Why NICU Photography?

Hospital based photography like my volunteer NICU Photography and Fresh48 Client Sessions are in a category all their own. Emotions are raw and there are so many moving parts. Babies are fragile, parents are in the midst of trauma. Aesthetics are a low priority, but beautiful photos are a must. There are no do-overs and there is no room for error. It’s a special little category that is not for the faint of heart. And I love it.

I LOVE volunteering

I LOVE the time that I spend volunteering at Providence St. Vincent’s Medical as a NICU volunteer photographer. It makes me a better photographer and is fulfilling work. And I do in fact spend a lot of time doing volunteer work including all of the behind-the-scenes work. Communication, travel, editing, training, and routine medical testing. All worth it, don’t get me wrong.

I 100% recommend to my photographer friends to follow suit and do something similar in their area. Not my area of course because all those cutie-patootie babies at St. V’s are MINE 🙂 The caveat to that is that you really need a reason for whatever volunteer venture you do, or you will inevitably face burn out.

Luckily (unluckily?) for me, I have a huge motivation for loving on the NICU babies and parents: this little guy right here. See, that is me, December of 2016, with my first baby, on the wild roller coaster ride of the NICU. It’s an especially wild ride when it’s also your first experience with motherhood.

With that simple scroll of the mouse, you’ve just seen about 90% of the photos I have of myself in the NICU with my child. Partially that is because it was 2016 and we didn’t constantly document everything as extensively as we do now (except food). Partly because in the NICU, your brain is just not there.

You can read my birth story with Rhett here for the lead up to our NICU stay. I didn’t go into details about our NICU journey there, though. It was traumatic and chaotic from the moment we arrived until the moment we left. The first several months at home with a preemie were equally as challenging.

What I don’t wish on anyone…

I cannot explain the feeling of being separated from your newborn. Of walking out the hospital doors without your baby in your arms. Having to ask nurses for permission to pick up your baby. Fighting for what you know is best for your child from Day 1. I’m so grateful for NICU nurses and doctors and the care they provide, but the situation isn’t ideal no matter which way you slice it. It isn’t how it’s supposed to be. My heart is with all of the parents going through a NICU stay. Our stay was relatively low risk all things considered, yet it still plays a part in my motherhood experience.

I do volunteer NICU photography to give parents what I didn’t have. Beautiful photos. A sense of normalcy. A person who understands the hardship. Something tangible…a photo-journal. I was advised to keep a written journal during my stay, and while that was good advice, I was trying to manage just getting myself to the NICU each day in one piece and manage my new life in 3-hour increments. There was no time to run errands and pick out a nice journal and pen for myself to neatly document my thoughts and feelings. I didn’t even know what my feelings were at the time, let alone know how to describe them in writing.

I will say that a creative writing group was one of the most beneficial healing things for me, post-NICU!

Oh, how I wish someone with decent photography skills would have just popped into my room and said, “Hey, here are some photos of your beautiful baby, I see you working hard and doing your best, see you again in a few weeks for updated photos.”

Giving the gift of NICU photography.

With that being said, I always pray for these NICU families. I pray that my photos will be a blessing to them, wherever their path may lead. My hope is that I can be a calming presence for the few minutes I’m with them, and that I can give them a precious gift to keep for themselves or share with their world.

I am incredibly proud of the work I do in the NICU. Many of my NICU families choose privacy which is 100% understandable. Here are a few of my favorite images from 2024 volunteer events. All of these images are shared with permission.

Emilie photographs Hospital based sessions including NICU Photography and Fresh48 sessions. Emilie Phillipson Photography offers Maternity, Newborn, and Family Photography serving Portland, Oregon and all of Oregon City, Lake Oswego, West Linn, Happy Valley, Clackamas, Multnomah, and Clark Counties.
Studio based in Troutdale, Oregon.