Parenting

Photographer Transforms Newborns Into Tiny Disney Princesses & the Photos Are Magical

ParentingPublished Mar 20, 2020
By Genny Glassman
baby portraits disney princessesKaren Marie/Belly Beautiful Portraits

Karen Marie is not the typical baby photographer. When people scroll through her Instagram feed, they're greeted with a vision of motherhood that is beautiful and feminine. Every woman is in a fairy tale of her own making, all of them the princesses or queens of their own domestic kingdoms. It would be nice to live in the world that Karen photographs. That's why it's no surprise that the internet is completely smitten with her latest project. Inspired by classic and beloved Disney princesses, Karen designed and photographed a stunning newborn photo series that is truly magical.

She dressed tiny babies in unique custom gowns everyone will recognize from favorite Disney movies, and brought them to life using amazingly detailed props and accessories. It's a whole new world in every single photograph. These tender tots are totally dressed to the nines, and each princess look is just as sweet as any Disney fan would imagine. Her work is full of tiny details that really make Disney characters come to life. 

More from CafeMom: 15 Intimate Breastfeeding Photos That Show It's Not Only Natural ... but Magical!

This incredible photo series not only speaks to Karen's talent for making her whimsical ideas come to life, but it also plays to her interest in fantasy and beauty -- two things she captures exceptionally well in her images. Karen wasn't alone in creating her photo series; she made her creative inspiration into a stunning reality with help from talented dressmaker Valerie Best of Sew Trendy Accessories, and she filled CafeMom in on everything that went into creating these one-of-a-kind portraits.

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Snow White
Belly Beautiful Portraits

Snow White

Karen has worked as a maternity and ultrasound nurse and a childbirth educator, but by following her interest in photography, she has gotten to explore a creative side of herself. "I feel so lucky that I was able to create a career out of my passion for babies and my love for photography," she told HuffPost.

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Fairest of Them All
Belly Beautiful Portraits

Fairest of Them All

The mom of three tells CafeMom she was inspired to do a Disney princess–themed baby photo shoot because her 10- and 12-year-old daughters love Disney, and "Disney has always been a big part of my life."

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Wishing Well
Belly Beautiful Portraits

Wishing Well

Marie's imagination and passion for her work is clear when you look at her stunning photos. Check out the details in this darling photo! Have you ever seen anything sweeter than a baby Snow White by her wishing well?

More from CafeMom: 10 Moms Confess How They Really Feel About Little Girls Wearing Bikinis 

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Cinderella
Belly Beautiful Portraits

Cinderella

Karen explains of her love for Disney princesses and films: "The amazing tales of love and heroism have always been an inspiration to me -- and now I see them inspiring my girls."

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Ready for the Ball
Belly Beautiful Photgraphy

Ready for the Ball

What makes Karen's photos so special is her attention to detail. Each image tells a story and features adorable nods to the movies they were inspired by.

Do we think the mouse in the corner is Jaq or Gus Gus?

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Ariel
Belly Beautiful Photography

Ariel

Take a look at this little mermaid. There are so many details in Ariel's basket from a tiny Flounder to a small dinglehopper! 

More from CafeMom: 15 Magical Photos of Moms-to-be as Disney Princesses

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Under the Sea
Belly Beautiful Portraits

Under the Sea

Karen tells CafeMom she was even more inspired to get the photos just right because she knows these are images the babies' parents will treasure forever.

"From personal experience, I know how important and powerful even the simplest of images can be," she explains. "One of the best part of my business is seeing new parents view their images for the first time."

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Belle
Belly Beautiful Portraits

Belle

This little one gets to live every young girl's dream and wear the big, yellow dress. And the background behind her looks a lot like the ballroom where Belle and Beast had their first dance!

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Sweetest Little Beauty
Belly Beautiful Portraits

Sweetest Little Beauty

Each set is handmade and Karen says the entire process took weeks to create. "I had my entire staff in that morning assisting with the babies, the new moms, and helping with the props and setups," she reveals.

Amazingly, she adds, "We were able to pull the entire shoot off in one day."

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Aurora
Belly Beautiful Portraits

Aurora

"Valerie Best of Sew Trendy Accessories created the beautiful gowns for this session," Karen tells CafeMom. "And she is in the process of creating more for the other princesses!"

In the future, Karen hopes to dress babies up as Tiana from The Princess and the Frog, Moana, and Pocahontas.

More from CafeMom: 15 Adorable Times Kids Fell in Love 'at First Bite'

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Once Upon a Dream
Belly Beautiful Portraits

Once Upon a Dream

Sleeping Beauty, indeed. We can't think of a better setting in which to capture a sleepy newborn baby.

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Jasmine
Belly Beautiful Portraits

Jasmine

When asked if any of the princesses were her favorite, Karen says, "I put so much into each of them, and I have an amazing connection to each of the story lines with someone in my life."

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Whole New World
Belly Beautiful Portraits

Whole New World

"I think they all turned out beautiful," Karen adds, "and I hope it's because I captured a small portion of the Disney story in each image."

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Friend Like Me
Belly Beautiful Portraits

Friend Like Me

To us, the best part is that these babies get to sleep through their big photo shoot! What a glamorous day of being an Internet-famous baby model.

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Who Could Let Go of This Queen Elsa?
Belly Beautiful Portraits

Who Could Let Go of This Queen Elsa?

In honor of the the release of Frozen 2, Karen released this adorable photo of a baby with snow-white hair clutching an adorable mini-Olaf and Sven. Honestly we could not love this any more if we tried.

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Sleeping Princesses
Belly Beautiful Portraits

Sleeping Princesses

To see more of Karen's work, check out her website, bellybeautifulportraits.com. The esteemed photographer does so much more than Disney. She honors different career fields, makes up adorable fantasy scenarios, and in general brings a boatload of cuteness. 

Oh and P.S.: The updated version of these sweet babes is just as cute!

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