Miss Brielle : : Kitchener Children's Photographer

Of course, once Brielle saw that her sister had a "special" photo shoot, she had to have one too.  So we headed out on a sunny Saturday to capture some new images for her.  Actually, I am glad she wanted to do it, so I can order new canvases of both of them for the house! Brielle loves music and singing, so she wanted to have a rock-and-roll outfit for some of the pictures.  I think she got the rock attitude just right.

Next she switched to a more casual ensemble, with her favourite flats and super-tight tights.

I wanted to have a little series of Brielle faces, like I did for Emery, to put together as a wall collage. What a goof!

I love you Brielle Grace Anne.  You are so smart, sensitive and stubborn...just like your mother.  ;)

~M

Emery @ Four : : Kitchener Children's Photographer

My baby is four!  I can't believe how much she is growing and changing every day.  It makes my heart ache for the days when she was a babe in my arms.  But, alas, those days are quickly fading into memory as my little angel blazes her own trail out into the world. I took Emery out on a beautiful, sunny afternoon to do her fourth birthday session and we had a blast!  I must admit, there was a significant bribe of TWO donuts for good behaviour and cooperation, but I really think I could have done without, she was so great.  We headed downtown for a bit of an urban feel and to take advantage of all the great colours and textures of the buildings.  I should mention that she did have shoes for the shoot, but complained so loudly that they were pinching that I agreed to let her go barefoot.  Yes, I made sure there was no glass before I plunked her down!

Like most mothers, I think my children are the cutest kids on Earth, so this post has A LOT of images.  I know that her Nanny and Poppy in Newfoundland won't mind looking at more than one! ;)

She is such a ham and loves to be silly.  The next couple of images show her as she truly is, a little monkey who loves to laugh and smile.

I love you Emery Mary Violet and I am so excited to see where your go and how you get there.  Mommy and Daddy and Brielle are so proud of you.

~M

52 Weeks - Weeks 32 and 33

I know, I know, I missed a few weeks.  Life just got away from me and my blog had to suffer in silence.  But now I'm back and the posts will flow once more! My girls were headed to school over these 2 weeks and I wanted to share a couple of images from their first days.  I would like to point out that they chose their own outfits and it is entirely coincidental that they both chose to wear shades of blue.  However, it does make creating a coordinating blog post a little easier, so my anal-rententive heart is smiling just a little more than usual!

First up is Emery, my kindergarten girl.  She was so excited to be starting "big girl" school this year, even though her fourth birthday was only the day before she began!  I must admit, I was more sad to have her start than I was for my oldest, probably because she is my baby and still so young.  I had to miss seeing her off on her first day (which is probably better, I definitely would have been crying) but Daddy reported that she was nothing but smiles.  She is a funny, sweet, compassionate girl who is the first to comfort others if they are sad or hurt.  I know she is going to be growing so fast over the next few months - mentally, emotionally and physically - but I wish she would just stay my baby forever.  Every mother's lament.

Next is my oldest, Brielle.  At six years old,  she is already smarter, sassier and more charming than I have even been in my whole life. Seriously.  She has lots of opinions and loves to tell you what they are, but is a kind friend and a wonderful big sister.  She is off to Grade 1 French Immersion this year and I am so proud of how well she has handled being at school everyday (at least so far...I'm not expecting this cooperation to last!).  The first week she was already saying "Est-ce que je peux aller au toilet?".  Oh boy, I see an adventure to Paris in her future...

My girls are off into the world and all I can do is hope that I have adequately prepared them for all its challenges.

~M

Blog Carousel - Monochrome

Here we go with round two of the blog carousel.  This month's theme is Monochrome, which is basically a fancy way of saying black and white. I love images that are colourful and bright, but there is something about the nostalgic, timeless essence of black and white images is really appealing.  Maybe it is the dramatic tones, or the ability to use your imagination to create the colours in your mind, or even the stark reality of holding the viewer's eye without the distraction of colour.  Whatever it's appeal, it is an essential element of photographic art.

