1. Styling Service Now Included with Every Session

I started offering a new styling service. This service can be used for all sessions… everything from in-studio milestone sessions to newborn sessions to maternity sessions. I think the service is most beneficial for family sessions or maternity sessions. This online tool takes the stress out of picking outfits for you and your family!! My clients who have used the service have had nothing but rave reviews about it so far and I’m loving the looks that people are coming up with! You can read more about the service here.

2. Thirty Six Messy Cake Smash Sessions

I love a good mess… especially when cake is involved! I take great pride in giving each little one that comes into the studio a completely custom cake smash set-up. Being an Indianapolis cake smash photographer is a blast. Some kids love cake, some kids love to play with cake, and some just don’t love it. Whatever happens, it’s sure to make some great pictures and memories. All 36 of these cake smash sessions were so much fun!

3. More Minis

My clients love mini sessions. I offered more variety of mini sessions this year and they all filled up pretty quickly – which I see as a sign of success! This year the mini sessions included Spring Minis, Summer Creek Side Minis, Urban Minis, Fall Minis, Christmas Tree Farm Minis, In-Home Holiday Minis and In-Studio New Year Mini Sessions. Just looking at that list is a little overwhelming! I also always offer the weekday in-studio mini milestone sessions. These mini sessions are a great way to update your family pictures without a large investment. Many families chose to do multiple mini sessions so they could capture their families a few times in one year. I do plan to offer more minis sessions in 2019. Be sure to subscribe to my email list to be the first to hear about these. Also, you will see the dates and times update here if they have already been announced via my email list.

4. Featured in Indianapolis Monthly Magazine

This feature was a big surprise to me! It wasn’t something I applied for or anything. But what a fun and amazing surprise and honor!! Indianapolis Monthly Magazine featured KristeenMarie Photography as the best Cake Smash Photographer in Indianapolis! There was a half page spread on my services and they featured a lovely image I took. So fun!!

5. My First Surrogate Birth

Being an Indianapolis birth photographer is one of the biggest joys of the job. Shooting births is one of my favorite things!! I shot a number of births this year, but by far my favorite birth was the surrogate birth that I photographed. This was something new to me and it was so cool to witness!

Thank you to all my clients who allowed me into their personal birth space to allow me to capture this very intimate time in their lives. I will forever be honored to have been able to capture the birth of your children.

6. Two Indianapolis Proposals

Not every guy hires a professional photographer when he proposes, but if you really want to knock your proposal out of the park then you hire one! While I only did two Indianapolis proposal photography sessions this year they were both killer proposals!! Take note guys, these two knew that they were doing!!

7. Back-end Changes

If you are a long time client you may or may not have noticed a few back-end changes. My hope is that these changes were seamless and you didn’t really notice. If you did notice I hope that you were pleasantly surprised! Here are the two changes that were made:

We switched our CRM from ShootQ to Dubsado. This tool is what we use to collect payments and have clients sign contracts. Dubsado is much more user friendly then ShootQ and if you noticed a change I hope you love it as much as we do!!

We also switched our client gallery hosting. We switched from Smugmug to Cloudspot. The new galleries are SO much nicer then the old ones and easier to use too. I hope you love these too!!

8. Fifty-Nine Indianapolis Families Photographed

Some of these families have been with me for YEARS. One of my favorite things about my job is being able to watch kids/families grow over the years and building relationships with my clients. It means the world to me to be able to capture these families year after year! I’m excited to start getting my 2019 calendar filled for family sessions. If you are looking for an Indianapolis family photographer this year. please let me know so we can get something on the books!

9. Continued Learning

Even though I’ve been in business for over 10 years now there is always still more to learn! This year I attended the Reset photography conference. I had the awesome opportunity to watch some pretty amazing photographers work including Sarah-Beth Photography, Twig + Olive Photography, The Herrintons, and Spanki Mill. You can read more about my takeaways from this photography conference here.

10. Seven Fresh 48 Sessions Capture in Indianapolis Hospitals

Is there anything better then a fresh new baby?! I think not! I’m actually kind of surprised I didn’t do more of these because I ADORE Fresh 48 sessions. If you are even considering doing a Indianapolis Fresh 48 photography session in 2019 let me know! I would love to capture your little one in those early hours of his or her life! Seriously, contact me if you are even considering this. I want to see all of those brand new baby toes.

