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First Photos

From inside the womb to infanthood and beyond, specialized baby photographers are ready to capture every moment.

Traditional black-and-white ultrasounds are still the standard in doctors’ offices to tell whether it’s a boy or girl, but many parents are now going to specialists to capture a keepsake of baby in fuller dimension.

Companies like TomorrowToday Ultrasound of Aiea are offering 3-D ultrasounds, an orange-bronze image that shows a more realistic rendering of baby in utero, including details of the face.

But 4-D imagery, which offers a real-time in-utero video, is in even higher demand, according to owner Caley Prusse.

"The babies do so much in there," said Prusse. "They yawn, smile, frown, make little cry faces, suck their thumbs, blink and open their eyes. It’s an opportunity to see them in their environment."

TomorrowToday Ultrasound is in its sixth year of business in Hawaii, with more parents coming in every year, says Prusse.

"Just about every city now has a keepsake ultrasound facility," she said. "We continue to grow every year."

The videos are shared at baby showers and used as baby announcements, she said. Prices range from $85 for a still image to $225 for a three-visit package of photos, a Web gallery of images, three DVDs and three CDs of images. Other packages are available.

Capturing baby in his or her first few moments after birth is the specialty of Bella Baby Photography, which has the contract for Kapiolani Medical Center for Women & Children.

It’s all about convenience, according Bella Baby’s lead photographer, Jocelyn Sasaki.

Mothers don’t necessarily want photos of the birth process so much as portraits of baby along with the family, including siblings, right in the hospital, typically on day two. Families these days like both posed photos and candids that are more documentary-style, showing them caring for the baby.

"It’s a little photo shoot right there in the mom’s room," she said.

These days, Sasaki said, what seems popular among parents is dressing up newborns in itty-bitty coordinating outfits that they found on Etsy.com, a website for handmade items. For boys there are baby superhero outfits. For girls, flower bands and tutus.

Bella Baby photos are available for immediate viewing on a computer. Parents can go online to purchase prints, birth announcement cards or other products — from gallery-wrapped canvases to diaper bags.

Prices range from about $7 to $15 per print, depending on size, and up to $135 for the photo shoot CD with printing rights.

If parents are interested, Bella Baby also offers a milestone package with follow-up portraits at 3, 6, 9 and 12 months.

Newborn photography, which captures baby within the first few weeks after birth, is also increasingly popular, with baby wrapped in soft, textured knits or nestled in a basket by the sea.

In Hawaii, sunrise and sunset photos on the beach are popular, especially with the magical colors that appear on the horizon.

The first two weeks are usually best for newborn portraits, according to photographer Rita Coury, who charges $250 to $350 per session, depending on location and time.

"I love recording those first moments, when ears are curled in like rosebuds, getting all the wrinkles on the feet, closeups of the nose and lips," she said.

Coury, who has specialized in babies for 15 years, says the use of natural light is a growing trend, as opposed to flash photography.

While she does have a studio, she prefers photo sessions in the baby’s home using natural light and often an item from the home as a prop.

For one baby she used a surfboard, and in another shot the baby posed sleeping on an airplane-themed shelf that his dad had built for him (with both parents standing nearby for safety).

"It’s almost editorial and lifestyle-type photography," she said. "Let the surrounding inspire you. That’s my approach."

ON THE NET:

>> TomorrowToday Ultrasound: www.hawaiiultrasound.com
>> Bella Baby Photography: www.bellababyphotography.com
>> Rita Coury Photography: www.RitaCouryPhotography.com

Nina Wu, Star-Advertiser