A few weeks ago, I was commissioned to take photographs of a baby. Shooting photos of babies is actually very challenging as they’re not exactly keen on taking directions. But as difficult as the process may be, I find the results particularly rewarding.  In fact, the actual process affords me invaluable practice time as far as anticipating the perfect moment and then making sure I shoot it before it slips away. This is a skill I will certainly be honing as the year progresses and I shoot more weddings.

Getting a baby to smile/laugh is a somewhat arduous task and requires both parents as well as myself to get involved and pitch in. The family above was very gracious and their house was filled with love and laughter. It was a very enjoyable experience and while I would like to take on as many commissions of varying kinds as possible, I’ve decided to focus my time and efforts solely on weddings and possibly corporate events.

So If you came here because you’re looking for a baby photographer, first off thank you but I’d like to refer the services of a friend of mine who is very talented and a mother herself (this actually helps). Check out her growing portfolio at http://www.augustbloom.ca/

model: Britney
hair & makeup creds: Jennifer

When I was informed that the profile pictures of the leadership/pastoral staff at New Hope Fellowship was outdated and subsequently asked to take updated photos, I jumped at the chance. My photobooth style approach is quickly becoming my most requested service outside of wedding commissions. I had a blast taking the pics above and look forward to future shoots involving great people who like to have fun.

Here are some red carpet pix. The night was cold and the red carpet was placed strategically beside the entrance but that meant a lot of the guests were still somewhat frozen after they checked in their coat and got ready to take their picture. As a photographer, you have to be able to think quickly on your feet and within less than a minute somehow establish a rapport with the subject(s) to the point where they’re comfortable enough to not only let you take their photo, but seem somewhat jovial in the process. It’s harder than it sounds, but here are a few of my favorites;

Here is the mega talented (and Juno award winning) Tomi Swick killing his set and later taking a shot of Patron with his band. I met Tomi at last year’s event and he was just as cool and fun loving this year as when we first met.

Pictured on the right, Miss Universe Canada 2010, Elena Semikina

The craziest beat boxer to arrive on the scene since Rahzel…Canadian Beat Box Champion; krNfx

Toronto Bluejay Superstar; Brett Lawrie being interviewed by theScore

Big shoutouts to Cho&Delfino Inc. for the awesome experience/opportunity/exposure! 

I really love the picture above. I’ve taken many photographs in my life, easily over 50,000 and I never really had a “favorite” shot up until this one. Here’s the back story;

This past Christmas (whoa, already feels like a while ago), I was asked by my church to snap some photobooth portraits for their Christmas outreach event with their main focus being on families from both inside and outside of the church. About half of the attendees were families from the local community of Malton which I thought was pretty awesome to see. I was by myself at the shoot without the usual help of my lovely assistant (wife) so it was a bit stressful setting up all my equipment and coordinating things by my lonesome. But I did get some help from some very helpful volunteers who even brought me food throughout the night. Even though I was too busy to really eat any of it, the gesture was very much appreciated.

Anyway, I’ve digressed. So I set up in a nearby room that was fairly large. Each family was to come into my room to take a photo with their family prior to making their way to the gym for the festivities and food. After having shot photos of most of the families, I stared at my cold food and thought it was time to start eating. This is when I met the family above.

They walked in very quietly and politely. The kids were very well behaved but the father seemed anxious and almost grumpy. I didn’t really have time to make conversation with all the families as I took their photo (it was pretty much an assembly line for the sake of efficiency), but the man seemed to want to engage in some small talk with me as he took his coat off and made his way to the shooting area. When I asked how his day went, with a tone that indicated more exhaustion than annoyance he told me that he had worked the entire day (it was a Saturday) and that he was wiped of any and all of his energy. He didn’t complain about being where he was, but I could clearly tell that he would’ve much rather been at home relaxing on the couch after a long and hard day’s work.

When the family got into position together, ready for me to take the shot, I said something about everyone giving me a huge smile together as a family and I distinctly remember the dad almost relaxing or exhaling before smiling for the picture. It’s as if he realized the moment for what it was and thus was able to smile genuinely rather than just look tired which was probably his first inclination.

The reason why I love this photo so much is because it tells a story without me having to write this all out. From what I can see from the photo, I see a very tired hard working blue collar father with his three kids whom he loves very much and the kids are genuinely happy that their father brought them to this event. You can tell that they love their dad just as much as he loves them. I wish I could take credit for the body language (poses) but it was all natural. The emotions conveyed in this photo speak so loud and clearly.

This isn’t me tooting my own horn, but rather my attempt to remind myself (and you in the process) that what I do as a creative outlet slash hobby/passion is pretty damn cool and I should never take any of it for granted. I don’t think of myself as someone who takes photos but rather someone who captures moments/emotions. As corny as that may sound, it is the approach that I adopt and I’ll always have this photo to remind me of just that.

Can you tell she doesn’t like hair pins in her hair?

“So basically our story is that we went to high school together, had mutual friends and we would all hang out in a big group but Mazda was always more gentlemanly towards me than most of the boys were, especially at that age. Our first conversation was on msn (haha) on christmas eve, we talked all night till 5am. I was in grade 10 and he was in grade 11… Hung out at school after that, nothing serious. He used to come and sit in my classes (even though he wasnt in the class) just so he could talk to me too lol. But about a month later, at semi-formal (jan 29, 2004) he asked me to be his “girl” lol and we were super serious about it, and it was clear that we were both the “committed” type… At 16 years old. Lol

We’ve been together since then, grew up together and matured together, went off to different universities but stayed in Toronto so we were still able to maintain the relationship. We live a couple streets away which is great too. We always knew we wanted to be married, and it was always just a matter of time. Finally, on may 5, 2011 we flew to NYC under the pretense of going with family members on a weekend shopping adventure (thats what i thought anyway) and the first day we went all over manhattan, hitting all the main tourist attractions.. I noticed he was particularly quiet that entire day but I also remember it being really peaceful and happy.. Except that he kept making a point about having to go to St. Patrick’s Cathedral before dark. We finally got there and on our way out, we were outside on the steps, I looked away for a second, and when I turned back he was on his knee. He didn’t say anything, I didn’t say anything.. We just hugged and that was pretty awesome lol good times.. But kinda funny because TECHNICALLY he didn’t ask me to marry him.. So I’m pretty sure I’m still single! Lol

Lastly, each of us have very separate interests, but what we always agree on is food we have the same likes and dislikes. As well, Friday is date night, by tradition. And we go out to try new places around town or make recipes for each other or together. Our goal is to keep that going throughout our marriage as well ”

Natalie and Mazda were a blast to work with. As you can see from the photos, they were both filled with such zeal, energy and fun. I can’t wait to document their big day next year!

Just like how every photo tells a story, I’m realizing more and more that every couple has their own story that’s unique and special. Going forward, I will try to capture both sides for my blog as I feel it would really round out each post.