In The Picture

..the photography blog

Wednesday, June 4, 2014

3D/4D Baby Piccies

Following on from my last post about capturing life’s perfect moments, I’d like to talk about a relatively new form of ultrasound scanning that is becoming increasingly popular in the UK, and is available to mothers between 16 – 30 weeks into pregnancy (though the recommended period is 24-28 weeks for the best results).

While conventional 2D ultrasound scanning is still the only method provided by the NHS, many private clinics are starting to offer 3D ultrasound scans that give parents a much more detailed glimpse at their baby. Depending on the way that the baby is lying during the scan, and how far into pregnancy the mother is, a 3D scan may even show what their face will look like at birth!

In a 3D scan, ultrasound beams are used to capture 2D images of the baby, which are then digitally reconstructed by the ultrasound machine to create a more lifelike 3D representation. 3D scanning is therefore just as safe as traditional 2D scanning.

This is great news for parents who are disappointed with the blurry, low detail outlines shown in 2D scans, and want to see more of their child before it is born, or for those who don’t want to wait until birth to discover the sex of their child (3D scans have a 95% certainty of identifying a child’s gender correctly). There is even an option provided by most 3D scanning clinics to take video recordings of the baby, in the form of ‘4D’ scans.
The procedure also has some medical benefits, as it can be used to find medical anomalies and provide information on known abnormalities in a child, helping improve the speed of treatment from doctors after birth.

Clinics offering 3D baby scanning usually sell them as packages, meaning that parents will often have the option of receiving high quality printed and digital photographs of their child taken from the 3D scans, making a unique addition to a family photo album and a lasting memory of one of life’s most perfect moments.