Valerie and I got together at her house a little while ago to get some portraits. The goal was to get a few respectable-type headshots… and then to have some fun and look awesome. I think we succeeded! It was so much fun shooting because all of these amazing locations were seriously within a 60 second walk of her house. For instance, that little shed with all the lights? That’s her art studio, right in the backyard. Annnnd now you’re as jealous as I was.

Valerie, you were great, and you looked beautiful! Enjoy. :)

I met up with Maryse and Shane and their twin boys Xavier and Gabriel for a shoot two weeks ago. Immediately upon arrival I was met with an ear-piercing scream that told me this wasn’t going to be the best day of the boys’ lives. Ha! Fortunately we could go to their favourite place – Killarney Lake – to explore and get some shots… and run around and investigate garbage cans and sticks and eat rocks. (Afterwards I was totally wiped. Twin boys! Exhausting! Maryse & Shane are heroes.) I had a great time. Hopefully everyone else did, too.

This is real life, times two. Enjoy!

This shoot was lucky in so many ways. Lucky that Kelly could fly in from Calgary on short notice. Lucky that a meeting on my calendar was rescheduled, opening me up for a shoot. Lucky that this day was the only nice day in a weekend of rain. Lucky that Meaghan & Kelly are super patient let me play with some new gear (I’ve never taken my off-camera lighting equipment on a shoot before!). Lucky that Meaghan being the owner of Corked Wine Bar gave us a fun new location to shoot in. Lucky these two are so cutely in love.

This is my 7th time photographing this family. I know I say it every time, but it’s a HUGE honour to be invited back again and again to watch this family grow and expand. They delight me. I get the sense now, that with the addition of Salvatore (now a jolly 8 month old), they are complete. Love.

Laura & Ian are getting married in New Brunswick this August, but live in Ottawa, so it was lucky we were able to get together in Toronto for their engagement shoot! We met up in the Distillery District downtown, and spent an hour exploring the area – making the most of all that charming brick, possibly the cutest coffee shop ever, and steering clear of security. And of course afterwards we had to grab a bite and a beer (or in my case, a sampler) at Mill St. Brewery.

Ian, Laura, I had a great afternoon with you! Enjoy!

Other than a few minutes at each wedding, I don’t get many opportunities to shoot adult family portraits. It seems like for a lot of families, interest in getting portraits done tends to drop off when the children turn about 5, and I’m not sure why that is. It’s interesting to me to see the way grown families interact and relate; how the years and shared experiences creates different kinds of relationships. On the other hand, doing family portraits is something that a lot of photographers give up as they develop portfolios built on couples, and that’s too bad. For me, obviously I do love photographing couples, but I think photographing familial love is just as important as romantic love.

So, needless to say, when Jen emailed me with her idea of having family portrait done while I was in Toronto, I was all for it. We met for an hour at historic Queenston Heights, and I had a great time. Here’s the Walker family in all its different incarnations: sons and daughters, brothers and sisters, parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and partners. And Dundee the dog, too. Enjoy!

A couple of things about this shoot:

1. When we were organizing it, I said that I could meet up at pretty much any time on Monday, but not after 6:30 pm because I was headed to the Blue Jays Home Opener. Jill & Fen responded that that worked for them, since they were also headed to the game. My people.

2. Jill & Fen are moving soonish, and instead of a regular engagement shoot were more interested in having new headshots done to help kickstart their job hunting. I respect that kind of practicality.

3. But hello, the light at 5:30 pm outside (and inside) Steam Whistle Brewing in downtown Toronto? Pretty much perfect. So you know I couldn’t just shoot headshots.

4. You cannot do a shoot in and around a brewery without also partaking of the fine products it produces.

5. Jill & Fen are getting married in a very intimate St. Andrews apple orchard wedding. I can’t wait.

I have been SO EXCITED to share this shoot, and the day has finally come that I’m able to do so. One of my Big Hairy Audacious Goals for this year was to have my work published in a magazine. I didn’t know what form that would take, but I really didn’t dream big enough to think it would be in the pages of Canada’s #1 fashion magazine… and that’s exactly what happened. The lovely Kristin of Doll Parade was chosen as FASHION‘s IT Girl for May 2012, and I was lucky enough to be tasked with photographing her for the issue! The issue is on stands this month, so be sure to check it out!

Hannah & Theron were my first engagement session of 2012, so needless to say I was really excited to get out and shoot. So excited I tumbled down a hill at one point… gotta suffer for my art.

I don’t have much to say about this session, because I think the images really speak for themselves: Hannah & Theron are gorgeous and funny and charming, and photographing them was a dream! Textile artists in looooove. :) Enjoy!

I’ve been wanting to do a snow-themed shoot for awhile now. I had the dress, but I had to find the right person… the kind of person who would sit in the snow in a dress without complaints. Then Tiffany came along, and did she ever deliver. It was -6 the day we shot these images (my American friends, that’s around 20 F), and though my hands quickly froze up, she never complained. We were rewarded for our suffering with some great photos, and hopefully they’ll come in handy when Tiffany goes off to the Canadian Model and Talent Convention in Toronto later this year!

By the way, climbing the tree? That was her idea. I’m not cruel!