PEABODY — Kerry Goodwin takes photographs of families at some of their happiest moments, as well as some of their saddest.
Goodwin, a professional photographer who often shoots family portraits and weddings, volunteers with the Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep foundation. Upon request, the nonprofit sends photographers to the hospital rooms of families who have lost a baby — either through stillbirth or other complications.
Her images provide documentation for families that lasts after the smiles or tears of the day fade.
Goodwin, the mother of 4-year-old twins, is mostly a self-taught photographer. She became involved with Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep after attending a photography seminar where the foundation's co-founder, Sandy Puc, was guest speaker.
Goodwin has a close friend who lost an "almost full-term" baby — a "devastating" experience, she said. So when she heard about the foundation, she immediately thought of her friend and knew she had to get involved.
"I can't be left with the thought that these people don't have someone to do this (photograph their baby) for them," Goodwin said, "... knowing they've been left without help."
Based in Colorado, the foundation has a network of roughly 7,000 photographers across the globe. Once a family decides to request a photo shoot, a hospital staff member contacts a regional coordinator for the foundation, who sends a notice to the pool of local photographers. If a photographer is available, he or she responds and is sent to the hospital to meet the family.
The families do not pay for the photographs. The photographers volunteer their time and pay for their own travel, parking and any other expenses they incur during the shoot. Goodwin, who lives in Peabody, says the majority of her assignments are at Boston hospitals.
For those who might cringe at the thought of photographing a dead baby, "you'd be surprised at what you can handle," Goodwin said.
"It's not all sadness. We laugh; there's still humor. Some of it may be nervous humor, (but) I've laughed with every family."
In many cases, these photographs are the only images a family has of their baby, and the photographers do their best to remove the painful circumstances, Goodwin said.
"We do our best to make it look like they're not at a hospital," she said.
After the shoot, photographers can make a photo black and white through editing, which smooths out skin tone or discoloration, Goodwin said.
The organization does offer training, but Goodwin said she's learned mostly on the job. Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep photographers also compare notes and communicate over Facebook.
"At first you feel like you're pushed out into the ocean, and it's sink or swim," she said. "It's always going to feel awkward. But you have to remind yourself, 'I'm there because I'm invited.'"
Usually, a nurse or hospital staffer handles the baby and stays in the room for the entire photo shoot. Often, it's a nurse who suggests the service to a family.
If a photographer feels too emotionally drained after a photo shoot, he or she can pass the photographs to another of the foundation's photographers for editing.
And it can be draining. At her first photo shoot for the foundation, Goodwin arrived as the family was taking their baby off life support. She cried with the family, stayed with them for seven hours and was a wreck through the next day.
Now, after close to two years of taking similar photos, Goodwin says she knows how to make a session go as smoothly as possible. Once she starts taking photos, it's no different than if she were shooting a wedding or a teenager's senior portrait — she's thinking about the light in the room and her shutter speed.
"I had butterflies (in my stomach) for the first session," she said. "(Now) I know exactly what to do. I don't even think about the 'what ifs' anymore. ... You handle whatever comes at you."
No two sessions are the same, from the lighting to the personalities.
Goodwin says she tries to let each family dictate how personal they want to get with her. Sometimes, the family leaves the room and doesn't even want to meet the photographer.
"Every scenario is different," she said. "You have to adapt, be flexible."
For one of Goodwin's assignments, the mother had passed away and the baby survived.
"I hesitated at first," she said. "But then I realized this was the only chance this baby had for pictures with their mother."
For more information, to donate or get involved with Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep, visit www.nowilaymedowntosleep.org.
Staff writer Bethany Bray can be reached at bbray@salemnews.com and on Twitter @SalemNewsBB.
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