Our Denver Maternity Photoshoot with Sunshine Lady Photography
My maternity photo shoot pics are here! When I got pregnant I knew I wanted to do a nature-y mountain maternity photoshoot to capture my first pregnancy. It felt like the perfect reflection of our current Colorado life living in Denver.
The photographer
After scrolling through Instagram I found Sunshine Lady Photography and her images immediately captured me. Kate Williams is behind the Sunshine Lady brand and her style reflects my own. It is unposed and natural with a boho flair. Kate specializes in maternity and newborn photography as well as family and portraits.
Planning the shoot
Kate was very easy to work with and I booked a maternity session over email. She took the time to learn about me and what kind of shoot I was looking for. She even let me run dress looks by her for a professional opinion on how they would photograph.
I decided to do the photo shoot at 28.5 weeks pregnant because I was worried about my belly looking “too large” in the photos and Kate had an opening that day. Turns out my worries were not warranted. I actually wished my belly looked bigger in the photos!
I ended up choosing a sheer white dress with lace detailing because I wanted something that felt classic and didn’t feel like taking a gamble on a look that was too modern or trendy. A flowy white dress feels timeless. Surprisingly, I found a very affordable dress on Amazon and it worked great! I knew I would only wear it this one time so the price felt right. It also made it an easier pill to swallow after I trashed it during the shoot. It got so dirty and torn up by the brush we walked through for the photos. I paired the dress with brown boho cowboy boots from Target and layered on some bracelets I had.
Shoot day
On September 25, 2020 I drove 1.5 hours from Denver to Fort Collins to meet Kate at Lory State Park, one of her favorite places to shoot at. I changed into my dress at the park’s visitor center and met Kate in the parking lot. We quickly caravanned over to one of her chosen location’s in the park to shoot as the sun was going down.
We shot for 30 minutes using various landscapes as the backdrop. I decided to book a 30 minute session because I was confident that we’d get enough content in a short amount of time. I did a couple other shoots this year and learned that 30 minutes is a good amount of time for me. This is definitely a personal choice but 60 minutes feels too long to me.
When I booked the shoot I didn’t know if Lockie would end up coming with me or not. I decided to take the gamble with a 30 minute session regardless if he came. I wanted Lockie to decide if he attended the shoot or not and I’m happy to report he offered to come! Kate ended up shooting just me solo for about 20 minutes and then captured Lockie and I together for the remaining 10 minutes.
If your partner is not used to photoshoots or is a bit camera shy then I would recommend booking a 60 minute session. I knew Lockie would be able to turn it on for the camera for a quick capture! (He also has extremely low patience so this amount of time was perfect for him.) After the shoot, I treated Lockie to some famous Beau Jo’s pizza in Fort Collins.
I’m really happy with how the photos turned out. They don’t feel overtly posed to me and the landscape is gorgeous despite smoke from a nearby wildfire. I especially like the photos of Lockie and I together because I think Kate captured some really sweet moments. I would definitely recommend Kate for your maternity photos!
If you have any questions at all, I’m happy to answer them! Just leave a comment below. I generally am able to respond to them within 24 hours. Enjoy!
