Sofia Genato-Schoonmaker: Picture Perfect
From taking snaps of so many babies to having one of her own, Sofia Genato-Schoonmaker shares how parents can capture their little ones’ most precious moments.
This story appeared in the Modern Parenting Mother’s Day and Father’s Day May 2024 issue.
Sofia Genato-Schoonmaker knows a thing or two about capturing picture-perfect moments of parents and their children. She is the founding photographer of The Stork Studio, one of Manila’s most beloved studios for maternity and newborn shoots in 2008.
Although she’s snapped pristine photos of beaming families and their bundles of joy over the years, it would take years for Sofia to have her own. “All throughout my journey as a child photographer, working with thousands of babies and kids, I’ve always wanted one of my own! It was just a little difficult to find and date anyone in my chosen career because everyone I met was already a dad,” she laughs.
“My clients and friends all thought I was crazy! Naging ‘Tinderella’ ako doon!” Yet Sofia’s efforts paid off, and she met her future husband not by swiping right but while working out at a CrossFit gym.
The stork delivery
After tying the knot, she and her husband agreed it was time for them to try and get pregnant. Yet reproducing, unlike her studio’s name, had nothing to do with a large bird and a baby in tow. At 43 and the start of the pandemic, Sofia and her husband underwent in-vitro fertilization in the Czech Republic after months of rigorous preparation.
Nine months later, Sofia’s leap of faith paid off yet again: their son, Hudson, was born in November 2020, to the delight of not only her family and friends but also her clients, who had been with her since Day 1.
“Being a mid-40s mom with a three-year-old toddler with loads of energy definitely has its challenges, but I wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world. The joy and happiness Hudson brings into our family and home is like no other,” she gushes.
Say cheese!
Sofia’s experiences over the years, first as a photographer and now as a mother, have put her in a unique position of being a pro when it comes to snapping children’s moments — especially those keepsakes parents would want to look back on decades from now.
Sofia started MommaClicks after receiving a deluge of questions from her clients about how they could take better photos of their children and document their everyday lives. “So I created classes and workshops specifically for them, one that was easy to understand, and I also showed them how to maximize their phones to take photos,” she explains.
Here are some of her tips…
- When it comes to chronicling her son’s activities and their family adventures, Sofia keeps it simple with her phone camera just like other moms. Sofia says it’s important to learn your camera to a T by reading the manual or watching YouTube videos.
- Another tip Sofia has for parents is to create a dedicated folder for their kids on their phones — and be intentional about updating it with their favorite photos from the past week or month, which she calls “the keepers.” “The keepers are the photos and videos of that particular year — the nicest ones you would like to put in your child’s yearly albums or photo books,” she explains.
- Sofia adds that this makes it easier for parents to find all of their favorite photos for their albums and saves them from the trouble of panicking. And if you’re wondering whether photo albums are needed in the age of Instagram and TikTok, the veteran photographer answers with a resounding yes.
- “Prints and photobooks are still a must in this digital age. Can you imagine being 80 years old, having your iPhone still work, and showing your baby videos and photos to your grandchildren? Highly unlikely. Phones get lost, stolen or broken all the time. Prints are what last the test of time. Prints and albums are priceless,” Sofia insists.
- “All your kids care about is that they have photos with you. No matter what you look like, they’ll just want to see memories of you with them,” she says. So get in those shots and say cheese.
To read the full article, grab a copy of Modern Parenting Mother’s Day and Father’s Day May 2024 issue —available on sarisari.shopping. Download the e-Magazine from Readly or Press Reader for more exclusive features and stories.
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