and the details…

to the ceremony:

and special people in Kathy and Hassan’s life:

And finally, to a snowy and chilly location to capture some memories in a unique way:

I laughed and felt tears of joy well up alongside of everyone else that day. Kathy and Hassan, I hope that you enjoy your photos as much as I enjoyed taking them. Thank you to my helpers Andrew and Olga for making the day go smoothly and providing some stunning photos to round out the set.

In January, I found myself taking stock of where I wanted to be headed in 2010 (after all it is a new decade!) and a look back at how my photographs have changed over the last while. One of the things that I’ve struggled with is being critical of my own work and in turn sometimes losing sight of how much fun it is to go out and shoot. So, one of the goals for the year is to have more opportunities to take photos for the pure joy of it, without expectations or limitations.

I wanted to share my first “Sunday drive” shoots from last week. I not only got to make a new friend who shares the same love of abandoned places and entropy, but we came upon this gem where we spent two-and-a-half hours of pure enjoyment of photography.

Here are a few shots from the day:

I felt recharged and renewed in my love of photography after the day. My fingers and toes, on the other hand – they were screaming for a hot chocolate and a warm indoor spell!

I spent one of my days off with some of my very cool in-laws ~ photographing everyone against an unexpectedly snowy backdrop. We shared a bunch of laughs and some climbing escapades in their lovely back yard. Here are some of the shots from the day:

…and then there were these gorgeous little kids! They were having a wee nap when I arrived, but before the light left for good, we got some shots in.

Although mom Danielle said she was up a lot with this little lady who was confusing her days and nights, she looked radiant!

And then Ms. R and I had a bit of a heart-to-heart. I swear she could see right into my soul. Don’t you agree?

Thank you so much for letting me capture your little miracle!

~ Storypeople

It’s no big secret that I love photographing people. Through my lens, I get to witness the love between partners and between parents and their kids. Today, I spent the morning with Heather and Russ, whom I first met at the Because Kids Grow Sale back in October. They won a complimentary photo session at the sale, and today we shared a couple of hours photographing their little girl and their family. It was touching to be part of their life ~ their love for each other shines through each picture. Here are some sneak peeks from the session:

A huge thank you goes out to Heather and Russ’ family pets for lending me their squeaky toys after my lab sneaked away with my noisemaking assistant!

I spent the most fabulous warm fall afternoon with four lovely ladies today. The weather co-operated and our time together slipped by so quickly ~ between enjoying the backdrop of a carpet of leaves, to belly laughs and, of course, some dancing! Thank you for the fun time and for the loan of the ladder. Here are a few shots:

There is something about photographing sisters that is awesome. Sisters that can laugh and have so much fun with each other inspire me and help me to treasure the relationship with my own sister.

And then, there was the cutest dog in the world…

to witnessing the ceremony…

and the joy afterward:

to the details of the day:

and to one tired little flower girl:

Let me tell you – I bow to those who make photographing toddlers look easy. The boys were both adorable and spirited. It did not help that the temperature hovered around the “see your breath” mark. I wanted to capture their playfulness and the family together at the same time. Here are some shots from the session:

I just wish it was a bit warmer, so we could have stayed outside longer!