Ian & Rebecca {engaged} ~

These two love birds were engaged this summer, the proposal being the culmination of an elaborate scavenger hunt that saw Ian pop the question on the Calgary Peace Bridge (stay tuned to see what she said)!

Ian (currently in med school) and Rebecca (a recent Masters of International Development graduate) are planning a wedding in Calgary and a honeymoon in Africa, a continent dear to their hearts ~ Ian has travelled there 3 times and Rebecca spent many if not most of her growing-up years under the African sun.

The award for the most prop prep goes to this fun couple, who arrived with plenty of options to make this session memorable ~ I had a great time at a beautiful location with you both, and I can't wait for your wedding (come rain, sleet, snow, or shine) next Spring!

A Foray Into Freelensing

The ring shot.  It seems to be a must-have in any engagement/wedding shoot these days.  And for someone who is still "new" to the business, a macro lens (required for those amazing close-ups) is still a ways down the wish list.  After the 5D Mark III and the 70-200 2.8.  and the 35 and 85 mm primes.  And the 24-70 2.8.  And on it goes.

So when I read about freelensing, I decided that trying the  poor-man's macro and tilt-shift was worth the experiment!  No sense reinventing the wheel - you can read a tutorial here, or just google "freelensing" for some great tutorials and examples of what's possible.  All you need is a DSLR camera and a lens - the 50mm worked well for me.

Here is an example of a ring shot using the macro freelensing technique ~

And here is an example of the tilt-shift (I should've tried it with stationary objects instead of a 4 and a 2-year-old) ~

Anyway, the lesson for me is still "use what you've got", or "fake it 'til you make it" or, more accurately, "fake it 'til you can afford it"!

A word of caution - if having your lens detached from your body makes you nervous, or if you are in a location where dust, water, or dirt could get inside your camera, DON'T TRY THIS!

Little Big {Birthday}

How do you put into words the JOY that a child can bring?  This child?  MY child?

My baby.  Long lashes and dimpled smile.  How he vibrates with excitement - literally.  His raspy voice speaking complete sentences, long before his second birthday.    His idols - Lightning McQueen and 3 older brothers.  Sweetness is the root of his disposition.

Oh yes, he is far from perfect.  But today, let nothing diminish his light.

Molly {fresh}

Good golly, Miss Molly!  So sorry - but I've been dying to say that ever since I had the delightful opportunity to photograph this little darlin'!!

I can't say much about her history, but Molly's future is sure to be full of all the love and protection her family can supply!  And with two big brothers, likely a hefty dose of dirt.  For now, here she is, pretty as a peach in summer :)

Terrell & Destiny {engaged} - A Sunrise Session

Was I ever excited when Destiny and Terrell agreed to meet me at 6:15 IN THE MORNING for their engagement photo session!!  An evening session was proving difficult to schedule, so we embraced that other golden hour.

We grabbed coffees (tea, for Destiny) at the local convenience store and waited for the sun to show up.  The forecast had called for a clear morning, but what we got was a big, grey, cloud-covered sky.  We started the session in the chilly air and after a few minutes (ok, maybe 15 or 20), the clouds blew away and we were granted a big, beautiful, blue canopy overhead.  

Such a beautiful, fun, obviously in-love couple ~ I can hardly wait for your October wedding!