Today I am off sugar. Again. I keep having to remind myself that this is so. I am hoping that this is not a bad sign. Today I am getting caught up on my email…and thinking about buying a new book. Or maybe getting a library card instead. Today I am editing this session:

whilst listening to this(on repeat as always):

Have a great day!

Today started out much like most days…a latte for breakfast. Then, I had the joy of going to visit this little guy…so sweet…sooooo wide awake….so curious Eventually, he blessed us with a little snooze, just long enough to get a handful of sleepy shots. Sooooo worth the wait.

Then…I headed out to Stephen Avenue Mall for a quick family session. A family session with about 1500 spectators all dressed in Rider Green finery. Ya…apparently, not a big sports fan myself…unaware that the Grey Cup was actually in Calgary this year. And, that this event would actually cause so much hoopla. Thankfully, photogenic kids made my job pretty easy. What to do when you want to edit every shot??? hmmmm…here’s a teaser:

Then, I headed to a Grey Cup party and, low and behold, was lucky enough to win the pool!!! A pretty good party even if the Riders didn’t win after all(what a crazy ending…this one will be talked about for awhile, I’m sure)…Happy Sunday!!!

Today I decided to brave temper tantrums and over sugared kids and attempt to get a few shots for our own family Christmas cards. This is not for the weak of heart. I have far more patience with other people’s kids than I do with my own. Especially a son who’s favorite books are all about a boy named Calvin and his stuffed Tiger, Hobbes.

I am reminded of why it is so important to hire someone to do this monumental task. For starters…I am not in any of the pictures. There is no way in H-E-double hockey sticks that I would even think of attempting something as ludicrous as that. Secondly, my kids would listen better to someone else. At least, that is the story I am giving the wonderful photographer who is taking our family portraits.

Everytime our kids have a meltdown, Bob has a habit of saying, “Good thing you’re good looking”…he has said this since they were born. As if getting upset with a good looking kid is somehow more difficult. A goofy kid…well, that’s another story With me, a goofy kid can pretty much get away with murder!! Here are some of Jack’s outtakes…he is pretty darn cute if I do say so myself.

So, are you all wondering what yesterday’s blog post was all about? Me, too…I guess the bottom line is I’m currently working some stuff out and I would love to hear from my loyal blog readers what you would love to see on the blog…more pictures? photography tips? more about me drop a note in comments or send me an email because I would love to hear from you!!

My hockey family session…how Canadian am I??? I’ve been wanting to do this for awhile, but had to find the right family to do it with. I couldn’t have asked for a better family!!! These generous souls bought my gift certificate at a silent auction benefitting Epilepsy here in Okotoks. I doubt they knew what they were getting into-hahahaha-but I do know that they are getting a custom coffee table book with their disc of images as the book is the BEST way to showcase these images. Here’s a brief look at some of their more ‘formal’ family portraits(I use the term formal rather loosely as I don’t think that there is much that is formal about my work-hahaha).

I love these hockey images because here’s the thing…the little jabs at each other, the hugs of encouragement, the celebrating together and the laughing….ooooooohhhhh the laughing. This is what a family is to me…

You can see other images from this session here and here. Happy Friday Go play with your kids!!!

I have been a bad blogger. It’s true. And, lately, I have been re-evaluating my blogging practices. Trying to find the joy I used to have in it and wondering how to get it back. Wondering what people want to see on here. Wondering who are the people who come back time and time again…the fall for me is always a time of reflection. It’s a busy time and when you are shooting that much you start to evolve as an artist. Exciting times…frustrating times…wondering where exactly to go in the next year or so until that evolution starts again.

This image is from a FABULOUS session with a fabulous family who really let me shoot for me as well as for them. They put their full trust in me and we had an awesome morning together. Their gallery was enormous. I’m almost embarrassed to say how large it was. And, it really got me to thinking–what kind of a photographer am I anyways? yes…a family photographer. I know that…but what is it about my work that is unique…different. So, as I sit here trying to piece together a blog post from this incredibly large gallery, I think I have answered some questions for myself. Piecing together the last bits of where I will be going in the new year. I’m excited to share it all with you…but, until then, I think I’ll post just a couple of images a day. Favorite images from all my shooting this fall because I feel like I will never get to post images from all my sessions unless I do it this way. So…Happy Thursday. More tomorrow, I promise

When Georgia met me at the airport, she innocently asked me why I took my camera bag to New York. I told her because I had to ‘work’ while I was there. She got all confused and then asked, do you take pictures for your work??? hmmm…how could she not know this?? Yes, I said. Yes, I do…the taking the pictures though, well, I don’t consider that ‘work’…that’s the fun part…the ‘work’ part is coming home to a mountain of email and editing and sorting orders as they arrive.

