2009 is upon us, believe it or not. One of the phrases that I hear most often is “time goes by so quickly.” As cliched as it may sound, it is true. There are many times when I wish that time would slow down just a little bit. Instead, often, weeks clip along at a steady pace - Mondays turn into Fridays seemingly instantaneously sometimes. So yes, 2009 is indeed here, and one of my goals for the year is to enjoy as many moments as I possibly can. As simple as that.

I will be taking on less clients, which means that I will be able to offer existing clients, and those new clients whom I do take on, more. To that end, I am pleased to announce that on-location sessions and natural light sessions will now be available as part of my regular session offerings. As much as I enjoy on-location sessions, I was unable to offer them before due to a lack of time, despite numerous requests by my existing clients. But by taking on less commissions in 2009, I will be able to offer these sessions. A new website is also in the works, which will showcase my natural light/on-location portfolio.

I also have a couple of photography workshops in the works - dates have not been finalized but I know there are a few of you waiting to be notified. These are my “moms and dads camera workshops” that are geared towards those who would like to learn how to use their digital SLRs (to fully take advantage of their capabilities) and would like to take better photographs of their families. I will be finalizing the dates within the next few weeks to stay tuned.   

There will be a few other (good) surprises here and there. But in the meantime, I hope you all have had a good holiday season and that you all will have a great 2009.

The eyes can speak volumes.

What an expression. A bit breathtaking if you ask me. So intense! And then there’s this:

One of my favorite father and sons photographs this year:

And then there is mom:

Congratulations once again!

This sneak preview is not titled this way because I couldn’t remember the baby’s name…it is thus titled because mom and dad had not yet decided on his name when this little newborn came to me to have his portraits made. Both are great names and I don’t think mom and dad can go wrong with either. But I digress.

I know mom is anxious to see her new bundle of joy’s photographs. I am perpetually behind (it’s an artist thing, really!! lol). But I am almost there! Here are a few of my session faves:

With big brother:

and finally:

Mr. Cutie Pie!

I apologize to mom and dad for the long wait on this one. I have a good reason for the delay for your sneak peek but I will have to tell you in person when I meet with you next week for your viewing appointment! Newborn baby S is one angelic baby. See for yourself:

I am trying to catch up (in case you haven’t noticed). Keeping a blog is harder than it appears! That’s my excuse anyway. I seem to go in waves.

I know this mom, LD, has been waiting for some time for a sneak preview. Sorry to keep you waiting! Baby A was quite a character, even at this tender, newborn age. She was alert but content - a bit rare in my experience. Usually when newborns are awake they are either crying or eating, haha.

Here are a few from Baby A’s session:

Love this one of mom and baby:

Let’s have a vote. Who is cuter??

OR

I can hardly believe that he’s already 4 years old. I want time to just slow down a little! My 2nd just turned one as well (incidentally their birthdays are just two weeks apart). Anyway, I thought I’d share a few photos from the weekend. I decided to haul my boys to the park and do a mini session. Once again, I found it tougher to photograph my own children than other people’s kids.

Here is the kind of smile my 4 year old gives me when he sees me pointing my camera at him (totally fake smile!):

Here is one that I managed to snap while he was resting on a slide (after an hour of play!):

And look at my 1 year old!

No, neither his brother nor I did anything to him! He was doing this:

Putting garbage into his mouth, and I simply removed it!

He had some fun times too though:

Finally, here’s a photograph of the two brothers:

(Although my 4 year old told me tonight that he doesn’t really like his brother, lol!)

Too bad fall comes but once a year. I think I have officially fallen in love with photographing outdoors. Though I do on-location sessions (it’s just not advertised…shhhh) especially for the toddler ages, I don’t generally take my clients outside of the home. But I was out again in a park with two of my very special models last week - M and K - and what a blast! The conditions were not perfect - or should I say, not perfect for a photographer, since it was gorgeously sunny and bright. However, that simply made it more fun for me as there was never a dull moment as I keep trying to find the “good light.” And my two little models - I’ve been photographing them since they were newborns - and for me to be able to watch them grow is simply rewarding beyond words can describe.

