Aymee and Stephen Engagement

It's Wedding Season! Meet Aymee and Stephen the first Engagement photo session of year! This couple had a whirlwind Engagement in February. I say Whirlwind, because Stephen flew in from another continent and surprised Aymee with himself as well as an engagement ring! They had just a few days together to plan for their wedding in October before Stephen had to fly back to work. I was thrilled to be asked to share in their special day and their precious few days together included an engagement photo session at the Forks. We had a blast! For these two it's all about fun and colour. Their love for one another really shone throughout the session-Thank-you guys for being such great models! I am sure looking forward to photographing their wedding in October! May time fly quickly for you as a couple until you get to see each other again!

Peter, Leah, and Judah makes 3!

Somedays are just soooo special! Today was a special session with my niece Leah and her husband, Peter, in from Grand Prairie Alberta! Oh and lets not forget the main subject of the photo session- 8 week old Judah! You may recall Peter and Leah did a maternity session with me back a few months and it is so neat to see and meet the final result! Judah was a trooper-even holding up his head for a couple of shots! (That's amazing considering his age!) I think I eventually tired him out and we got some great sleeping shots. Kind of made me wish for those days when you could just fall asleep anywhere you are. (I hear those are coming again in the future!LOL) We had fun playing with some props-Peter is part of a band- so the guitar was quite appropriate-Who knows what this little boy will be when he grows up, musician, athlete, artist- knowing his parents- could be all 3!

Make-up Magic

Jackie

This week Tuesday was an awesome fun time with a great group of ladies all willing to pull together to do a "make-up" "shoot. The goal to create great images that mimic make-up and magazine ads and of course build the portfolios - photography, make-up, and model related, which I discovered isn't necessarily one in the same.

I as a photographer may look more at light and composition . The make-up artist would be looking for lighting as well as make-up features, and the model may just be looking to see if the right "look" was captured. But I am always amazed how much make-up application, regardless if it is more "natural" or "theatrical" can really help with an individuals features in an image.

The make-up was done by associate make-up artist Andrea Baer (who has worked with me in commercial jobs and does make-up for events such as weddings, Grads, etc.. She is featured in my associate section on my website) Also featured is the work of make-up artist Karla. Both ladies used Mac cosmetics to create the different looks.

We needed a couple of "models" to help out, and were thrilled when student Kristyn and Dance/drama instructor, Jackie, agreed to help out. Special thanks to them all!

Kristyn

Near miss with Easter Dinner-The magazine made me do it!!!

I'm blaming it all on Style at Home Magazine. Okay, maybe it's not fair to lay ALL the blame at it's front door. In hindsight, I believe it was a combination of a number of elements that led to the near disaster of Easter Dinner being super late. All right- my "photoholic" tendencies took over at some point that afternoon in combination with my propensity to wander from one action to the next. My creative juices had been stirred by the magazine cover-plain and simple- it was a cosmic chain of events leading to the near disaster.

I guess I should begin at the beginning...(always a great place to start!) It was this past Thursday, a busy day in the grocery stores, everyone buying "stock piles" of food before their holiday weekend feasts. Therein lay the first "catalyst". Me in a grocery checkout line is never a good thing. My eyes wandered from heaping cart to heaping cart and then rested on the cover of Style at Home. The beautiful soft hues of blue, pinks and creams seemed to call to me.."Pick me up! Pick me up!" (Enough with the theatrics. ) Like every second person in line, waiting for their turn at the cash resister hoping for some sort of reprieve from the noisy chaos, I leaned over to the magazine rack, grabbed the magazine that promised me some sort of feeling of "calmness, relaxation with a breath of Spring" and began to flip through the pages. I then found myself placing it beside my pile of groceries, chalking the purchase up as some imaginary "health and well-being" expense.

The magazine spent the night resting comfortably on my kitchen counter. Every now and then I'd glance at the cover and sigh. Why was I sighing??? I thought about it quite often the next day as I prepared to have my extended family of 10 over for dinner that evening. As I wrapped the potatoes and made the salad I began to think about what to do as a table setting. That's when it happened-I'm sure of the moment now- Dinner had just taken a bit of a detour!

The cover of the magazine seemed to inspire me-Hummmm- pink, blue, and creams..... I don't have a lot of the "fancy" items showcased in a lot of the magazines, but I did have a few nicknacks that could pass. I took out my cream linen tablecloth, and a faded plaid blue and green relic of a tablecloth from a few years back. I had been given a beautiful bouquet of bright pink colored Gerbra's just a few days before and I had a collection of "flea market" inexpensive milk glass vases hiding in a pantry. They would do just nicely for what I had in mind. As I arranged the table and stood back to observe the room I was instantly "struck" by how beautiful the side light from the patio doors were illuminating the milk glass and the flowers. That's when the "photoholic" tendencies kicked in!

Yes, sad to say, that's dinner on the counter, (Above), sitting ontop of the stove, sadly forgotten over the next couple of hours that afternoon.

The next couple of hours were not only an experimentation with lenses, light, angle, and still photography but a self-realization that as much as I love this type of photography -it's excruciatingly painstakingly, detailed and difficult to do. Since January, I've been on my own as a photographer and not in the constant shadow of a mentor to whom I can constantly barge with photography related questions and glean valuable "how to" information from tagging along with on shoots. I've had to search out other avenues of learning. The best I've found - Just try it and learn.

The following day as I edited through the images I learned a lot. I was a little disappointed with the results. I learned I need to look for details as I photograph. I got sloppy- focusing on light, not the details filling my camera's frame. Details like, ripples in the tablecloth, crooked lines on mirrors and picture frames, etc. all went unnoticed till I edited. Ultimately the goal is to give the client the perfect Full Frame resolution file.

