Research-backed
Even though science may have an explanation for every moment of pregnancy and childbirth, the magic surrounding it is almost unreal. And beautiful. Without a doubt, one of the most precious and memorable moments in every mother’s life is watching her little one grow inside her and then making their first appearance into the outer world. A moment that is perfectly captured and frozen in time by photographer, Monet Moutrie.
Monet Moutrie is not your average birth photographer though. Her specialty and her unmatched talent allow her to create portraits that capture a very specific time in childbirth: when the newborn is still attached to its mother through the umbilical cord.
Moutrie explains that as a birth photographer, she loves nothing more than seeing the delicate beauty of the cord just after the baby has been born. She also says that for her, the umbilical cord serves as the prime symbol of connection that though emanates from the body transcends its limitations.
Indeed, the life-giving cord is the only thread that connects the baby to the placenta and hence, to the mother. It is only through the cord that the baby receives nourishment that it needs to grow and thrive in the womb (1).
For most of us it’s almost impossible to fathom the force of life that one single cord holds. But through Moutrie’s pictures, the bond that a mother and child share becomes evident in all its wonderful and awe-inspiring glory.
Moutrie says that the majority of the parents never get the chance to witness the true form of the cord until it stops pulsing with life. As a result, the never find out how amazing it looks when it’s reverberating with a life of its own. Moutrie attempts to portray this very side of the umbilical cord that most parents never get to see through her pictures.
In her career as a birth photographer so far, Moutrie has captured the magical moments of childbirth many a times, sharing them for the world to see through her Facebook page, Monet Nicole – Birthing Stories.
She not only photographs umbilical cords but other very intimate and special moments of mother and child too. She has taken plenty of shots of the first embrace, water births in which the baby is still under water and a mother in labor to name a few.
Her pictures, shot in her characteristic style of close-up portraits that bring out the natural color of her subjects, are not just beautiful to look at but have a deeper story to tell. Each one serving as a chapter in the life of the new mother. One that she will fondly remember for the rest of her life.
Through Monet’s pictures, you can witness for yourself the sheer beauty and delicateness of childbirth along with the power of new life and the strength of the mother who does everything she can to ensure her baby gets a safe entry into this world.
In case you’re thinking about what happens to the umbilical cord as well as the placenta once the child is born, the cord is cut and along with the placenta is removed and disposed by the hospital itself. However, in the case of a complicated pregnancy, it may be retained to conduct tests (2). Many moms even choose to take the placenta home and keep it as a memorabilia of the birth of their child (3)!
Aren’t you convinced now to have a photographer of your own capturing your labor and delivery and turning it into pictures that you’ll forever cherish? Let us know in the comments below!
