this photographer immortalizes childbirth

Marnese photographer Charlène Drouel has been reporting on childbirth for four years. Behind her lens, she captures this intense moment of life to leave precious memories for parents.

“The first time I saw these photos, I cried, it brings up so many emotionsconfides Katharina Rogge who gave birth to her daughter three and a half years ago. “We are experiencing childbirth but we don’t see each other.” This mother was able to rediscover this “intense moment of life” thanks to photographs taken in the birthing room. The work of Charlène Drouel, birth photographer based near Reims. Katharina liked the photos so much that she called on Charlène again for her second child, who came into the world last spring. “These are photo albums that we look at regularly, she assures. These are very beautiful memories.”

For four years, Charlène Drouel has offered future parents the opportunity to immortalize the arrival of their child in images. The idea came to him when his daughter was born in 2016. “With the dad, who is also a photographer, we photographed our entire stay in the maternity ward, the delivery room, the waiting, the laughter, the tears, lots of little details tooshe remembers. When I processed these images afterwards, I realized how lucky I was to have such photos. It’s such a powerful testimony.” She then discovered childbirth reporting and approached Maxime Faury, a photographer based in Strasbourg who specialized in this field ten years ago. “He explained his work to me, then I started my projectshe explains. We had to find couples who agreed that I would follow them during the birth.”

Several months before the birth, this 38-year-old professional meets the parents to find out their expectations. “There are a lot of discussions to find out what they want, where do I fit in, there are parents who want to see the baby come out, others not at all, it’s very intimate and so very different from one report to anotherinsists Charlene. The parents and the photographer then remain in contact until the birth. “I’m on call three weeks before the end. My phone is on day and night, they can call me at any time, I stay nearby.”

Once she arrives in the delivery room, the photographer is as discreet as possible. Its silent casing, without flash, captures these unique moments of life. The wait, sometimes very long, the suffering, the support of the dad or the second mother, the pushing, the baby coming out, the skin to skin, the breastfeeding, the first aid. All those first times so precious. “I find it very beautiful.”

Sweat, tears, private parts sometimes revealed, faces of newborns, hair stuck together. Photos that tell an intimate story. “I was in my bubble, I no longer paid attention to Charlène at all”remembers Anne-Sophie who gave birth to her second daughter at her home. The photographer followed her through the different stages of her delivery, the wait in the living room, then the bath, the shower and finally the baby’s arrival in the room. “This allows me to remember details that I would have forgotten over time. And it’s a great medium to tell the story of his birth to my daughter.”

In maternity wards, the approach is different. We had to be accepted by the nursing staff. Which was not simple at the start and may still prove complicated. “Several times, I was refused access to the delivery roomsays Charlène. It is not easy for medical staff to accept the presence of a photographer, even if I absolutely do not take photos of medical procedures or staff. We only see a few hands. What I mainly photograph is the bond that exists between the two parents. And if the birth becomes too difficult, I’ll slip away.” Authorizations are requested from each establishment upstream.

To reassure caregivers, but also parents, and guarantee her professionalism, the photographer joined the Carmin collectiveborn in 2021. Created by three photographers, this collective now has around sixty professionals who adhere to a charter framing the practice around values ​​such as “respect, listening and kindness”. “The idea of ​​this collectiveexplains Maxime Faury, its co-founder, is to change mentalities about childbirth photography which unfortunately remains marginal and poorly considered in France. It’s still taboo and little knownhe regrets. People don’t realize the importance of this photo testimony for the families.”

Coming from Anglo-Saxon countries, this practice is more widespread among some of our European neighbors. “In Spain or Germany, there are photographers who only make a living from reporting on childbirth”assures Charlène Drouel. La Marnaise only makes three or four per year. “Some projects do not come to fruition due to lack of authorizations or because I was not able to be there at the right time.” She mainly earns her living from family portraits, and maternity and wedding photos. Since last year, she has charged 1000 euros for a birth report.

“With each project, we don’t know what awaits usunderlines the photographer. We have to adapt to the date, to the parents, to the staff, to the place, to the light, to all the situations. After a birth report, it always takes me a while to come down. The emotion is so high.”