Most important of all, I realized what the "sigh" was all about. I remembered that not two years ago in a photography class -when I was asked what my dream photography job would be- I said I'd like to work for Style at Home/House and Home and do that type of photography. LOL. I have a lot of practicing to do till I get it right!

Don't worry- Most stories end well-and I'm happy to say I came to my senses and did remember at the very last second to get the potatoes into the oven, off of the stove. Supper was a bit delayed - I didn't say why. No one knew or would have guessed. Well, alright- maybe those who love and know me the best would have clued into the "tell tale" tripod sitting in the corner of the room. If they did, they didn't say.

Thank you to "Style at Home" for putting together a beautiful publication that can inspire individuals both personally and professionally! Special "Hats off" to the photographers that do commercial work for magazines such as this! Oh, by the way, I did look into one photographer's work, Virginia MacDonald (she was mentioned in the magazine.) I enjoy her work-click on her name and check it out!

Princesses are in the House!

I'm always amazed with what the results can be from a one hour photo session with children! My goal, always being able to capture a spontaneous moment, a child's natural expression, and of course the natural smile! So often a child arrives to the session so timid and unsure-(I would feel that way if I was only a few feet tall and I entered a room with 4 big towering bright lights and someone telling me to go stand on the largest roll of bright white paper I've ever seen!) I find with each child timing is always unique. Some take but 5 min. to realize there are toy props in the room and "let loose" and others can take closer to half an hour to warm up to the idea of being the camera's subject. Just playing and having a good time I find is always the key! I love it too when the parent brings along props as well that are special to the child. It often gives the child a sense of security and pride, which translate well in an image.

It becomes even more fun when the child brings along their imagination and some costumes to go along with it! These two "Princesses" literally transformed in front of the camera upon slipping into their Princess Costumes, necklaces and placing a crown upon their head! Here are some of the results from last weeks Spring Session..too much fun!

Happy Easter! Investigating Chicks!

Happy Easter! I was trying to figure out a creative way of sharing an Easter greeting with friends family and clients. I began to dwell on the commercial aspect of Easter and a number of questions began to arise in my mind. How did we as a society come to associate Easter with Bunnies, coloured eggs and fluffy yellow chicks?

Maybe it's the mom in me, or my experience with children 2-4 knowing the most asked question is WHY! So I set off to do a journalistic/photographic investigation at least one of the most recognized Easter Icons-The Fluffy Yellow Chick!

I spared no expense and covered lots of ground-literally, traveling to a rural area of Manitoba to get some answers! Think of this Blog as the "Cheep" version of the Discovery channel!(HA HA I had to throw one pun in there somewhere!) Feel free to pass on the "tidbits" of information in the next few paragraphs at you next social gathering, cocktail party, or as your driving your kids to school. All information was new to me!

Let me just say right off the "hop" (something chicks do a lot of!) NO CHICKS WERE HARMED DURING THIS INVESTIGATION. (Only well loved and taken care of, and trust me these little girls have a way of growing on you.)

The "Chix" seen here are from the Bovan strain of Leghorn laying eggs hens ( Don't worry -I couldn't have photographed them knowing perhaps they would end up being dinner one day!) "Bringing it close to home" they are one of 5 types/strains of hens available in Manitoba. They only remain fluffy yellow for a very short while and begin producing white feathers within a few days and by two weeks no longer have their "Downy feel". They need high temperatures of around 33C after they hatch and bright light 24 hours a day. They are fed a high protein diet of oats, corn, and wheat with vitamins and minerals. They are also vaccinated at hatching against common diseases like bronchitis. By age 15 weeks, the hours of light are eventually diminished to 12 and the temperature to 23C. They are called chicks till 12 weeks and then become known as Pullets.

Ever heard the saying "pecking order"? Chickens have a need to peck, so at birth these types of chicks have their beaks trimmed to help protect weaker birds from the others. Pullets begin to lay eggs at around 19 weeks of age. Each Hen can have the potential to lay one egg a day. Think about that next time you order that "Big Breakfast" with three eggs-It took a Hen power of 3 to feed you!

I say potential, because Hens are really quite "Finicky". They need to have just the right amount of food, water, room to roam and light and darkness to produce. If any one of these factors change, they will stop laying eggs. They are definately social but prefer smaller groups. Most birds lay good eggs till around 14 months when the eggs become more fragile in nature.

My son had an opportunity to interact with the chicks. He discovered they quite enjoyed a good back rub and considering their one day old status, had no fear of him and showed a bit of curiosity. Infact after feeding the birds, we found they tend to "flock" towards or follow you!

Hope I was able to enlighten you a little with information on these fluffy little Easter Icons. Now if you know the answer to the question "Why is it the Easter Bunny that hides the eggs? ( Should it not be a Chicken?) Let me know! -I've done my share of research for a while! Have a great Holiday!

Just in time for Mother's Day!

Wow! I love it when I can combine my two favorite types of photography-Pet portraiture and children's portraits! I was fortunate to find the most adorable pet bunny named George for my next promotion! George, an angora rabbit, is not your typical rabbit. Far from the rabbits that hop around outside eating the shrubs in my yard-this bunny spends his days indoors watching T.V., hopping from one room to the next, and yes, on occasion I've seen him shopping at Costco!!!!(Yes, I had to do a double take!!!) His favorite pastime-Snuggling!

George's owner Ruth has so generously agreed to share her precious pet to be photographed with children to create one- of- a- kind Children's Portraits session- just in time for Mother's Day. If you know of anyone looking for a unique Mother's Day gift let them know about this Special! Space is limited so book early!