Note: This post contains graphic images.
I'm a birth photographer based in Denver, Colorado. When I work with clients, I find that they fall into one of two camps: they either can't wait to see their placenta... or they've specifically asked me not to photograph it.
Placentas are polarizing.
On one hand, they are incredible organs that nourish your baby, and then leave your body once the job is done. The intricacy in a placenta is stunning... and they are each as unique as the babies they support.
On the other hand, they are organs... and for some people, the sight of an internal organ on the outside is shocking.
In many hospitals, placentas are treated as a biohazard. When I gave birth to my own daughter, I didn't even get a chance to see my placenta. I WISH someone had taken a picture! I wish someone had taken the time to show and explain it to me.
And so when I photograph births, I always make an effort to take at least one picture of my client's placenta....just in case they want to see it in the future. Below, are twelve incredible and beautiful images. (If you can't tell, I fall in the first camp that finds these organs absolutely amazing!)
