First it starts with deciding what type of collection you are wanting. Each collection is unique. If you don’t see anything specific you are looking for, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me, I can customize collections to fit your need.

Next comes choosing a gown (or two, or even three) to wear. At Ashley Watkins Photography, we have carefully selected gorgeous gowns that will make mom’s to be feel confident and empowered. While I don’t provide hair and make up myself, if you book the deluxe session with me, it is included in your session fee.

maternity, maternity hattiesburg, hattiesburg maternity photographer, hattiesburg maternity photography, southern mississippi photography — Mom to be wearing my golden joyfolie dress. This dress fits S-XXL. This dress is NOT just for maternity sessions.

maternity, maternity photography, maternity photography mississippi, — Bailey & Jake - Bailey is wearing the Wren dress in navy blue. This is a gorgeous gown if you are into having a flowing dress.

After choosing your gown(s), we will discuss location ideas, but don’t worry, if you aren’t sure, I will help choose for you…(who doesn’t want less thing to worry about). I have a ton of locations that will look gorgeous with any gown that you choose, but some gowns will look better in some locations than others.

This Downtown location is perfect if you are going for a classical look. The garden and stairs are soo gorgeous and the long flowing maternity gowns that I have would work with this location.
This college campus in the heart of Hattiesburg, MS. has so many unique locations that are within a short walking distance. The pond boasts of a white bridge which is perfect to use during sunset portraits. The rose garden is also a great location. The campus also has lots of old oak trees that make for a beautiful backdrop.
Into the long grass look? This is the perfect location for you. This location has unique tall grass that is perfect for loping through with your loved ones.
This old golf course has a bunch of different small spots that make for a beautiful back drop. From a small lake to beautiful trees, this place is something to talk about for sure.
This cute little homestead farm is located in Richton, MS. and has homegrown christmas trees as well as the farm style look. There’s the tall grass as well as just open fields to use.
Want a mix of elegant with nature? This is definitely the location for you. This location has a wooded area that is beautiful to use as well as a small walking trail around a pond.

Maternity, solo maternity, redbluff mississippi, pregnancy — Mom to be wearing the navy blue wren at Red Bluff, Mississippi.

Once all of these things have been discussed, its time to start prepping for your maternity shoot. Your main job is to relax. Leave everything up to me. If you did not book a deluxe collection, I would be sure to get your hair done and makeup done (it doesn’t have to be anything extravagant, the more natural, the better it looks).

The day of your photoshoot has arrived. Please be sure to arrive on time so you are not stressed out. I alway encourage clients to arrive 10-15 minutes earlier than scheduled so you have time to relax a bit. Bring along some water (trust me, being 30-34 weeks pregnant and not having water is for the dogs), maybe snack or two if you have a longer session scheduled, and be ready to make some magic. I will encourage you to bring along a prop or two (there’s another blog about this), to change up your photos a bit. If we are including spouses and other children, I will be sure to help you style them (and give some tips before our session) to make sure things go smoothly (we will do their pictures first, because we know that children are impatient sometimes). My job is to make sure you are looking the best and feel empowered (because I know how hard it is to feel beautiful when you feel more like an oompa loompa). I will be sure to move hands to help accentuate your bump (that’s the whole reason why we are here right?), and no matter how tiny or big you feel, I will make sure you look your very best.

maternity, maternity portraits, maternity photography south mississippi, maternity photography petal mississippi, maternity hattiesburg mississippi, maternity photographer hattiesburg mississippi — Beautiful momma to be showing of her gorgeous in-utero baby at a private location in Perry County, Mississippi.

After our time portrait session, give me about 1-2 days and I will get out a quick sneak peek (these may not look like the final images). Then about a week to 2 weeks, you will receive a digital gallery to select your portraits from. If you are interested in meeting up (virtually or in person) and discussing ordering selections of physical products, I can certainly guide you with that. Any physical print purchased will automatically come with the digital of that product, otherwise, you will get to select the number of portraits you want based off of the collection you chose. If you want to purchase more digitals, there is always an option to buy more.