Multi-tasking mum captures daughter's birth on camera

The popularity of birth photographers has sky-rocketed in recent years, but it's not often that a mother captures her own baby's birth on camera between contractions.

That's what US wedding photographer Lisa Robinson-Ward decided to do as she prepared to give birth to her baby daughter Anora.

The result is a collection of emotional mums-eye-view birth pictures.

Lisa told the Huffington Post she had been having contractions on and off for a week before her waters broke at 3am and she and her husband headed to the hospital. 

"We grabbed our things, and the camera, and got into the car to go to the hospital - thankfully it wasn't a long drive," she said.

"When we got there, I was shaking with every single contraction and at one point I thought to myself, 'There's no way I'm going to be able to hold the camera'."

Despite her doubts, Lisa followed her plans with the blessing of her doctor.

"He was all for it. But when he came into the room and saw that I had a camera right in my face, I think he was kind of amazed," she said.

What followed was a 14-hour labour, but Lisa said pain relief and the support of her husband helped time pass quickly.

When it came time to push, the second time mum had her camera at the ready.

"I took pictures while I pushed! When I was ready to push, I'd bring my hands and the camera up to my face. I didn't know what I was getting at the time, and I didn't know if anything was going to be in focus. But it helped me focus," Lisa told HuffPo.

"When I look back at these photos, I can remember exactly how I felt. I can relive the moment my daughter was born."

One of the benefits of taking photos during her daughter's birth is that Lisa got to capture her husband's emotions as their daughter was born.

"I loved seeing my husband's face the moment he saw our daughter for the first time," she told HuffPo. "He was crying. He was just so happy."

Baby Anora is now six months old and a very happy baby, according to Lisa.

"Our daughter is really easy going. She's mellow. She sleeps!"