My image was taken during our summer vacation in my husband's home province of Newfoundland.  This sunset, looking out over the Main Tickle (or harbour entrance) featured dramatic clouds, glorious colours and an innate serenity that I just had to capture.  In monochrome it becomes an image that represents the falling of the day, the calmness of the water and the whisper of wind in the bold clouds.  Wow, I'm practically a poet right now! ;)

Make sure that you check out my friend Kate's interpretation of Monochrome.  She is wonderfully talented food and wedding/portrait photographer, as well as a really kind person and friend.  Happy carouselling!

Michael and Nicole : : Niagara-On-The-Lake Wedding Photography

Mike and Nikki are a lovely couple whom I met through a family member, after she referred them to me for wedding photography.  But here's the thing, weddings are not really my gig.  Don't get me wrong, weddings are beautiful, full of love and typically involve a plethora of gorgeous things to photograph, but I would rather leave it to those phtographers who truly enjoy the stress and pressure involved with getting the perfect shots on the perfect day.  One chance, that's all you get.  Gulp. However, after talking to Nikki on the phone and seeing pictures of their venue, I knew I would regret not photographing this wedding.  Mike's Uncle Ken and Aunt Judy had generously offered the use of their stunning backyard, which is surrounded by a vineyard and featured an immaculate (vacuumed)  lawn,  a garden that boasted flowers chosen to coordinate with the bridal colours and a fantastic stone terrace on which to have the ceremony!  It was an intimiate backyard wedding with a very personalized and loving touch.

And so, I took on the challenge of my second-ever wedding, bringing along my friend (and budding photographer) Terri-Lynn Penney to help me out and  to snag some shots from a different angle.  Thanks Terri-Lynn for tagging along!

The bridal party was really great, mugging for the camera and listening to my crazy directions.  The girls even put on their rubber boots and grabbed some umbrellas (brought along "just in case") and made me laugh so hard with their posing I could barely shoot!

I asked the "big, strong" groomsmen to lift our tiny bride, receiving the response, "No problem!".  Here is the result: a near disaster!

Nikki mentioned that she wanted a night shot of the tent, with the candle light and chandeliers glowing as the sun set.  This was the last shot of the day and well worth the wait!  If you look closely, you can see the new Mr. and Mrs. Lavell giving their thank-yous.

Thank you so much to Mike, Nikki and their wonderful friends and family for allowing me to share your beautiful day.

~Mandy

One Hour Photo #3 :: Kitchener Children's Photographer

Hair is my nemesis.  This may sound a bit extreme, but I can assure you, it is true.  Cursed (or blessed, according to everyone else) with extremely curly hair, I have battled my hair for the last twenty-five years in a desperate struggle for manageability.  It corkscrews, tangles, poofs, frizzes and requires frequent attacks with the stylist's thinning shears.  When I had my girls, I worried that they might face the same trials, especially when their little toddler curls appeared. Fortunately, they both have straight-ish hair with some minor curling and waving.  My oldest, Brielle, has extremely thick hair, with a straight layer on the surface and a curly  layer underneath, forcing me to now do battle twice daily, once with my own hair and once with hers.  She is not exactly cooperative, yet another reason that hair is my nemesis.

My youngest, Emery, somehow ended up with fairly thin, easy-to-brush hair.  Since my husband comes from a long line of bristle-haired heads, we are not sure what happened to give her such fine hair.  Don't worry, she does have a reason to make her hair my nemesis too.  I like to call it the rat tail, the low hawk, or the undercover mullet.  Basically, the hair in back of her head grows at three times the rate of the sides, so she always ends up with this long straggly bit at the back.  I can brush it out beautifully, and it looks okay, but within five minutes it has sort of clumped together to reform the hideous rat tail that looks like it belongs on a street urchin.  Are there really street urchins anymore?  Hmm, that is a whole other post...

School is just around the corner, and usually I take the girls for a fresh haircut at the end of the summer.  But last night, after brushing Emery's hair for the millionth time in a pointless attack against the low hawk, I decided I just couldn't stand to look at it anymore.  I bathed her, sat on her on the kitchen counter and cut off the offending hair.  Ahh, that looks so much better.

Sort of.  Maybe I should have waited for the pros to handle it?  I think I left enough to work with?  Oh well, it will grow back, right?

