When Ashley Caminiti reached the last stage of pregnancy, her photographer friend Emily Peter noticed she was feeling down. Taking matters into her own hands, Ms. Peter organized a stunning photo shoot to lift the expectant mom’s spirits.
“She’s usually super confident … I could just tell something was wrong,” 26-year-old Ms. Peter, from Harrison Hot Springs in British Columbia, Canada, told The Epoch Times.
When Ms. Peter reached out to her, she learned that Ms. Caminiti wasn’t feeling like herself.
“She said not many people talk about it,” Ms. Peter said, “since you’re always expected to be so happy because you’re pregnant.”
Aware that her friend was struggling with the bodily changes that occur during pregnancy, Ms. Peter—who had previously taken photos of Ms. Caminiti’s engagement and wedding—suggested a photo shoot.
“I was like, ‘Well, you need pictures of this moment in your life to remember it’” Ms. Peter said. “Even if you aren’t feeling the best. We'll just go out and see what we can get and just have fun and make a day of it.”
With less than two weeks to go until Ms. Caminiti’s due date, they headed to a beautiful spot near Chilliwack Lake with a mountain backdrop.
For the shoot, Ms. Caminiti donned ethereal-looking wings made from leftover greenery created by a florist friend and a one-of-a-kind dress made of reclaimed lace and sourced from Ms. Peter’s client closet.
“It was raining and wet, but that didn’t stop us,“ Ms. Peter said. ”It was awesome to see Ashley in a great mood. … She was so happy, and you could tell that she really needed that day to just capture some moments and have it be about her and creating this baby.”
For Ms. Peter, this shoot was a great experience as she could see it helped Ms. Caminiti feel excited to have her baby.
On Dec. 15, Ms. Caminiti and her husband welcomed their daughter, Natalia, into the world.
“It was so exciting to see the baby,” Ms. Peter said. “Ashley is just a great mom. ... You could tell that all the intense feelings from when she was pregnant had just disappeared because she’d given birth to this beautiful baby.”
Needless to say, the post went viral and received thousands of heartfelt comments.
“A lot of comments were from women saying they wished they would have got maternity photos done, but they just didn’t feel beautiful,” Ms. Peter said. “It’s so sad because ... every woman is beautiful, and you’re creating a life, and no matter how your body changes, it’s beautiful.”
She feels the reason her shoot with Ms. Caminiti hit a chord with so many women is that seeing somebody be open about their pregnancy struggles is refreshing.
“It’s very connecting for other women to be like, ‘Okay, I’m not alone,’” she said.
The photographer now urges other expectant moms to do a photo shoot emphasising that it’s a great memory to look back on.
“Way down the road, you want your grandkids to look back and think ‘Wow, that was my grandma,’” she said.
