[PHOTOS] Photographer Shoots Gorgeous Photos Of Real Mums Breastfeeding In Public
"If a lady can dress up for their wedding and capture their beautiful moments, why not mothers too?"
By Janelle Tai — 05 Feb 2016, 12:21 PM
This is Jen Pan, a wedding and family photographer. Jen is also a mother of two, with her latest having just turned one.
Being a mother and a professional, she understands the kind of issues new working mums face while public breastfeeding. Not to mention workplace discrimination.
While support for breastfeeding in public has been on the rise, a huge majority of people are still blinded by ignorance and regard it as a disgusting and vulgar act.
Jen wanted to do something to change that perception. She wanted to show how on the contrary, breastfeeding is a perfectly normal and beautiful act.
She decided to curate a photo series to showcase breastfeeding mums in their element.
While something resonated deeply in Jen Pan as a mother of two, she realised it wasn't easy to execute the project. However, the issue was one that should be broadcasted and therefore, Jen persevered.
"There were late nights in our studio where we doubted ourselves on whether this was really worth the huge amount of effort, time and money," wrote Jen
"But honestly, as photographers, if you are not fiercely passionate about what you believe in, you are just on a one-way ticket towards the end of your career."
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Jen may have received a few unfavourable opinions, but it did not discourage her vision. Jen's artistry is special because she chose to tell an important story through her brilliant photography.
Her photo series featured new mum Celeste, photographed in an enchanted forest to mirror the start of motherhood as something magical
"If a lady can dress up for their wedding and capture their beautiful moments, why not mothers too?" opinionated photographer Jen Pan on her Facebook photography page. "I guess to some, mothers should only have oily hair and an oversize milk stained t-shirt. A little contradicting isn't it. First they say that mothers should make an effort to look good and yet the same people think it is a crime to be gorgeous, jelly much?"
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Celeste's baby Ellie quietly suckled on the 22-year-old's breast as Jen took the portraits of the peaceful duo. While Jen and Celeste bonded over mother talk, she discovered that Celeste's breastfeeding journey was a bumpy one.
Despite experiencing mastitis, engorgement and oversupply, Celeste chose to be optimistic about her struggle by supplying 1,000 packets of expressed milk to other mothers who needed it. This is an admirable act as Jen said in her blog that it is "definitely easier to just dump it".
Out from the forest and into the city, Supermum Audra was photographed to represent working mums and their experiences pumping milk at work
The photoshoot was shot out in the public, specifically Raffles Place and along the Singapore River where the mother of three sported an office attire. Before she became a full-time SAHM (stay at home mum), she was known for her dedication to her work at an US-based company which led her being known as a "workaholic".
Audra felt empowered as she put on heels - something she hasn't done in a long time - and makeup as she finds that it is something of a luxury. Having her hands full with three kids, she simply doesn't have the time for that on a daily basis. Photographer Jen also shared Audra's view:
"I totally can register that. I have 2 kids, shorts and comfy slippers are my usual wear. A 20 minutes shower is a luxury that a SAHM embrace, an hour of trying out clothes before deciding on what to wear is absurd and putting on make up is out of the question," she wrote.
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"While many companies have been supportive and encouraging to breastfeeding mummies who need to pump at work, there are many others who are not," says Jen on her website
Jen debunks the myth that breastfeeding takes too much time for mums at work, which could interfere with their tasks.
"Some of you may wonder if it was due to too much time lost at work, let’s see... On the average each pump session lasts about 20 minutes and it happens 2 times during working hours depending on individuals, there may be 1 session during lunch time but that does not count since it is her own time," she said on her blog.
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"Is it ok for people to go for smoke breaks 4 times a day and 15 min each time? Does smoking increase work efficiency? Should smokers be put on probation to be assess for work performance? Do your bosses think it is distracting to other colleagues when you use a feet massager while working?" Jen wrote.
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However, she doesn't see reprimanding ignorant employers as a way of solving the problem. By allowing these oppressed mums to voice their opinions in a controlled and healthy way, employers will hopefully see things from their point of view and provide them with the freedom to express milk at work.
Her amazing portraits have accumulated quite the audience, and many grateful mums express their gratefulness for sharing such stories
One step beyond her photographs, Jen rallies women who face challenges breastfeeding in the workplace and in public to share their stories on her Facebook page:
Meanwhile, she is contact with the Singapore Breastfeeding Association, hoping that action can be taken now that so many mums are voicing out their problems.
