33 Women Photographed Before And After Becoming A Mom
Becoming a parent is arguably the biggest responsibility one can bestow upon themselves. The least we can do in return is thank the folks that brought us up. Enter Lithuanian photographer Vaida Razmislavičė. To express her gratitude for everything they've done, Vaida has dedicated an entire series just for motherhood.
Becoming A Mother is a photo series that aim to show how getting pregnant and giving birth changes a woman. Vaida photographed 33 women, before and after they delivered their firstborn, and really focused on their eyes. "For this photo idea, I chose a very simple format, as if I was taking passport photos," she wrote. "I wanted to highlight my model's gaze, taking away everything that would interfere with it (i.e. the belly)."
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"Raising kids is a deep experience, filled with joy, pain, exhaustion, and love," she said. "When a woman becomes a mom, she really feels her inner energy; her intuition becomes stronger, and her wisdom reaches new heights."
Vaida has gone through these changes herself. "Before my firstborn, my idea of motherhood was very different," she told Bored Panda. "To be honest, I didn't feel the motherhood instinct when I first took him into my arms. I've learned everything along the way, including ignoring old know-it-all's and growing the courage to trust my own decisions."
"I came up with the idea for this project when meeting people who thought of a newborn as some sort of obstacle to the parents," the photographer said. "I wanted to show that it's possible to continue living in harmony even after having a baby." Vaida knew this from her own experience as she managed to get a Master's degree while raising two kids.
Vaida said it was really interesting seeing all of the little details that changed in just a few months. "In a way, with these beautiful photos, I ended up healing myself. Looking directly into these women's eyes, I relived giving birth to my first son. All of the traumas and fears that I locked somewhere inside myself came back, only to vanish in the process. I realized the journey I've been on as a mother. The fruits that I'm reaping today now that my boys are almost all grown up."
"I took my time before making this project public," she added. "I would turn on these photos every day, however, it felt like it wasn't the right time. It was as if the series was waiting for its own birth. I had to stop criticizing myself over it. This period was a lot like the time when you're waiting for someone to be born. And it was over the same way, too: you can't control it, you just have to let go and believe that it will happen when it needs to."
Vaida is very grateful to all of the participants. Especially for their patience. The 33 women that stood in front of her camera gave birth to 36 children, including three pairs of twins. In total, 20 boys and 16 girls. Some of them have already celebrated their first birthday.
After she released the project, a few people criticized it for its post production. They said it's what makes the photos differ from one another. And while Vaida agrees it contributed to the overall effect, it was just a small part of it. "At first, I was worried about the lighting. I took the before and after photos in different studios (I used whatever spaces I could get) and even thought I could've faked the first batch of portraits, I didn't want to do it. For this project, I used only natural lighting and because of my lack of experience I forgot that the angle of sunlight in summer and winter are different. Also, things like reflections and the number of windows came into play. I retouched only very little details in post production, though. Now, if I could do it all over again, I'd use artificial lighting, trying to maintain the same conditions for every shoot." The photographer said she welcomes every comment that can help her get better.
From all of these I gather Lithuania is the land of stunning eyes. Is what I learned.
I'm not saying this to be mean, but she looks a bit cross-eyed in the second picture. Strange.
You can totally tell she has gone through a life changing experience such as birthing a child. Oh no wait she changed her hair.
The only difference I see is that they purposely put less contrast in the pictures on the left. Either that or lighting conditions are very different between pictures making this entire project pretty worthless.
Exactly. Better lighting and sharper photos.
Why do people downvote when someone asks a question? Loads of people on here don't speak English as a first language or possilby don't know much about photography. Miss Cris - it means that the picture has more clarity, the edges of the subjects in the photo have crisper, cleaner lines. Probably taken with a better camera! That may not be the best explanation but I hope it helps!
In many cases, different hairstyles.
What does "sharper" mean, please?
yup..all pretty ladies though..make her/him a better person girls..Love!!
Better lighting and typically better make up in the "after" pics. Both important if you are focusing on the eyes. So yeah, not a very insightful project here.
I was about to comment the same thing. The after photos are all photoshopped with brighter lighting and highlights to make them glow more. This completely negates the whole experiment in my mind. Keep the photo qualities and the poses (smiling v not smiling) equal otherwise its pointless.
yup. at first, i thought i was imagining it. why the intentional bias?
I noticed the contrast effect but some look legitimately older while others look you.ger....to me that says there isn't a direct correlation between becoming a mother and how one looks...in the face at least . They all look like lovely ladies.
