A mother of four, photographer, nature lover. Someone trying to make sense of it all, through photos and stories. 

I try to be free in all senses of the word, so I made the leap and now work with what I love doing; taking pictures, storing this life in moments, both for myself and for clients. My heart is in photographing birth and motherhood, but I take on just about any photography job. 
(See my birth photos at www.birth.no and the rest of my work portfolio at www.mariavatne.no.)

I live on a farm in Norway with my man Nik and my children Ronja, Freja, Falk and Ulv, plus a bunch of animals. We grow our own food as far as the seasons allow it, we don't go to kindergarten, the three youngest ones will be homeschooled.

We govern our own lives, we strive for independence, we want to be in this life wild and free and full of love.

The rain.

You remember that feeling, don't you? When you were little, and there had been long days with wonderful but intense summer heat, and then the rain came. Big drops of wonderful fresh water from the sky, and you would run out into the rain with no clothes on, and your dad or your mum would shout from the door, come in and get your raincoat!, but you wouldn't listen, you'd just run around in the rain like a crazy person, a happy crazy person. And it was like you hadn't felt the rain before, like it was the first time, the drops would chill your summer skin for a quick moment, you would open your mouth towards the sky and try to catch them, you'd run around with your mouth open and laugh and get soaking wet and not care about a thing. And then the rain was gone, the world had been showered, and the smells were so fresh, the smell of wet grass and flowers and the damp air. And it was like you were complete, like the rain had made everything right.

S u m m e r / b r e a k .

Be here, now.