Why us?
Nicole Bergstrom, CPP, is a professional maternity, newborn and family photographer serving the South Florida area. It is an honor for me to capture and preserve the precious images of the miracle of your child's journey into this world. The miracle of pregnancy, the awe of a new baby, the elation of their "first's"…these moments fly by so quickly and your memory of them fades over time. On the day of your session, we will be creating lifelong memories of one of most the treasured times in your lives.
On occasion people ask, "Why does professional photography cost that much?” or “I have a friend that has a nice camera and she could take my pictures”. If you have based your portrait needs on price alone, many times it may cost you more. If you are not happy with your photos, you have wasted your time, money and memories. You may not have a chance to capture that time again...
When you hire a professional photographer you are paying for their expertise, talent, creativity, experience, education, and time to ensure that your images will be taken beautifully, professionally, correctly…the first time.
When you choose us, this is what we provide for you:
TIME FOR YOUR MATERNITY SESSION
Aside from the time working at the session, there is an additional minimum of 6+ hours of behind-the-scenes work that the client does not see. This is a basic breakdown of time dedicated to your maternity session:
1 hour for your consultation: Trying on gowns, decision on location, deciding your style, and details for preparing for your session.
1-2 hours: Story board of session, studio set up, permitting for on location sessions.
1-2 hours: Session time, includes outfit changes, shooting time, a break for you if need be.
2-4 hours: Upload and back up photos. Sort and edit photos (color correction, toning and retouching). If your images need more attention, then more time is needed in Photoshop.
1 hour: Your personal session review of your gallery of images.
The time spent for each session, can range from 6-8+ hours. Because professional photography is time and labor intensive, we only accept limited bookings per month to ensure we have plenty of time to perfect your images.
TIME FOR A NEWBORN SESSION
1 hour: Story boarding your session, & studio set up and preparation
2–4 hours: Session time. Depending on your newborn, or other siblings, this can take time. We need to be very patient with newborns. Feeding, soothing, changing, positioning, is part of this time. Please be patient. Your beautiful newborn will be this little only once and we want to create stunning images for you.
2-4 hours: Upload and back up photos. Sort and edit photos (color correction, toning and retouching). If your gallery includes Nicole's artist rendition images (baby hanging from a tree branch or prop, posing sitting up, etc), then more time will be needed.
1 hour – Your personal session review of your gallery of images.
1-2 hours - Final editing, delivering digital images, via, download, CD, or USB. Sending your prints to our professional labs and sent to you.
As you can see, the time spent for one session can range from 8-10+ hours. Because professional photography is time and labour-intensive, we only accept very limited bookings per month to ensure we have plenty of time to perfect your images.
One of the most important qualifications for a newborn photographer is their ability and experience in handling a newborn and posing them safely. You are handing over your brand new baby to us to hold, soothe, pose in and on props. You need to trust that we know what we're doing, as to put your mind at ease during the session. As a professional photographer with over 20 years of experience in soothing and calming babies, this is a skill that is necessary for a successful session. Nicole is known as "The Baby Whisperer" I am also extensively experienced in posing babies in a way that always provides your baby's safety at all times. I can capture many popular poses like baby’s hands on the chin, hanging babies with wraps, or putting babies into props like crates or buckets. Keep in mind though, not every baby will "do" every pose.
EQUIPMENT
To give you professional quality images, I use thousands of dollars worth of professional-grade equipment such as cameras, lenses, studio lighting, computer and software. Although cameras out there are very good, consumer cameras do not match the quality of a professional camera. In addition, we carry a vast array of quality props such as blankets, hats, headbands, crates, buckets, flooring and backdrops to ensure a wide variety of beautiful set-ups to suit your style.
EXPERTISE, EDUCATION & EXPERIENCE
As a professional photographer I know precisely how to create the most endearing and memorable images. Not only do I understand how to use my camera to get the proper exposure, focus and composition, I also know how to light and pose clients properly. Professional photographer's have the ‘eye’ to compose distinctive images and enhance them with a professional photo-editing software. As a professional photographer CPP, I know the importance of my job in capturing quality images for you and therefore commit thousands of dollars and countless of hours in continuing education to perfect my artistry. I continue my education on a monthly basis, mentor other photographer's and give back to the community. I am also a proud member of The Professional Photographers Guild of the Palm Beaches, The Florida Professional Photographers, and Professional Photographers of America.
I believe the old saying “you get what you pay for” is true. I hope this helps you see the value of hiring a true professional who focuses on quality rather than hiring a photographer based on price alone.