11. Nine Beautiful Baby Bumps

Look at all those beautiful baby bumps!! All those glowing mamas and mamas-to-be were just stunning. I can’t wait to do more Indianapolis maternity photography in 2019!

12. Fifty Two In-Studio Milestone Session

Wow – that’s a big number! That’s an average of one per week throughout the year. Most of these milestone clients were first newborn clients in the studio. And we all know that I adore watching my clients grow so that makes my heart so happy!!

13. Five Beautiful Brides

Yes – I still shoot weddings. No – I don’t shoot a lot of them. I used to shoot 30+ weddings a year. However, I’m not at a point in my life where I can sustain that. Plus, it’s not where my heart is. I love shooting weddings but more then 5 in a year, and I don’t love it anymore. I give everything I’ve got to my wedding clients and I hope that they see that on the day of their wedding and in the final photo product. Next year I expect to shoot about 5 weddings too. If you are looking for an Indianapolis wedding photographer feel free to reach out! Let’s see if I’m a perfect match for your big day.

14. Eighty One Newborns in the Studio

If I had to pick only one thing to photograph for the rest of my life it would hands down be newborns. Good news is I don’t have to pick just one thing. But it’s no surprise that I did more newborn sessions then any other type of session. These are just the Indianapolis newborn photography sessions that were done in the studio too. I also had some in-home lifestyle newborn sessions and some clients added on outdoor newborn sessions to their packages in the summer months. So many beautiful brand new babies and their families.

15. New Promo Video

This video was actually shot in 2017 but wasn’t complete until 2018 so I think it still counts! If you haven’t seen it yet you should really check it out below. The video shows me in my element working as an Indianapolis newborn photographer in my studio. The lovely Erin Werner from Little Nuggets Photography produced this awesome video for me and I just love it!

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. I LOVE my joy. And I love each and every one of my clients. I couldn’t do what I do without the trust that each and everyone of you give to me to capture this special time in the lives of your families. Thank you 100 times over for allowing me to be your Indianapolis photographer!! I hope to see you again in 2019!!

Filed Under: Birth Photography, Cake Smash & First Birthday Photography, Children, Family, First Year Milestone Session, Indiana Newborn Photography, Marketing, Newborn, Photography, Studio

It’s a Girl – Indianapolis Birth Photography

December 11, 2018 by kristeenmarie Leave a Comment

I’ve had the joy of capturing so many milestones for this lovely family including their wedding and the birth of their 1st baby together. I couldn’t have been more excited to photograph the birth of their 2nd little one! Birth is never dull and this mama makes it look so easy!

They didn’t find out the gender for baby number two beforehand. They were so excited to announce baby girl number two when she was born. Baby was born healthy and happy. She is the most content little newborn I’ve ever met. She didn’t really cry (don’t worry – she had great color and all her vitals were just fine!) and was alert and content with whatever was going on around her.

This little one was name-less when I left the hospital a few hours after she was born. But, I was able to do a Fresh 48 session for them a few days later so stay tuned for that post with a name update. There is also a lovely birth video at the bottom of this post. You won’t want to miss that!!

I hope you also enjoy the birth video from this labor and delivery. It include both pictures and video clips from the birth.

Birth photography is one of my favorite things to shoot. However, I only offer a limited amount of Indianapolis birth photography sessions a year. If you think you might be interested in having a birth photographer at your Indianapolis birth please let me know as soon as possible so that I can keep my calendar open for you.

Filed Under: Birth Photography, Fresh 48, hospital, Indiana Newborn Photographer

Community Hospital North – Birth and Fresh 48 Session in Indianapolis

July 5, 2018 by kristeenmarie Leave a Comment

When this client booked with me I was free all around her due date except for one day… I had to go home for a family wedding. Well it just so happens she had her baby that day. Good news is I had an awesome back-up photographer on call for that day so those beautiful birth photography images were not missed. Bad news is I didn’t personally get to see this mama during her stunning labor. But I did edit and deliver the images to the client so I know it was a perfectly beautiful labor and delivery. For privacy reasons I won’t be sharing the birth images but I think you NEED to see the Fresh 48 session. These guys have a stunning family and this little guy is SO loved by so many already. Here are just a small sample (seriously their Fresh 48 sessions gallery was over 120 images!) of the session. This in-hospital newborn session gives me all the feels and makes me want a big family more then anything!!!

