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Me? Write a blog? I never would have thought it.
But then I would never have thought I would leave my 11 year career as a Personnel Support Officer in the Royal Air Force to become a motherhood photographer. That was what I had wanted to do for as long as I can remember so when I joined up, gained my Commission and worked in so many amazing roles I thought that’s what I would always do.
Until one day my world, everything I knew turned upside down. My husband and I had been together for 10 years and we were due to have our baby towards the end of 2019. Having just moved from Norfolk to North Yorkshire to be closer to family for when our little one arrived, we’d quickly packed a bag and escaped for a ‘babymoon’ to relax and put our feet up. We’d both been working hard, Chris also in the RAF, and I had been juggling Hyperemesis for my entire pregnancy, alongside work. I’d also had a crazy busy and stressful few years at work so this break was what was need to draw a line under it all and begin our new Yorkshire chapter as a family.
Except…. A little someone had other ideas. Day 1 of our holiday to Centre Parcs in Cumbria, our trip to the spa was clearly too relaxing for some. I’ll spare the details but a placenta abruption, a severe bleed, a quick ambulance trip to hospital and a near death experience for us both shortly led to baby Harriet being born by emergency C Section, 6 weeks ahead of her due date. No hospital bag, no support nearby, miles and miles from home and a baby in Special Care Baby Unit - who may be there some time, quickly meant we put on the list for transfer to our local hospital. At 3 days old, Harriet was transferred by ‘The Childrens Air Ambulance’ helicopter to Harrogate SCBU where after another short stint in hospital with medical treatment for us both, we were then home. Even now, she’s still known as Helicopter baby for being the first to arrive at Harrogate SCBU by air.
The long and short of it is we were both ok – physically. Mentally, this day will stay with me forever. As a way of having some closure I rang many photographers who were either unavailable at short notice-understandable, or would not take pictures of Harriet as she was no longer a newborn therefore may struggle to get squishy curled up pictures of her. They were right, she wasn’t a newborn anymore, but not even at her due date, I just wanted a couple of images of my little girl- however they came out. I did find a photographer in the end but the session wasn’t what I’d hoped for. She forgot her camera. She struggled with the lighting in our double windowed military house in winter. And then the images we got were edited so much that any blemishes, birthmarks were now gone and our tango/jaundiced baby Harriet looked very different. It wasn’t great.
A year went by and to cut a very very long story a bit shorter, the world had gained a global pandemic, the UK was in lockdown and I realised my mental health was not what it once was. I sought help, (and would urge others to do the same). Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. PTSD. Anxiety. These new labels were the start of many months of treatment and medication which eventually meant I could hear a siren and be at peace, not be physically shaken at a healthworker or hospital, and actually leave the house for a walk.
But I needed something else and I was still being drawn to a thought I’d had months ago. I wanted to restart my love with photography and focus purely on the journey of a mother and everything that came with it. Maternity, newborn, young babies and children as well as family- the lot! It wasn’t something I’d done before but a passion had been ignited in me like no other and I knew it was what I needed to do. I also had a goal of raising money for the very charity that helped bring my baby home.
So I did. I’d dabbled with a camera as a hobby for years. I have always been creative, and loved art so this combination seemed like a logical step. For months, I juggled maternity leave, sleepless nights and another house move (to Harrogate!!), alongside reading, learning and additional online photography courses. The more I learnt, the more I loved it.
When lockdown finally ended I set about perfecting the skills I’d had for years, coupled with the months of training and some new courses I’d been keen to attend. Many more months of solid training up and down the country with some incredible photographers, amazing models and gorgeous newborns gave me the qualifications and confidence to jump into a world I had never really entered before and I set up Malika Jane Photography.
So at the end of October 2021, it happened. A website was made, a brand was created and social media pages went live and before I could even catch a breath, my diary was being booked up months in advance. That’s not been the end of the hard work at all. As I sit here nearly a year in, I think about the many hours, many projects and the many achievements.
Whats next? Well, this is just been the beginning. I pride my style of photography on being timeless, natural, yet sometimes semi posed to capture even the smallest of memories for parents which is why it’s so important for me to be able to give a rounded experience, not just a nice picture which is why I set out to do something a little different to what I have seen being done. With the research I have done, I haven’t found other photographers doing everything I plan to offer – which I hope is a good thing for you as my clients!
In time, I can reveal it all but for now, we move ever closer to my goal, and from the bottom of my heart I thank you for all of your support in my journey. I hope you love it as much as I do.
Much Love Malika xx
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