Apparently, getting a child also means getting a different haircut.
Because there is very little time to care for your own hair when you first have a baby - easy care hairstyles all the way!
this whole thing is a bust... the pseudo photographer intentionally made them look better in each of the second photos. I am a professional photographer at the top of my pond ... I also taught for 30 years as well as shot. This whole thing is inexcusable and should be removed. It's as fake as they come. Shame on the shooter.
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Bla bla bla... It was october.
Maybe this is just me, but I don't see any difference at all. What are we supposed to be seeing?
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Use glasses.
I don't understand, their faces look no different basically. Their faces and skin look flawless, I had ny baby almost 10 months ago and still have bad rosacea on my face and my face is still fuller. During my pregnancy and when I had her my face was much fatter. I don't think these are true, with all those women none of them have minor imperfections from pregnancy? I don't think so.
Not No One - Re the rosacea try Azelaic Acid. It reduces redness and inflammation. It can help acne too Marketa.
I was scrolling to the end for the reveal "... and on the LEFT is AFTER!" --- on the right better light and most smile; that's it.
Would like to know where in this article that that reveal is. Went thru it and read nothing to indicate the pics on the left are the after photos. I'm doubtful that is true for 2 reasons. 1) Such placement would be contrary to the western (and that includes Lithuania) norm of left to right reading. 2) Majority of right photos show women who appear to be wearing noticeably less makeup and other subtle changes that would exist with women who have much less time for refining their appearance... as one would expect with a first time mother. Nearly every right side photo shows women whose hair appears less well groomed. Also many women, in the right side photos, look subtlety, but noticeably, older. #32 looks to be showing some premature grey hair around her face.
Agree. To me took over year to get plus minus on weight I was before, year and half still have ugly discolorations on my face, constant acne...
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This comment has been deleted.
Sooo... long story short for those who didn't read the text: the amateur photographer taking the portraits used different studios AND different lighting for the before and after pics — hence the differences (albeit minor). Ridiculous post.
Basically giving birth gives you a fancier hairstyle, better makeup and the hue around you (including the backdrop) gets warmer and softer. Wow - amazing 😅
ikr? It's a shocker!
Deceptive, bad Photoshop/LightRoom editing. The photographer deliberately kept contrast and sharpness low on the left, and added contrast and sharpness to the right, especially around the eyes. This contrast also provides more saturated appearance. What a sad and petty thing to do to attempt to fool an audience.
they look the same 🤷♀️
Correct captions should be: Left: Tuesday Right: Wednesday
Somewhat pointless.
So she took pictures of random women before and after a makeover and conjured up a story about how they changed after giving birth. To what purpose may I ask?
Exactly. The purpose is probably as simple as wanting to make herself feel better about her choices. It looks like validation seeking. Most are wearing more make up or have more of a smile and the photos are better. Most women I've seen after having a baby are knackered.
It would be interesting to offer these same photos as a Before-and-After guessing game to see what answers people would come up with. What was the event in the middle? Graduated college? Changed marital status? Got a new job? Cancer survivor? Nothing really? Can you spot the phonies? Etc., etc. ... Just because you’re told what the difference was and you believe it, are you perhaps reading something into their faces that isn’t really there?
What was expected? Still the same person...
I got the idyllic idea trying to sip through this, but man... those pics on the right have photoshop running. Different lighting, diffrent colour saturation.
Re-title this: So, your hair is a little different.
So not really much difference? Maybe more makeup and with their hair done in the after photo
Is it just me, or are the pictures slightly biased? It they seem more heavily edited in the after picture...?
This must be one of the most stupid things I've seen on the Internet... These images tell nothing at all... I'm a photographer but you don't need to be one to see - as the previous comment states - that they've just been retouched differently... I don't even know why I'm wasting time commenting on this 😂 Its just ridiculous
Too. Much. Photoshop.
Ok what was your goal here? The look the same why wouldn't they? Lmaoo
This is nonsense! Pictures of the same person can look different based on the age difference, the person's facial expression, hair style, camera angle, lighting, the camera color tone and resolution. The idea that childbirth changes your appearance is ridiculous!
Next time, put the same photos and we have to guess which is before and wich is after. And why.
This is pretty pointless. No picture really represents how exhausted they are. Source: New mom.
They all have been through a filter. Zoom in you can even tell when your phone light is at its dimmest.