Anyhow, I know mom must be anxious to see the results of that morning’s “play date,” so without anymore blabbering from me, here are some of my favourites from the day.

I LOVE this one:

As most of you have probably gathered, I am not a huge fan of colour photography when it comes to portraiture. When I look through my lens, I visualize in black and white - so what I see is form, shadow, and shape. However, it is hard to deny that the Ontario autumn is beautiful. The maple trees are an assortment of beautiful reddish hues, yellows, and a range of orange. I never get tired of looking at the fall colours. Fall also brings a certain feeling of nostalgia - I can’t articulate it really - it is just a feeling that I get. The crisp air, the softer sunrises and beautiful sunsets, the leaves on the ground…comfort food…all of these things make fall my favourite season.

Anyhow, what I’m trying to say (very unsuccinctly) is that fall is the one season when I can’t help but want to make my portraits in colour. This is when I want to leave my cozy studio and step outside into the fresh air - I want to see the children play in the park, picking up piles of leaves off the ground and tossing them all in the air. I want to see those rosy cheeks in the wind, the runny noses from the cool air.

Needless to say, I was thrilled when this mom and her beautiful baby girl S. showed up for their portrait session ready to play outside! I am so excited to show mom these (colour!) photographs. Here are a few of my favourites (sorry mom, I had to include the one of you here because it is, in my opinion, such an amazing photo of mom and baby girl). Hope you like these!

I have been receiving quite a few calls and emails inquiring about the availability of my workshops geared towards parents and their digital SLRs. I am working on more dates as we speak and will be posting details here on my blog as soon as those dates are finalized. In the meantime, if you cannot or do not want to wait, please note that one-on-one workshops are always an option. If you would like more information, please give me a call. In the meantime, rest assured that I will be hosting at least one workshop before next Spring. Thanks for your patience!

Summer is over, and everyone seems to be back in the city; phones are ringing and my schedule is packed. I am not complaining!

At the same time, this fall is somewhat bittersweet for me - my eldest, Nathan, started going to school full days. It seems so odd to not have him around the house in the afternoons. Despite my younger son’s high maintenance personality, my two dogs, and my relatively large fish tank, the house still seems empty somehow. Nathan has a certain presence - when he is in the house, the atmosphere is just more lively and cheerful! It seems like just yesterday when I took him to his first day of school ever, when he was barely 2 years old. Sometimes I look at my second and hope that he stays little just a little bit longer. Many of my clients have 3 and even 4 children - I now understand why!

Though I take a lot of photographs for my clients, I am not always as diligent with my own children. I have a dilemma - I am so used to my super quick and high resolution SLR cameras that I dislike using my point and shoot. However, I don’t often carry my huge cameras around, hence I don’t end up taking too many snaps of my children! However, I do cherish very much the photos that I do have of my kids. I smile (and sometimes cry!) when I look at photographs of Nathan as a newborn, at six months, at 14 months (when he took his first steps - thank goodness I whipped out my camera for that moment!), and so on and so forth.

Whatever you all do, make sure you take the effort to capture the everyday. People often think of photos when there is a special occasion - first birthday, special holiday, etc. But don’t forget about the everyday - the seemingly trite moments that occur in your family’s life.

I suggest a little project - just for one day, perhaps on a Saturday or a Sunday - take your camera and photograph your own “A Day in the Life.” You don’t have to be doing anything special - you can simply start with your children getting out of bed, then making breakfast, then going to the park, etc. Your day may end in a cuddle in bed and a story or two. Photograph the day. Then actually print these photographs, and then take the time to put them in an album. If you have the inclination, make a scrapbook-type album. You can even design your own book and have it printed (I believe Mac has such a thing). I promise you that you will cherish this album for the rest of your life.