Thank you so much for your very kind words Bubbee...
And those wonderfully enchanting renderings of your great grandchildren which totally made my day!
Assume this is "Baby Leo"? from your Oct 30, 2021 post?

I've always held dear that the greatest gift I've ever received is my son which is the most precious present his mom ever gave me... He has been the absolute Center of my Universe for the past 54 years!

Loving the Little Leo "Rock Star Image" working out on his acoustical six string... His large charismatic sparkling eyes are absolutely captivating! He's an amazing young man and I assume he has already captured the hearts of those who have viewed your lovely photos here... (Your Z50 rocks!)

Child Portraiture has always been a favorite genre of mine...
And I'm growing even more fond of it as I reach my "golden years"

An interesting aside is the Fashion Model in this Maternity Shoot (an ICU Nurse) has many patients who are nearing the end of their journeys... More then a few have shared with her that the thing they regretted most of all in their lives was not having children... She mentioned that this played into the mix in her wanting to start her own family...

btw, this is her first pregnancy and she's so super excited to bring her son into the world...

Again many thanks Bubbee!
Wishing you an Epic New Year ahead especially with your absolutely adorable Great Grandchildren...

Kit Used:
Paul Buff Alien Bee 1600; Paul Buff 60” Foldable Octabox; Pro-Elite Bike Repair Stand; Paul Buff Cybersync Transmitter/Receiver; Smith Victor FLASHLITE 120i MONOLIGHT; Paul Buff 13' Air-Cushioned Light Stand; Impact Aluminum Mid-Range Boom Arm; Tokina AT-X AF f2.8 50-135mm 535 DX for Nikon; Nikon D810; Induro GHB1 Gimbal Head; Manfrotto 055XPROB Tripod

Lighting Gear Notes:
The Paul Buff 60” Foldable Octabox with Alien Bee 1600 is mounted on the Pro-Elite Bicycle Repair Stand (modified to hold Lighting Accessories (Load rating: 75 lbs))
The Smith Victor FLASHLITE 120i MONOLIGHT with PhotoGenic 28" Silver Parabolic is mounted on an Impact Aluminum Mid-Range Boom Arm which is mounted on the Paul Buff 13' Air-Cushioned Light Stand

This aforementioned "Kit Listing" is embedded in the .jpg file for posting on flickr where they are parsed out as "TAGS" same with IG where they are again added as "Image Tags"

This Maternity Session was shot several days ago... 12/24 (8 hours including prep and wardrobe changes)
The Model was the AD on the Shoot and managed Wardrobe
Her significant other was the lighting assistant
Both were absolutely critical for a successful outcome in as there is no way I would attempt this solo.

The greatest challenged was by far Illumination...
It took several days to setup and balance illumination
I used a Nikon D300s with an AF-S 55-200mm f/4-5.6G ED VR-II DX Nikkor for that task (the D300s is pretty much identical to the D810 in required features & controls) and with the VR-II the Gimbal Mount was redundant i.e. only used for the actual session shoot.

Please realize that nearly all my Kit is either Refurbished or Previously Owned. What I'm sharing with you here is there actually is a relatively low barrier to entry for Studio Scenarios. In my experience as a commercial makeup artist on many many commercial jobs the greatest challenge to a DYI home studio are 11 foot ceilings. This is critical for working with 5'11" fashion models who can't do vertical narratives (jumps etc.) even without arms raised. Albeit I can Beauty Genre work with a typical 8' ceiling (however for serious Beauty Genre a Hair Light is Critical to the mix and thus requires at least 10' ceilings)

Posted Below is the AD's first pick... Delivered in 24 hours... another dozen to go (at a more civilized rate)

If you are serious about shooting commercial assignments you'll likely need a Studio (they are readily available in nearly all major Metro areas) many even have rental kit available also. However to master studio illumination by renting studio space is akin to taking an Uber for a cross-country vacation... a.k.a. It is very time intensive...

Hope this helps or is at least food for thought...
Wishing all a fabulous Holiday Season and an Epic successful Photographic Journey in the New Year ahead!
Cheers! Thomas

So nice to see you and your beautiful work and detailed info again! It's exceptional, as usual!
Dancers, I think you are 'behind the times'. Pregnancy is beautiful, and women now show their 'bellies' proudly.
Thomas, you were so kind and helpful to me when I posted pix of my Great-Grandson a bit over a year ago. I
didn't post more due to my kids' privacy concerns. He's two now, and I'm going to attach some recents of both him and my Step-Great-Grandaughter.
Happy New Year!
And keep posting your beautiful work!