This morning, is the glaring light of day, it seems my trim was perhaps a bit hasty, not entirely even and frankly a bit of a hack job.  But Emery thinks she looks fab and even offered to pose for a picture (without a bribe!!).  So here it is, not from the back because I wouldn't want to offend any hairstylists out there, but from the front, where her beautiful face can distract the viewer!  LOL

This image took 32 minutes, including processing.  She ran away after a couple of snaps or it would have been longer!

Mandy

52 Weeks - Week 25 and Week 26 : : Twillingate, NL Photographer

Well, vacation is over and it is time to face the real world again. Sigh. I spent my time off with my husband and girls, visiting my wonderful in-laws in Twillingate, Newfoundland and Labrador.  Well, technically we were in the community of Durrell, which is on Twillingate Island and part of the larger almagamated community.  We spend time every summer soaking in the salt air, the cooler temperatures and the warmth and love of our huge extended family.  This beautiful town and its people have found a place in my heart and soul, and every year I look forward to "going home".

There is no place in the world like Twillingate, or Newfoundland in general, for that matter.  In some ways it feels like you are stepping back in time.  While there are plenty of modern amenities, many of the residents still adhere to their strong values and traditions.  These include catching cod, gutting and cleaning them on their stages and then drying the filets on racks, catching capelin with a cast net, baking homemade bread on a regular basis, keeping a family vegetable garden and putting clothes out on the line to dry in the salt breeze.

It gives me such a nostalgic feeling seeing clothes hanging out on the line.  It is a rare sight here in suburban Ontario, and it reminds me of helping my grandmother pin clothes to her line.  In Twillingate, nearly every home has a long, sturdy clothesline out back, weighed down on sunny days with all the family's laundry.

I love the simple life.

Mandy

Summer Day : : Kitchener Family Photographer

Yesterday we spent the day at a local tourist getaway, Valens Conservation Area.  Located between Hamilton and Cambridge, it has a small beach, lots of camping sites, barbeque pits and hiking trails galore.  The perfect place to spend a gorgeous summer day. We were invited by my best friend, who was camping with her godson and friends, to come out for the day to enjoy the conservation area's natural beauty.  So we packed a lunch, grabbed our swimsuits, bug spray and sunscreen and jumped into Vannicus Maximus (my name for our minivan).  Needless to say, we had a fantastic day swimming, hiking, fishing and enjoying camping life.  A campfire and S'mores rounded out the day and we climbed back into the van for the voyage back to reality, sunburned, dirty and gleefully bone-tired.

52 Weeks - Week 24 : : Kitchener Photographer

Okay, I have to admit this right off the top:  This is not an image from this week. I took it when I was at the cottage a couple of weeks ago, enjoying a relaxing weekend with my family. One of my favourite things about summer is wildflowers.  I love seeing them bloom at the side of the road, in fallow fields, in parks, on trails and in my own backyard.  There is something so quintessentially summer about a bouquet of wildflowers and I can never resist collecting a bunch when I am out walking.  I even keep a small pair of scissors in my car in case I drive past a particulary beautiful cluster (okay, that sounds WAY more kooky when I write it down!).  A bouquet of wildflowers on my table makes my heart smile, what can I say?

I entitled this image Summer Blooms.

One Hour Photo # 2 : : Kitchener Children's Photographer

I really loved the challenge of One Hour Photo the last time I tried it out.  It is a great way to force myself be creative and organized in a short span of time.  This time around, I had a bit of extra time, so I decided that I would attempt to imclude my post-processing time in the hour! My girls had been at the sitter's and were running through the sprinkler nearly all day long.  They were soaked, in their undies (because I forgot to send swimsuits), covered in grass and other undetermined debris,  and I sent them straight to the bathtub when they stepped through the door.  I decided it was the perfect chance to get some images, since usually they are in the tub at night and the light is atrocious.  Every time I try to get pictures of them in the tub they are too grainy and blurry to even try to process.  This is because we have an older home and our tub is not a lovely reflective white.  Oh no, it is urine yellow with black accents, as are the walls, counter, toilet, sink.  It even has a lovely tropical flamingo mural to enjoy while you are sudsing-up!  Not the easiest environment to get nice images.  But that is a whole other post...