So, I am home. If you are waiting to hear from me, I will thank you for your patience as I try to get settled back into my routine. I couldn’t post without sharing some of my favorite images from my trip to New York. I had the wonderful opportunity to meet some AWESOME families while I was there and meet some photographers and connect with old friends. It was a wonderful trip. Now back to reality

Yay me!!! I’m off to one of my favorite cities(isn’t it one of everyone’s favorite cities?!!). While there, I am super excited to be shooting some great families, my good friend’s maternity images, and have lunch with some online friends. I will have limited access to email, but will do the best to answer emails in a timely manner. If it is a photographic emergency, please text me or call me (403)479-3262. And, try not to be jealous…just try!!!

I used to talk alot about myself on this blog. Then…I got busy. Busy with life…with work. It was like therapy…like my journal…writing on here. Then people actually started reading my blog and I got to wondering if they really wanted to hear what I had to say. Especially if what I had to say was maybe not all that uplifting or fun or happy. Well, today, I need to write and so you all can read it or skip it, but I’m going to write it for me.

I grew up performing in a Children’s Theatre company(St. Albert Children’s Theatre)…bet a lot of you didn’t know that. We did musicals under the gifted director, Maralyn Ryan. I had a dream. I wanted to be a broadway actress…yes, it was a crazy dream. And, it was not to be for any number of reasons–not the least of which being that I didn’t have the necessary hunger or drive that is needed to reach that level of success. You need either that or a great deal of luck. I did however make a lot of lifetime friends and form many of my values and beliefs while in the company of these people. After high school, I made the easy transition to life in the Theatre Arts program at GMCC with Maralyn’s then husband, Tim.

Anyone who has had the privelage of attending that program knows that it is not a school, it is a family. Last week, that family lost its patriarch, Tim Ryan. My heart breaks at the thought of him not being there even though I had not seen him for almost 5 years. He was a wonderful teacher who inspired greatness not through tyranny, but through a great amount of respect and love. You became the artist you could be because you wanted him to be proud of you. That is always the best kind of teacher. AND,  he laughed with you, at you, and sometimes at nothing at all…a big booming laugh that just made you laugh as well(and if you know me at all you will know that I LOVE TO LAUGH).

I may no longer act(sometimes I sing, but you will have to buy me a pretty present to get me to do it–ha!), but I learned the lesson of storytelling from Tim. And, I have taken that with me in to my work as a photographer. My understanding of truth and beauty comes from those days on the stage and my ability to get it from my clients is a direct result of having watched him get it from all of his students. I also learned a much bigger lesson–a life lesson. I learned that you can be an artist and not need something to fall back on Watching him and all my other instructors there was so inspiring because I learned that artists don’t let life happen to them–they make it happen.

Today I wish I was in Edmonton celebrating his life with all of his other former students. Young and old…ones who have only begun to appreciate the gifts he gave them and ones who have long ago realized that they’ll never know them all. If you are a Canadian who has seen a play, then you have been touched by his work. The community of artists around the world has lost a great asset. To everyone who knew him, my thoughts and hugs to you today…to his family, Kate, Bridget, Laurie, Maralyn and all…thank you for giving him to us so freely.

What do I say about this session? This family is in the midst of a storm…a storm of medical terms and doctor’s diagnosis and unknowns. During this time, they stopped and decided to capture the love and the heart of their family. We all know that once we grow up and have children of our own, taking the time to get images with our parents and our siblings often gets put on the back burner…often for far too long. It is good to stop and remember that these images need to be taken as well…and, for this family at this time in their history, to ask me was, well…it was an honor. Such a lovely family. Such a wonderful way to spend the afternoon…I will ask all of my loyal readers to send them some positive healing energy. Prayers. Thoughts. Hugs. Here’s to beating the odds!!!

Sooooo, this session was awhile ago…and, if you are really familiar with my work, you will recognize them. This lovely Calgary interior designer and I met ~cough~ some years ago when she hired me to manage her store in Inglewood. Since then, we have both got married(on the same day), had babies(both times I told her I was pregnant, she admitted she was as well–our kids’ birthdays are days apart), been stay at home moms, and started our own businesses. To say her kids are familiar with me is an understatement since I have known them since they were born

At her birthday party this year, her friends and neighbours were there. Turns out they own Pure Cycle and Calgary Cycle here in the city and they were kind enough to loan us one of their Electra Cruiser bikes for a session. We were all set and the session was designed around a dress that the mom often wore and I loved(and thought she looked HAWT in–that is always important)…well, right before the session the mom tried the dress on AND someone must have shrunk it in the wash(we’ve all been there). DRESS EMERGENCY!!! Panic…what would they wear???? In comes Mommy Wear Daily to the rescue!! Piecing together things from her closet(no need to shop girls with Kim’s help you can shop your own closet!!!).  Disaster averted…until we lined up for the first shot and the wasps attacked. MAN THEY WERE BAD THIS YEAR!!!! And, well, mom got bit!!! Oh my…we were off to a shaky start. But, mom put on a brave face(those bites hurt) and we got some fantastic images…thought I would finally share them with you all!! Getting caught up and actually blogging some sessions!!! Enjoy a little late summer sun to warm your fall toes!!