Disney princesses transformed into the true Happily Ever After . . . Mums

During the weekend, while I was scrolling on my Facebook feed, I stopped when I saw the post of a Russian artist who imagined Disney princesses pregnant or as new mums.

My daughter was never really into the princesses. She liked Flouder more than Ariel. The Tiger more than Jasmine and the racoon more than Pocahontas. So I understood straight away she was into animals! Ha ha ha

Anyway, most girls love princesses and their magic world. And I loved this new vision of pregnancy and motherhood. I will share here some of my favourites.

Pregnant Pocahontas in the Nature

Love the complicity here. In my maternity photography, I always look for connection and emotions and this illustration was the first to catch my eye for this exact reason! It reminded me of what I look for and of course, the white dress is the final touch. Pure and simple. True beauty!

https://www.instagram.com/p/B-zd1V3BASZ/

Sweet princess Cinderella as mum to be

Another illustration I like for the neutral tones and the sweetness between the couple. Casual and elegant at the same time!

https://www.instagram.com/p/B_Fw8CNBg2n/

Beautiful Belle holding her little girl

Love the bond between mother and daughter here. When I photograph my moms I can see the same lovingly eyes.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CAS1XooBFDo/

Ariel as mum-to be

Love the location here! And the happiness in their expression.

https://www.instagram.com/p/B-o0-p4hmJi/

Pocahontas with her happy baby

I love this pose. It works great with mum or dad and the baby always have so much fun!

https://www.instagram.com/p/CAvMEGFBY9w/

Snow White sweetness

Baby happy and comfortably swaddled in mum’s arms. Love it!

https://www.instagram.com/p/CB_Y9P1sa-8/

Disney Princess Aurora mum

Again here I love the natural location and the beautiful dress. Not a big fun of the head flowers but hey it’s Disney world!

https://www.instagram.com/p/B-rBFfaBnL2/

I hope you enjoyed these illustrations! Surely a different view from what we grew up with, right?

The maternity journey into motherhood should be fully embraced and photographs of your bump and with your baby will always remind you of this amazing time of your life.

If you would like to have some beautiful memories of your pregnant belly I will be delighted to help you! Have a look at the maternity gallery and don’t hesitate to get in touch vale@photographybyvalentina.com.

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There is something special that happens when you hold a printed album for the first time.

Its weight. 
The texture under your fingers. 
The sound of the pages turning. 
The way the images look back at you, solid and real, in a way a screen never quite manages.

A digital file exists somewhere. 

A printed album IS somewhere. You can feel the difference.

This is a newborn album. Leatherette cover, gold embossed text, lay flat pages that let every image breathe. 

It is the final chapter of a session, the moment everything we created together becomes something you can live, enjoy and pass down.

This is why, after a shoot, a printed product is never an afterthought for me. It is the whole point.

And it is also why I am not the right photographer for everyone. If you are looking for a gallery of just digitals and nothing more, I would gently point you elsewhere. 

But if you want something you can hold, something that feels like it truly exists, something your child will one day open and say this was us, then we should talk.

Newborn photography in Richmond and Twickenham.
For years I have strived for minimalism in my photos. Even when everyone was putting babies in baskets and flowers and that seemed like the only way to do it.

And lately I have been reflecting on that choice even more. It was right for me then. And it feels even more right now.

Especially in a world where everything is loud, fast and AI-generated. What cuts through all of that is not a prop or a set. It is a moment. A real one.

Holding your baby in your arms. The most precious thing you will ever hold. Staying in that stillness. The way the whole world seems to shrink down to just this, the small weight, the tiny face, this brand new person who has already changed everything in you.

These are the moments I get to witness.
And they never, ever get ordinary.
After 15 years, so much of what I do is on autopilot.

I look for the gorgeous light and read the baby. I know when to wait and when to act. And I do it without thinking.

But the moment someone is beside me, watching, learning, everything slows down. I have to find words for things I stopped noticing years ago. And in doing that, I remember how it felt at the beginning. The insecurities. The fear of getting it wrong. The weight of feeling like you should already know. The comparison with others.

Teaching reminds me how much courage it takes to learn something new and how gently we should treat ourselves while we do.

If you are starting out, in any field, well done. Truly. I know how hard and lonely those first steps can be. But you don’t have to take them alone.

And if you are a photographer thinking about a one to one newborn training day in my Twickenham studio,I would love to be part of your journey.
Link in bio.
Six weeks ago I shared a glimpse behind the scenes of this session. Today, you get to see what we made.

She arrived with her props already chosen.

Nude stockings. The kind her mother wore. The ones women mended rather than replaced.

She knew exactly what she wanted to say. 
My job was simply to hold the space and let her say it.

This is what a portrait session can be. 
Not a makeover or a way to fit an idea of beauty. But a conversation between a woman and her own story, made visible.

Dyana is an artist, activist and doula. She explores identity, the body, and everything that lives between and beyond definition.

I am grateful I had the chance to photograph her.
Tomorrow I have a newborn session and a 1:1 training day with a photographer travelling from Switzerland to spend the day with me.

But before any of that, the work had already started.
It starts with a conversation. Learning about your birth, your family, how things have been since you came home. Then comes the studio prep, making sure the space is warm, clean and ready for someone very new to the world, with attention to every small thing that makes a family feel safe and held.

After 15 years, this is still how I do it. Every time.
That same care is what I pass on when I teach.

If you are a parent looking for a photographer who takes this seriously, or a photographer thinking about training, this is what I stand for.

📩 Links in bio for both.
She almost didn’t come.

She told me she wasn’t feeling confident. 
That she didn’t know how to pose. 
That maybe I should photograph someone else.

I hear this more than you’d think. From women who are more reserved and introvert but also the ones who are funny and so alive in person. Women who have simply spent too long seeing themselves in a fixed way.

We spent a morning together. Just her, the light, and a space where nothing needed to be fixed or hidden.

The woman in these photos? She was there all along.

If you’ve been telling yourself a similar story, I’d gently ask you this: what if you’re wrong too?
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VALE@PHOTOGRAPHYBYVALENTINA.COM

07577 978246

LONDON NEWBORN & MATERNITY PHOTOGRAPHER

Based in Richmond, I work with families across London to capture life’s most meaningful milestones through portrait photography.