I really wanted to get a candid shot of the girls together in the tub, but my little darlings, who I can't usually convince to look directly at the camera, insisted on posing and mugging like crazy.  Sigh.  Finally I decided I was going to have to take what I could get and just let them look at me.  The resulting image was my favourite of the whole shoot.  I just love the angle, the framing and their expressions.  I think I might even enlarge it and put it in the hall outside the bathroom (because the bathroom walls are covered in huge, impenetrable,  formica tiles).

Here is the image, entitled Tub Time.

After I got the girls out of the tub, dried and into fresh clothes.  I went to let out the water in the tub.  They had left their toys  behind and I couldn't resist snapping a shot.  I have entitled this image Secret Synchro Practice.

Just for the record, I completed this round of One Hour Photo in exactly 53 minutes and 13 seconds, including processing for both images! Ta-da!!!

52 Weeks - Week 24 : : Kitchener Photographer

Okay, I finally got back to the heart of this project, which was originally devised as a self-portrait portfolio.  I must admit, it has been harder to get in front of the camera than I thought.  I am just so used to being behind the lens that I am not always sure how to go about photographing myself.  Plus, I am still waiting for the remote shutter release that I ordered (darn Canada Post Strike), so every time I want to take a "true" self-portrait, I have to race againt the timer and borrow test subjects to help me with focus!  Inevitably, I end up looking more serious than happy, because I am concentrating so hard on getting everything right. Sigh.  I really am happy and smiling usually.  Really, I am! This image was taken with a new hat I picked up to add to my props collection.  It is a fun vintage sunhat that looks good on everyone, and I have the photo to prove it! LOL  I managed to find a spot in the forest where the light was only slightly dappled (miraculously) and coaxed my hubby into helping me get my focus. It only took 15 tries to get the one I wanted!

Here is the image, entitled Mandy at Midday.

Canada Day at the Cottage : : Tobermory Family Photographer

My family is the kind of family who actually like to vacation together.  Weird, right?  We enjoy each other's company, we love to play games and cards and we cherish every moment we spend creating new memories. Tobermory, on the tip of the Bruce Peninsula in Ontario, has long been our destination of choice for a summer getaway.  In fact, my mom has been going since she was a child and my parents honeymooned there!  About 14 years ago my parents invested in a cottage and we have spent countless summer hours enjoying the peace and breathtaking beauty of our little log cabin.  Purchased from a retired school marm, it was sold to us fillled to the brim with furniture, dishes, decor and various oddities and art.  We kept much of the kitsch, just to maintain the cottage atmosphere...we are firm believers that a cottage should be the bare essentials and tacky decor , not a second home!

As the years have passed, we have made it a family tradition for everybody to load into the car for the three hour drive up Highway 6 to our little haven to celebrate Canada Day.  Some years we had up to 21 people and 4 dogs, all crammed into a cottage (with a separate "bunkie") that sleeps a maximum of 7 at best!  It was not unusual to have to step over numerous bodies on the way to the bathroom in the morning.

However, now that my parents are getting older and the family is growing as more babies are born, there is an unspoken understanding that the Canada Day weekend is now reserved for only my parents, me, my girls and hubby and my brother.  Sometimes my Grandma joins us too.  It feels so good to have our little group together, enjoying books, swimming (if you are crazy enough to jump in when it's only 56 degrees Fahrenheit!) and eating.  We love watching from our front deck as fireworks explode in the sky, holding our collective breath as my girls scramble over the rocks with expert balance and coordination, the dog swimming and chasing ducks that stray too close, breakfast cooked solely on the BBQ and talking and reading late into the night, with a sure promise of an afternoon nap the next day.  Cottage life is the best!

Here is a collection of images from this past Canada weekend that represent my family and our cottage.  Here's to many happy memories yet to be made!