Both big brother and big sister were both excited to meet their new sibling (who was nameless during this session). But my favorite reaction was big sister and just how much she wanted to hold and love on her new sibling. She even sang happy birthday to her sibling at one point (see the video at the end for that!). It was all a joy to watch and capture!

Ga! I adore Fresh 48 and birth sessions but this session makes me fall in love with them all over again! Bring on the babies, please!! Let me know if you are interested in Indianapolis birth photography. I would love to see if birth photography would fit into your birth plans.

Filed Under: Birth Photography, Community Hospital North Indianapolis, First Year Milestone Session, Fresh 48, hospital

A Surrogate Birth – Indianapolis Birth Photography & Video

April 22, 2018 by kristeenmarie Leave a Comment

Every birth story is beautiful but this was was especially amazing. This was a surrogate birth. After many losses, Mom was unable to carry the baby herself. The family was able to find a surrogate to carry the baby for them. Since it was a surrogate birth there were a few extra people in the room, but it made for lots of emotion and a beautiful selfless story unfolded. It was clear, that everyone in the room had the best interest of baby at heart.

My favorite moments were when mom was able to see her baby that she had waited so long for (over 4 years) and when mom was able to hold her beautiful baby for the first time. In both these moments you can see the utter joy on her face! Dad was a trooper too. He was overcome with emotion at many moments. This birth was truly a joy to be able to witness.

I normally end blog posts with the video. However, I’m going to start this post with the video from this birth. I feel the video tells the birth story even better then the pictures. This little one’s mom tells me how she has watched this video almost every day since their little one has been born. I’m honored to have been a part of this birth and I’m even more honored that mom treasures these images/video.

No matter how you become a mom, I would love and be honored to capture your birth story! If you are expecting and looking for an Indianapolis birth photographer be sure to reach out. I would love to know more about your birth plans and see if my services might be a good fit for you.

Filed Under: Birth Photography, riverview hospital

Baby Avery – Indianapolis Birth Photography

October 6, 2017 by kristeenmarie Leave a Comment

Birth is amazing and this mama made it look so easy! I had been getting updates from the parents via text. I knew that they had went in for their induction. But at one point things started to progress VERY quickly. Mom went from not much in terms of labor to fully dilated in less then two hours! I got a text saying it was time to push! I hadn’t even left the house yet. Luckily the Dr. said it was safe and fine to wait to push. They were able to wait for me and the grandma to arrive. This lovely mom got to kiss her first baby one last time before starting to push. It was a beautiful moment that turned into a lovely labor. It was a joy to be able to capture this little girl coming into the world and then I had the privilege of capturing the siblings meeting for the first time. Everything about this day was perfect in every way!

What a beautiful birth story! Welcome to the world, baby girl!

If you are looking for an Indianapolis birth photographer be sure to reach out. I would love to get your due date on my calendar.

Filed Under: Birth Photography, hospital, Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Hospital

Newborn Elena – Birth Photography in Indianapolis

May 15, 2017 by kristeenmarie Leave a Comment

I had the joy of photographing baby Elena for her birth, maternity, and newborn session. This tiny little one is only a few weeks old, but I feel like I know her so well already. I’ll start with the birth pictures and move on to her in-studio newborn session.

Elena’s birth started like any other. Except Elena’s mom made birth look like the most beautiful thing ever. She would go from having a contraction and be in a lot of pain to having the biggest smile on her face. It was clear that she was excited to meet her little girl and her 4th baby.

After baby was born things got a little scary. Mom wasn’t feeling well (her blood pressure dropped) and baby had a not previously diagnosed tumor. The baby was loved on by mom’s support system and all was well soon after birth. Baby Elena did have to have to be transferred to a different hospital and have a pretty serious surgery soon after birth to remove the tumor. Elena did spend a few weeks recovering after surgery in the NICU.

The good news is she is doing fantastic now. There are few signs she even had surgery except for her scar. She has the BEST baby rolls you have ever seen! Enjoy the pictures and following along on Elena’s journey.

Here are all the siblings meeting for the first time…

Elena was a little older than most newborns when she came into the studio due to her stay in the NICU. But she still did fantastic for her newborn session. I still can’t get over her amazing baby rolls!