BS
With the exception of 2, they look the same, just different hair styles.
apparently none of them gained any baby-weight in their face (lucky!!), and all have kids who sleep through the night (miraculous!!). All of the *parents* I know with young kids, do NOT look this refreshed (my respects to everyone with young kids. I know how exhausting it can be)
Most Lithuanian women are thin and they take great pride in their personal appearance
What a pointless exercise. They all look exactly the same. Great material to explore with a visual medium
Wow this is dumb.
For ONCE you are right. Don't let it get to you.
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Thanks Liam! I appreciate support from even the special people like you.
Ooh, John! You make me feel special - you old rascal. Your keepers must be chuffed to bits when the medication occasionally kicks in.
Judging from the negatives on my last reply to you, I don't think people agree that you're very special. :(
The title is extremely misleading. It infers the pictures were taken pretty much straight after the birth. If all women had a huge chunk of time in between the photographs being taken and a full hair and make up team, they'd all look amazing too.
What's the theory here? Does motherhood change your looks? They all look different to some extent, not necessarily due to motherhood - could be matureness, lighting, tiredness, etc.
Is Lithuania devoid of any kind of diversity? All these WHITE women look around the same age, ideal weight and looks.
Less time to sleep, less time to go to the hairdresser.
Yes, after 10+ hours of active labour this is how you look. Specially the first month of sleep deprivation. Better glow than the pregnancy glow. 100%
Lithuanian women are all beautiful, before and after birth.The only thing different in this post = other use of lighting, different makeup (shades) and maybe use of a couple of filters, nothing else & nothing more.
I fail to see the point.
In other news. Beautiful women are still beautiful after having children.
So basically the message here is supposed to be: women, go get pregnant, you'll look better, once you've experienced motherhood! A hypotheses backed by very questionable photo(shop)graphic work. Whatever
What the fuck is this thing ?
The only difference I see is better lighting and photo enhancements on the Iris's in the post preg pics
It helps that all of the Women depicted are manicured in the same way essentially. Where's the real pictures? The ones depicting a Woman on her 7th day of 2 hour sleep nights, who can barely form words, with dried spit up in her hair, and part of yesterday's dinner, that she ate over the sink, still stuck tho the front of her shirt, who just wants 10. Minutes. Of sleep. The Women shown are gorgeous, with perfectly combed hair and makeup. Come on now.... =)
Beautiful women, but not one single woman of color.
They apparently don't deserve as much Photoshop treatment after they became moms. Also using other light and different posing attitude and camera positioning.
So much work and yet so very pointless and boring.
Try looking at the photos without thinking of the premise. I guarantee you won't see the difference.
And the point of this?
Lol, what a liyng :D
Pft do a before and after raising teenagers. Gray hair, squint lines and perpetual heart burn
Can somone specify which one is before and which one is after?
Can someone please specify which one is before and which one is after
They all look happier, softer and more self confident. That's what becoming a mother does to a woman. The love for her child and the fact that she has a huge responsibility for her child shows in their faces.
Most of them look slimmer. Some of them look like they were meant to be moms, so warm and kind facial expressions
Lets Do a top 5..of the prettiest women folks ..that political correct right?
I think this is useless for people other than them and their families. Nothing happened, just different light, clothes, hair and time.
33 Women Photographed with different lighting and hairdos :/
No effing way. All have perfect skin and no dark circles? What, do they all have nannies?!
do another 33 women but this time their vagina's before and after
In my personal experience, having kids give many benefit... You'll found a reason to be better everyday, learn new things everyday.. You'll found joy of many new activities... And me and my wife income has been increased drastically.. I dunno how to explain, but I think it is a blessing of being parent. It is 10 fold of the number we got before married..
Yeah, you know some of the people without kids do that too.
There really isn't much difference between the photos. Other than the women's pics on the right the women look more "woke". Like they've been through something life changing, of course. But overall, I think that's the point. Women are women. If we really want to know we have to talk to them. Hear their stories. We put WAY too much stock in what women look like and how that tells their stories. But their stories are in their experience, not their face.
The premise for the photos is great, BUT it just isn't showing through, I dont think the subjects in the second shot are being their true selves, as a FTM I find these photos un realistic.
foundation in the before and after is a different shade. Looks like they have used darker shades in the before, then on the right in the 'after' pictures, lighter foundation, better lighting and blusher/highlighter making their skin look less dull.
I don't know which is before and which is after.. if left is before and right is after, most women are skinnier after apparently? you see more bone structure. Plus already mentioned - lighting, makeup etc. Stupid project.
