A husband inspired his wife to take maternity pictures after he staged his own paternity photo shoot

• Christopher Urena posed for a paternity shoot in 2018 for the birth of his first child.
• Urena, 33, shared the photos in a TikTok video on June 21, 2022, and gained 3.7 million views.

Christopher and Angelique Urena were expecting their first child in June 2018, but any plans for a maternity photo shoot were up in the air.

Although Christopher, 33, wanted to schedule a maternity photo shoot to commemorate the birth of their son, Elijah, Angelique, 35, was initially unsure.

"She just didn't feel pretty," Christopher, a photographer and owner of C.U. Imagery, told Insider. "She didn't feel like herself and she knows the way that I am — every picture that I take is going on social media. So, she didn't want to do a photo shoot."

Fortunately, Christopher decided to step in and stage his own paternity photo shoot.

"Somebody had to take photos," Christopher said, adding that he's been a professional photographer for nine years.

Christopher and friends had a laughter-filled photo shoot at a studio in Pennsylvania

Christopher and his friends, who are also photographers, set up shop in one of their personal studios around Allentown, Pennsylvania. The photo shoot took a little less than one hour, and they filtered through classic maternity poses in addition to a few quirky add-ins.

"We went to his studio and it was a real spitfire type of situation," Christopher said. "Once we set up the lights, I dropped down to my boxers and I was like, 'All right, let's get it.'"

Christopher's friends snapped the photos, with Christopher tenderly holding his stomach in one, using a sign with his son's due date in another, and more of him lounging across the floor while covering his chest for faux-modesty.

"We were running through our regular maternity poses and it was probably one of the most fun photo shoots I've ever done," Christopher said. "My friends were like, 'You gotta put your hand under your belly. Do the pose!'"

At one point during the shoot, Christopher wore a furry cape that was actually an area rug found inside the studio.

"My friend had a rug and I just grabbed it," he said. "It was something different. We were just doing it as a joke."

The rug photo turned out to be Christopher's favorite, and fans online couldn't help but agree. On June 21, he shared the photos in a viral TikTok video that gained more than 3.7 million views.

"Bro is majestic," one user commented, while another added, "a true man and proud father."

Seeing Christopher's photos encouraged Angelique to take her own maternity photos

Christopher showed Angelique his paternity photos the moment they arrived.

"I was super excited to see them myself," Christopher said. "When she saw it, she had this really embarrassing smile, but absolutely lost it. She was like, 'I can't believe you actually went out and did this.'"

Christopher shared the images on his Facebook page that year, and it went viral. His paternity photo shoot and the positive reactions eventually convinced Angelique to take photos of her own ahead of Elijah's birth.

"She felt more comfortable and allowed me to go ahead and finally do her shoot," Christopher said. "That way, we can at least have those memories."

Christopher explained that he spearheaded Angelique's maternity shoot with great focus and care.

"I did everything. I paid for hair, makeup — I set it all up," Christopher said, adding that they did the maternity photo shoot in their backyard. "I always take care of all my sessions, but this session was more special to me, being that it was my wife and my child."

The couple later welcomed a daughter, Audrianna, in March 2021. Although Christopher didn't pose for paternity photos the second time around, he did take photos for Angelique's maternity photo shoot.