Setting New Goals: Breastfeeding Photography Project

Have you ever imagined a really cool project for yourself but your busy life kept it on the back burner?  Most mothers would say this is the story of their lives! The daily grind, whether you are a stay-at-home mom or working mom, can keep you from expressing yourself creatively.  Try to scrounge up a small portion of time each day to plan your project. Even 10 minutes a day can give you an entire hour a week to do something that you really want to accomplish!   As a photographer, there are always new photo shoots I am planning. Looking back at them all, there is one in particular that was very dear to my heart. I wanted to take a large group shot of woman breastfeeding in public. As a mother, I have experienced firsthand the struggles and successes of breastfeeding. When I started, I literally had blood, sweat and tears! Cracked nipples, milk blisters (those were the worst) and a poor latch were all difficulties I encountered. Clearly, with all of my difficulties I was certainly not confident to nurse in public. However, I was not prepared to give up. I decided I had to get support to help get me on the track to successful breastfeeding. After countless visits with lactation consultants, I am so proud to say that I mastered breastfeeding! It has not only been a journey I reflect upon with pride,self-confidence and love, but an intimate time in my child’s life that I will cherish forever. If you are working to succeed with breastfeeding, I highly recommend our Free Lactation Circle.  The Lactation Circle is held weekly at both the Hackettstown and Madison offices.  You could also make an appointment with one of our Lactation Consultants at the office. We will support you on your breastfeeding journey so that you too will be part of the project to normalize nursing in our culture.   So how did I organize this project? I reached out to moms on a breastfeeding Facebook group, and talked to moms I saw nursing their babies. I posted that I was planning a breastfeeding get together at a park and asked for anyone who was comfortable nursing in public freely, to contact me. The feedback was amazing, and I had a few women sign up instantly! I’d love to continue this idea, and make the “nursing at the park” photo shoot an annual project for me. I am so happy that I took the time to follow-through on my project.  It will be a wonderful memory of this very short, very important, incredibly beautiful time in these mothers’ lives and it is my contribution to making breastfeeding everywhere normal in America. I very much appreciate this first group of women’s willingness to share this moment of pride with other breastfeeding mothers.   This blog was written by Michelle Norkin, owner of Michelle Norkin Photography. Michelle is a mom of 2 young girls, and is the photographer we use at Midwives of New Jersey and our Womens Wellness of New Jersey MotherCare Series. Photo Credit: All photos in this blog were taken by Michelle Norkin Photography 

My love for photography goes back to my childhood. As a little girl, my dad would show me his own unique collection of black and white photo’s. He would explain to me the rule of 3rds when I was very young. I was also heavily influenced by my grandparents who had an appreciate of the arts as well. My great-grandma was an artist specializing from beautiful sculptures to acrylic paintings. My style has evolved through out the years, and photography has become my medium to display the world as I view it. When I take a picture, I like to look at it as my own personal artwork.

-Michelle Norkin

Follow Michelle on Facebook and on her website.