1.  Wildflower bouquet  2. Kitschy lamps  3.  My girlies  4.  Mom  5. Dad  6.  Fire for roasting marshmallows  7.  Nightly rituals  8. Ben  9.  Old School doors  10.  Photos of the cottage from the '70s  11. Carl and Brielle  12. Fireworks!  13.  My favourite seagull mobile (they are two!)  14. Rustic chairs with well-used cushions  15. Games cupboard  16. My favourite painting, love the mood  17. Bathroom sign...classy  18.  Cottage clutter creates atmosphere  19. The official name of our cottage  20. The bunkie  21. Grandma 22. Emery making pancakes  23. Me!  24.  My favourite view when reading  25.  Happy Canada Day!

52 Weeks - Week 23

Well, I am a bit behind on this project (again), but I do have an image I would like to share. This week's image is one that I took during their first night at the family cottage this summer.  It may not be the most technically sound or creatively composed, but it makes my heart happy.  For me this image represents two thing: sisterhood and growth.

My girls have always been close and while there are days that I think they may acutally kill each other, more often than not they can be found snuggled togther on the couch or off playing some game they have devised to pass the time.  I am so happy that they cry when they are apart, laugh when they are together and are each other's best friend.

And every day, the inevitable march of time creates growth in their minds and bodies, which I love and detest at the same time.  I want them to slow down and stay small so I don't miss a thing and at the same time to grow and learn and become the people they are destined to be...ahh, the trials and triumphs of motherhood.  In particular, this photo expresses growth as it shows my oldest daughter reading to her younger sister.  How I love to see them curled together, Brielle sounding out the words, more confident each day, while Emery listens raptly, adoration in her eyes. I am glad my girls will always have each other.  Wow, this is a super sappy post.  I guess I need them now and again, right?

Here is my image, entitled First Night at the Cottage.

One Hour Photo

One of my favourite photographers to check out for inspiration and new ideas is Brandy Anderson of Fresh Sugar Photography.   She is based in Calgary and creates stunning child and family portraits.  She recently posted on her blog that she was going to attempt to complete an image (including brainstorming, model-rangling, light-finding and image-snapping) in just one hour and included her first attempts, which are some gorgeous images of her girls. I thought it would be fun to try this little challenge, if for no other reason than my only willing (well, mostly willing but mainly bribed) subjects are my own girls, and getting an hour of shoot time out of them is a miracle!  Not straying too far from Brandy's idea, I headed out to the backyard with my girls and gave myself an hour from start to finish.  As usual, the first five minutes were fine, and then chaos began to reign.

My oldest, Brielle is usually pretty good at taking some direction and listening, but she had a case of the giggles, so I just kept snapping away, hoping for something where her face wasn't completely goofy.  I was standing awkwardly on the top of the playcentre, which she found hysterical and kept asking if I was going to slide down the fireman's pole to get down (the answer is NO.)

Meanwhile, my youngest, Emery managed to strip herself naked and was careening around the driveway at a pace that would surely result in the eventual need for several Band-Aids.  I had to abandon my giggle girl to get control of my little exhibitionist before my hour ended in tears or a hospital visit.

I managed to corral her in the garage (Brandy was right, great light in there) where she got her underwear back on (backwards, of course) and let me brush the grass out of her hair (not sure where it came from) and we got situated.  I'm not gonna lie, the idea for the image of Emery is exactly the same concept as Brandy used, but I used a different angle for a new perspective, and to try to get a shot of her great lashes (they must be from my hubby, my eyelids are practically bald!).

So, here is my first attempt at One Hour Photo.  Thanks again Brandy for the great idea!

52 Weeks - Week 22

Here are a couple of images from this week that I took of my girls.  They only cooperate for so long and rewards don't seem to be working as well as they used to...I guess they have finally wised up to my games.  Oh well, at least they will never be able to say that there are no pictures them when they grow up!

52 Weeks - Week 21 - Vegas

I just returned from a much-needed vacation in fabulous Las Vegas!  This is my second time visiting Sin City, so I had a wish list of places that I wanted to visit, and of course, photograph.  I didn't make it to half of the spots I wanted to shoot, but that is the perfect excuse to go again next year! I decided that this year, I would leave my pro equipment behind and just do low-tech, especially after lugging my big camera up and down the Strip last year and paying for it with a stiff neck and aching shoulders.  So I used my Polaroid 300, my point-and-shoot, my newly-acquired Holga 135 and of course, my beloved iPhone.

