Wake Forest Maternity Photos at the Reservoir | A Winter Pregnancy Session
We had it all planned out beautifully. Abby's outdoor maternity session at the Wake Forest Reservoir near Heritage was scheduled for golden hour, which is one of my favorite locations for maternity photos in Wake Forest, NC. We knew the weather was going to be chilly because it is still winter in February in Wake Forest, NC. However, we had no idea that we were going to be facing 30 mph winds!
That morning, I did a different outdoor family session, and the wind was ripping through the back fields at their house. Thankfully, we found a line of trees to block the wind, but I was already worried about the afternoon maternity session. I could only imagine how frigid the wind was going to be coming off that water! When I got home, I messaged Abby explaining my morning tussle with the wind, and offered her the option to move her session to later in the week. She mentioned that she was getting nervous about some labor pains she was feeling and didn’t want to risk it. So I said a little prayer and put on another layer!
And YALL. I cannot explain to you how this happened, but as I was driving to the session, the skies parted and it was like the sun came out of nowhere! It had been dreary and overcast all day, and when we got out of our cars, the skies were just so beautiful.
As the session went on, the sun went down and casted colorful shadows on all the clouds to make them look like cotton candy. You could see the reflection in the lake, and it was a photographer’s dream! I’m so glad I brought my 24mm lens to capture all the scene in its glory, not to mention how gorgeous Abby was! I mean, I can’t get over how stunning she looks in that green dress.
In these photos, I did a little trick with the posing. I wanted to capture the roundness of her bump, but if you’ve ever been pregnant… you know it’s not perfectly round all the time. Here’s my trick: I told her when to breathe. I would tell her to take in a deep breath and snap the pic when her diaphragm was expanded. This evens out the top of the bump and smoothes any bumps from baby feet or elbows.
We took a little walk in the woods and did a few poses with a blanket and a mug to give that campy vibe, then we had a “picnic” to include an intimate moment before they became a family of three! This location is excellent for multiple reasons: the water in the background creates a beautiful reflection of the sky, the dirt trail in the woods provides an area for rustic scenery, and the close proximity to the parking lot makes it easy to get lots of photos without having to walk too far, which is ideal for a pregnant mama! One important consideration about this location is that it is an active reservoir, and it has open access to the water. This might be less than ideal, or even dangerous, for a family with small children who might be tempted to take a dip in the water!
I so enjoyed this session because you can just see the excitement and anticipation on their faces. I can’t wait to show you their newborn session… it’s even better than this!
