Bend woman photographs ‘Labor of Love’
Three and a half years ago, Tara Feurtado had her first child. When her son Kael was born, his daddy was in charge of capturing it — and boy, did he.
“The only pictures we have are from the ‘coming out’ part, which are never fun to look at after the fact,” Feurtado said Thursday. “I remember that part — that’s not what I wanted.”
Feurtado found out what she really wanted were pictures of the images not seared into her mind.
“When you’re in labor, you’re not thinking about how special of an experience it actually is,” said Feurtado.
After doing a maternity shoot with Bend photographer Lesley Barr, Feurtado decided she wanted to have Barr and her camera in the hospital room for her daughter Maile’s birth.
Barr told me that for her, it was a natural progression.
“Why wouldn’t you want to photograph your birth? It’s the most amazing, defining moment of most women’s lives,” said Barr.
But capturing the big day is not all about mom. Barr believes new dads deserve a chance to stop clicking their own cameras and start taking it all in.
“Be in the moment and experience that first look, without having to look at it through a camera,” said Barr.
Everyone has their own favorite shots. Feurtado loves the photo of her husband getting his first look at their new little girl. Barr got emotional talking about the video she shot of a special moment between mom and daughter.
“When she’s whispering, ‘I love you’ — I mean, I’m going to cry — for the first time, ‘I love you’ — that’s so special,” said Barr.
What’s shot and not shot is all up to the parents. Barr is on-call 24/7 surrounding the baby’s due date and she does special sessions if the mom ends up having a Cesarian Section.
Feurtado told me she never looks at her wedding photos — but Barr’s photos from the day Maile was born are dear to her heart.
“She helped me remember the really special moments that I didn’t realize I would miss,” said Feurtado.
More information about Barr’s services can be found on her website: http://www.lesleybarrphotography.com/