I had a chance today, in between squeezing my girls and doing laundry, to throw the iPhone images into some semblance of order, so here they are!  All images were taken using the Hipstamatic App, my favourite vintage photo app.  Stay tuned for the images from my other cameras ( hopefully sooner than later!).

52 Weeks - Week 20

I love flowers, and green leaves and water droplets on long grass, but seriously, the rain needs to stop!  I am all for building up the watershed as much as anyone else, but I am going a bit stir crazy! I decided I might as well have some fun, since Mother Nature thinks she can stop me from shooting by making it rain.  I foiled her plan with a plastic bag, a wide awning and a pair of sturdy rain boots.  Ha, take that!!

I am pretty sure the neighbours think I am crazy, jumping alone in a puddle in the driveway while running between the puddle and the camera, but they are just as crazy, and with much less creative ambition.

Here is the week's image, entitled Not Just For Kids. The water droplets are kind of opaque because I had lots of my on my boots from a recent camping trip.  Now they are sparkling clean.  Me: 2  Mother Nature: 0

52 Weeks - Week 19

Nearly five years ago, I decided that my little girl, who was nine months old at the time, needed to grow up loving a pet.  My husband had both a cat and a dog growing up, and I had two loving, loyal dogs.  My hubby thought a cat might be easier to manage with our busy schedule, and I advocated for a dog, so naturally, we got a dog! LOL Once we decided to go forward, I immediately got down to business.  Within a few days we had a puppy picked from a litter and were ready to pick her up in a couple of weeks.  Long story short, we had the puppy for about a week, realized we couldn't care for a puppy and a baby, and we ended up giving her to a family friend who had recently lost her dog and was looking for a puppy.  From what I hear, she is now a healthy, happy pup who lives out in the country and runs around like a maniac!

Crushed after this tough decision, we stepped back to re-evaluate the pet situation.  We gave it some time and finally several months later agreed we would look into adopting an adult dog.  I contacted a local animal rescue group and signed up as foster caregiver. This was right around the time of Hurricane Katrina and there were dozens of animals arriving weekly form all over the US.  I scoured their site daily, watching for any dogs that caught my eye, hoping that if we found the right match, we could move right into adoption, rather than just fostering.

The one day, I found a handsome, golden-red lab mix named Charlie.  He was in an Ohio shelter and was due to come to Ontario in a few days.  I made the call, only to be told that I could not choose my foster, I would have to take whichever animal was given to me.  Diappointed, I resolved to be open and excited for any animal.  A few days later, when the rescue team got to our door, Charlie bounded out of the van to greet us.  What can I say, the universe knew that he was right for us.  Gotta love happy endings!

Needless to say, he quickly became the most adored dog in the world, a loving patient companion to my girls, a ball-retrieving dynamo with my dad, and generally my waking shadow.  He is unquestionably my dog, and my husband often jokes that Charlie is only happy when his nose is glued to my butt.

As he gets older, I begin to dread the coming years and his decline.  Right now he is getting lots of white hair and taking longer naps, but still has enough energy to go for a bike ride and play fetch for hours.  I love him to pieces and cherish his place in our family.  He is best dog I have ever known (okay, maybe I am a bit biased).  Here is an image of my Charlie-boy, which I have entitled Companion.

Baby K

This adorable little man is the baby brother of my daughter's best friend.  He was only 8 days old when I had the chance to do a little session with him.  He was sound asleep when I arrived, but I promptly riled him up by forcing him to disrobe and pose adorably for some photos.  He absolutely loved my space heater and would stop fussing immediately when I held it close to him.  Unfortunately, I do not have enough hands to hold a heater and take shots, so we only got a few gems.  Better than nothing though, right?

Tulips in Blossom

Just wanted to give you a follow-up image of my tulips, to show how much they have opened!  I love the hidden surprise of the rich darknes at the base of each petal as it opens, in contrast to the yellow-orange stamen with its delicate pollen.  Wow, I know way more about tulips than I rightly should.... Anyway, this image was taken about 5 days after the previous. There have already been a couple of casualties, with petals raining down on my table, leaving a bald stem behind.  Cheers to the survivors!