The worst photographs ever. No depth. Way too much make-up!
what is up with these eyes? they all have such gorgeous striking eyes. I ve never seen such a collection
Worthless project. There is no difference at all, but what was she hoping to prove? That motherhood somehow is just so meaningful and elevating that it changes a woman into being--what exactly? More beautiful? It didn't quite work out as she intended. No difference in the after photos, other than the expression the woman chose to put on her face that day, and lighting. It would have been just as meaningful if she had taken photos of women before and after eating a pizza. Or watching a movie. Or drinking a cup of coffee. Or taking a big poop. No change.
I love the eyes in al of them
With the exception of a few who looked a little more ready to show who's boss or perfected the on raised eyebrow two inches higher than the other. Most of these moms looked happy and a little more relaxed and could keep cool when everything up to and including her life, flashed before her eyes as she landed on the head of a pin. I like the hair. Looks sexy like bed head. So I think they look great. And that's why I rent their kids for the day working at school. And I look like they do except I've landed on the other end of a pin and my hair never looks that good. And a couple hundred kids just makes me look like a crazed lunatic.
Amazing range of diversity presented here. Well done!
Woohoo - diversity rulez!
Why are all of you so set up?? Yes, different studios, different hairstyle ect. Doesn't anybody see the glow in their eyes? The fact that they are far more natural looking? Happily depleted
That's what you want to see - most of us don't agree. The photographer has gone to the trouble of altering the lighting and picking photos where the mother smiles more or has more make up. It feels dishonest. Oh, the actual eyeball doesn't change it's the skin around that causes expression to alter. The eyes just have more light reflected in them in this instance. Lots of people probably won't agree with me but this kind of thing can make the women who have difficulty bonding with their children, don't feel instantly at home with being a mother far, far worse about what they perceive to be something lacking in them when it's actually far more common than people realise. You go mums - you still are doing a bloody good job!
I think they all look great in both pics. So hopefully that would be me as well, when I have a child myself one day, haha
Girlfriend vs Wife 😂😜
They look happier after having a baby. You can reverse order of pics and you have an example of before and after and abortion.
The only difference I saw, was the after pictures looked happier. (With a couple of exceptions).
It's nice to finally see a family friendly post on here. Lately there were a few posts about how marriage/ kids are bad and being alone is great on which I avoided commenting. But it's nice to finally see some positivity. And all the lonely people in the comments- don't worry you'll find someone.
I would have like to see a variety of ethnicities in the sample. Also a larger sample would gave been nice. Finally, understanding the numbers of years between the before and after would have been interesting.
I find it interesting that in most of the after pictures, the women look younger.
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I thought I was quite liberal, but after 1 year of bored panda, I'm going to vote for Trump. ... Cat suckers
Clearly you didn't know yourself that well if you can make that kind of discovery and are so easily swayed to the orange side.
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WOW! What about black mothers? Indian? Asian? Around the world mothers? Didn't know Caucasians moms only exist.
Lithuania doesn't have a great range of diversity - just because black, indian, asian people haven't chosen to go and live in Lithuania doesn't make it the photographers fault.
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I guess it's official then, moms are hotter
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i guess it's official then, mom are hotter
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you can see a difference in cheek structure in almost every one of them. they are fuller in the cheek right near the nose. The lips seems to have become fuller in many of them as well. Does not matter the lighting or makeup. if you look closely you can see a plumper or differntly shaped cheek
The magic of make up and photoshop. The photographer has an agenda. Come on! Why would any of them have plumper lips?!!!
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What an interesting idea. My impression was the the after photos were of women who were mature, self aware, and more intense. The before photos seemed like they were not quite mature. Motherhood seems to make each more beautiful than before.
The only difference I see is that they purposely put less contrast in the pictures on the left. Either that or lighting conditions are very different between pictures making this entire project pretty worthless.
Exactly. Better lighting and sharper photos.
Why do people downvote when someone asks a question? Loads of people on here don't speak English as a first language or possilby don't know much about photography. Miss Cris - it means that the picture has more clarity, the edges of the subjects in the photo have crisper, cleaner lines. Probably taken with a better camera! That may not be the best explanation but I hope it helps!
In many cases, different hairstyles.
What does "sharper" mean, please?
yup..all pretty ladies though..make her/him a better person girls..Love!!
Better lighting and typically better make up in the "after" pics. Both important if you are focusing on the eyes. So yeah, not a very insightful project here.
I was about to comment the same thing. The after photos are all photoshopped with brighter lighting and highlights to make them glow more. This completely negates the whole experiment in my mind. Keep the photo qualities and the poses (smiling v not smiling) equal otherwise its pointless.
yup. at first, i thought i was imagining it. why the intentional bias?
