Amanda's bridesmaids - quick portraits :)

I say it over and over again, I am that annoying friend who always has their camera out and is constantly snapping pictures here and there. Luckily, by now most people are used to it and will play along and give me a pose!

Here are some shots that I took while we (Amanda's bridesmaids) were waiting to go to the water front for some quick photos and the rehearsal dinner!

Matt and Theresa's New Home

A few weeks ago I met up with Theresa and Matt to take some portraits outside their new home. I have to admit, the idea of wearing football fan stuff for a photo shoot never would have crossed my mind, but look how cute it is! The funniest thing was through out the entire session, Matt kept reminding Terri not to cover the Eagle with her hand.

Some things I learned from this shoot:

• When a client wants to create a collage, make sure that you balance the photos with one another for a series. I chose to do different versions of the same image with different warmth/coolness. It works individually, but for a series, I think they should all match. Lesson learned!
• Make sure to bring personality into the shoot. That is exactly what the football fan gear (jersey/tee) did! It was a great lesson!
• There is a place for focal lengths under 55mm, like by a front door! Because of the lenses that I have, I often just make due with leaving my 55-200mm lens on my camera and back up if I need a wider angle. This isn't always the best thing to do. I need to remember to think a little more about what I am capturing and remember to use all the tools in my kit!
• When doing walking shots, remind people to walk SLOWLY! Luckily I was able to remember this for this shoot!

I'm so happy to have been able to take these portraits! They look great and help to document and celebrate a wonderful event, Matt and Terri's new home!

First Look: Amanda and Adam's Engagement Session

The best thing about starting a business is that you can bully your friends into becoming clients! I believe the first words I said after "congratulations" to Amanda when she told me that Adam had proposed were "you have to let me do engagement portraits!" Fast forward six months and we finally got together for them!

Here's a first look at some of the pictures that we shot on Sunday. I was a little worried that the colours would be too drab now that all the leaves have turned brown and gotten crunchy, but as you can see, it didn't stop us from getting some great shots! And the benefit of waiting? We got some great Christmas shots too!

Alex at his football match!

I needed an escape a couple of weekends ago, after getting the news that my uncle had passed away. My friend Sonia was watching her son, Alex play football just down the road from my house, so I grabbed my camera and invited myself along. Poor Alex then had to put up with me taking photos of him during the break and after the match. Though he seemed like he didn't want his picture taken when I asked him to smile, he certainly was more than happy to show off with the ball when the match was over.

That's one of the things about kids, they really want to please adults, you just have to wait them out and work on their terms. I really enjoy taking pictures of children. They are actually my favorite subject! But I can see how they might intimidate some photographers. My best suggestion would be to just start taking pictures of kids being kids, and maybe after a few minutes ask for very simple things. Like "hold still and look at me, please" or "can I get a silly face?" Most of the time after a silly face, you get a really great, genuine smile!

apple picking and the broccoli prom

Two weekends ago I went apple picking with a bunch of friends, organized (and all linked together) by Annie. I mentioned going to my mom and she offered to bake me an apple pie. I called her from the farm and told her I didn't plan on bringing home any apples unless she wanted some. She said "don't worry about it, just take pictures and have fun." Funny, I hadn't mentioned that I had brought my camera with me ;) Guess my mom knows me too well!

Lucky for me, it was a cloudy day - which makes midday, outdoor photos a lot easier! It was pretty much just me snapping some pictures while we all goofed around. On the way, Kevin and I had been joking about how romantic broccoli picking would be... Only to discover everyone else had made the same joke on the way there. Then Etienne and Annie posed for some "broccoli prom" pictures. It was a great day at the farm!