Newborn Photographer Diaries | Baby Charles – San Francisco
So thankful Andrew and Catherine welcomed me into their home in San Francisco to photograph their new bundle of joy! These two are high school sweethearts and over the moon to have their baby home!
Meet sweet baby Charlie. This little rock-star was 26 days old during his session! He is now one month new and has his parents wrapped around their hearts! Oh, how wonderful it is to experience the miracle of life nearly every day and having the privilege of documenting it, forever!

IT’S A BOY!
“We found out the gender at 12 weeks. The hospital staff wrote the gender on a slip of paper and put it in an envelope. Andrew took the envelope to a baby store and asked the clerk to pick out an outfit, wrap it, and ring it up while Andrew waited outside. It was a couple of weeks before the Christmas holiday, so Andrew put the box under the tree and we opened it that evening. It was such a memorable moment!” – Catherine

“Charlie is such a blessing. We’ve always wanted to be parents and feel so fortunate that Charlie has joined our family. He has brought immeasurable joy into our world and his life is just getting started! The love and responsibility for caring for him is overwhelming and powerful in the best way.” – Catherine


“Each moment with Charlie feels special. Each new milestone is so exciting and we’re savoring the slow days of getting to know one another and figuring out life as a family of three. There is less sleep, of course, but the days and nights are all wonderful.” – Catherine


“Andrew and I studied abroad in Italy together during college. Our pup, Lucca, is named after the town of Lucca, Italy. She’s a miniature goldendoodle and is so sweet and curious about little Charlie.” – Catherine


Catherine + Andrew
“We’re high school sweethearts! We actually met when we were younger—about 8 or 9 years old—at the church where my mom served as the pastor. We started dating when I was a Sophomore and Andrew was a Junior in high school, and ended up going to colleges that were just 8 miles apart. We’ve been together for 15 years.” – Catherine


Charles // “Charlie”
“We’ve both always liked the name Charlie. We made a long list of other contenders, but we kept coming back to Charlie. His middle name, Thomas, is my dad’s and grandfather’s name. Charlie is the first grandchild on my side of the family, and we were happy to honor them by including “Thomas” in his Charlie’s full name.” – Catherine

“We love the images! They are so happy and bright. I especially love the photos that include Lucca and show our whole family. We’ll treasure these forever.” – Catherine & Andrew
Shefali Parekh is a lifestyle photographer specializing in newborn, family and engagement photography in San Francisco, CA.
To view more work, please visit the newborn portfolio. To book a session, visit the contact form.