I noticed the contrast effect but some look legitimately older while others look you.ger....to me that says there isn't a direct correlation between becoming a mother and how one looks...in the face at least . They all look like lovely ladies.
Apparently, getting a child also means getting a different haircut.
Because there is very little time to care for your own hair when you first have a baby - easy care hairstyles all the way!
this whole thing is a bust... the pseudo photographer intentionally made them look better in each of the second photos. I am a professional photographer at the top of my pond ... I also taught for 30 years as well as shot. This whole thing is inexcusable and should be removed. It's as fake as they come. Shame on the shooter.
This comment has been deleted.
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
Bla bla bla... It was october.
Maybe this is just me, but I don't see any difference at all. What are we supposed to be seeing?
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
Use glasses.
I don't understand, their faces look no different basically. Their faces and skin look flawless, I had ny baby almost 10 months ago and still have bad rosacea on my face and my face is still fuller. During my pregnancy and when I had her my face was much fatter. I don't think these are true, with all those women none of them have minor imperfections from pregnancy? I don't think so.
Not No One - Re the rosacea try Azelaic Acid. It reduces redness and inflammation. It can help acne too Marketa.
I was scrolling to the end for the reveal "... and on the LEFT is AFTER!" --- on the right better light and most smile; that's it.
Would like to know where in this article that that reveal is. Went thru it and read nothing to indicate the pics on the left are the after photos. I'm doubtful that is true for 2 reasons. 1) Such placement would be contrary to the western (and that includes Lithuania) norm of left to right reading. 2) Majority of right photos show women who appear to be wearing noticeably less makeup and other subtle changes that would exist with women who have much less time for refining their appearance... as one would expect with a first time mother. Nearly every right side photo shows women whose hair appears less well groomed. Also many women, in the right side photos, look subtlety, but noticeably, older. #32 looks to be showing some premature grey hair around her face.
Agree. To me took over year to get plus minus on weight I was before, year and half still have ugly discolorations on my face, constant acne...
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
This comment has been deleted.
Sooo... long story short for those who didn't read the text: the amateur photographer taking the portraits used different studios AND different lighting for the before and after pics — hence the differences (albeit minor). Ridiculous post.
Basically giving birth gives you a fancier hairstyle, better makeup and the hue around you (including the backdrop) gets warmer and softer. Wow - amazing 😅
ikr? It's a shocker!
Deceptive, bad Photoshop/LightRoom editing. The photographer deliberately kept contrast and sharpness low on the left, and added contrast and sharpness to the right, especially around the eyes. This contrast also provides more saturated appearance. What a sad and petty thing to do to attempt to fool an audience.
they look the same 🤷♀️
Correct captions should be: Left: Tuesday Right: Wednesday
Somewhat pointless.
So she took pictures of random women before and after a makeover and conjured up a story about how they changed after giving birth. To what purpose may I ask?
Exactly. The purpose is probably as simple as wanting to make herself feel better about her choices. It looks like validation seeking. Most are wearing more make up or have more of a smile and the photos are better. Most women I've seen after having a baby are knackered.
It would be interesting to offer these same photos as a Before-and-After guessing game to see what answers people would come up with. What was the event in the middle? Graduated college? Changed marital status? Got a new job? Cancer survivor? Nothing really? Can you spot the phonies? Etc., etc. ... Just because you’re told what the difference was and you believe it, are you perhaps reading something into their faces that isn’t really there?
What was expected? Still the same person...
I got the idyllic idea trying to sip through this, but man... those pics on the right have photoshop running. Different lighting, diffrent colour saturation.
Re-title this: So, your hair is a little different.
So not really much difference? Maybe more makeup and with their hair done in the after photo
Is it just me, or are the pictures slightly biased? It they seem more heavily edited in the after picture...?
This must be one of the most stupid things I've seen on the Internet... These images tell nothing at all... I'm a photographer but you don't need to be one to see - as the previous comment states - that they've just been retouched differently... I don't even know why I'm wasting time commenting on this 😂 Its just ridiculous
Too. Much. Photoshop.
Ok what was your goal here? The look the same why wouldn't they? Lmaoo
This is nonsense! Pictures of the same person can look different based on the age difference, the person's facial expression, hair style, camera angle, lighting, the camera color tone and resolution. The idea that childbirth changes your appearance is ridiculous!
Next time, put the same photos and we have to guess which is before and wich is after. And why.
This is pretty pointless. No picture really represents how exhausted they are. Source: New mom.