I am not sure if all photographers feel this way, but every once in a while, I meet someone who I just cannot wait to photograph. Erika is one of those people. We met at a Pole Photoshoot a couple years ago and I was just blown away by her. She’s a Licensed Counselor, Sexologist, Bodyweight Specialist, Tantrika, and Womanist. Her posts on Facebook and Instagram inspire me daily and I was honored when she reached out to book a Maternity and Newborn session with me. If you don’t follow her already, GO FOLLOW HER RIGHT NOW! You can find her:
I will be sharing her daughter’s newborn photos next week so stay tuned for those! But in the meantime, here are some comments from Erika about her session with me and some of the inspiration behind the choices we made for the shoot:
“Amanda was very professional from the moment that I booked my maternity photo shoot. Apart from this she also is profoundly honest, open and personable. Considering that maternity pictures usually coincide with the most uncomfortable and sometimes physically self-conscious time in a woman’s pregnancy, personableness is an extremely important characteristic to look for in a photographer. When I arrived at her cozy, private studio I was greeted with signage at the entry way welcoming me to the shoot. Small touches like this truly helped to make this tired, heavy pregnant woman feel even more confident about stepping in front of the camera.
I am in no way shy about my body and I typically veer away from certain trends in favor of more novel experiences. For these reasons, I wanted my shoot to embody my various moods. In particular I wanted to showcase that as a woman I can choose when I want to be hard, soft, cute or fierce while carrying a child and without losing any parts of my womanhood. Nothing is harder and more badass, to me, than black leather. I chose to juxtapose the coldness of the black leather with the lightness of the red (my absolute favorite color) and the warm, shiny, grandness of the gold. In choosing the red and the gold colors, it was also my aim to pair these strong colors with my dark skin as colorism is a major topic of interest in my talks and posts.
When I presented my ideas to Amanda, she didn’t flinch at the idea of trying something new and different. The photo shoot itself, went without a hitch. Amanda was very patient throughout all of the wardrobe changes. And although I am generally comfortable with little to no clothes on, afterwards I realized that I’d barely even noticed that I was nude for those few snapshots. This was a direct reflection of the level of comfort that Amanda creates with these intimate photos. A woman’s body is an absolute masterpiece in every size but especially while pregnant, because not only does her body have to function normally, it also must adhere to all the small time specific hormonal and physiological cues that collectively result in your having a healthy baby. It’s all truly miraculous and women should most certainly document and highlight their pregnancies with professional photos. After all, you’re only going to be pregnant with each child once in your entire life. Whether you want to go the more traditional maternity photo route or be a little more daring, you should have a photographer who will be sensitive to your needs. Amanda was all of that and more.”
