Photography Chair for the Alberta Summer Games | Torch Relay

This summer I had the pleasure of being the Chair of Photography for the Alberta Summer Games. As the Chair, I managed a team of around 10 different volunteer photographers as they photographed 14 sports, as well as, the opening ceremonies. Our goal was not to simply photograph the events, games and matches, but to try and capture the true spirit of the games. If you have ever been a part of such an large event, you know that the Games are for the athletes, but the spirit of the games not only comes from them. It also comes from the amazing volunteers, coaches, and spectators.

Since I took thousands of photographs myself over the course of the Games, I thought that I would share some of my favourites from the different events I covered over the weekend. Starting with the torch relay. A big shout out to the folks at Atco Gas who let me ride on the back of their lead vehicle so I could capture the relay without actually running alongside the participants. It was such a fun day to see so many local people out showing their support. Here are just a handful of the images I captured that day.

Spring Adventure Session in the Mountains | Kananaskis Family Photographer

This session is over a year old now, but it’s been sitting in my blog drafts waiting for me to share it ever since. This lovely family wanted portraits in the mountains to document their time here in Alberta. This spot in Kananaskis is a favourite for me because the views are so stunning and depending on the time of year, the landscape can really vary. This session was in the spring and the water was so low. It’s amazing the difference when you go out there in the summer or the fall.

These kids were the perfect age for an Adventure Session. Having an activity and no time limit gives younger kids the space to just be themselves. They don’t have to worry about ‘behaving’ a certain way or following instructions. We allow things to just naturally unfold. The only job a family has is to show up ready to play, have fun, and love each other. I provide enough direction so that you can feel confident that we are going to get the images that you want, but also allow you to just show me your true authentic selves. Here is a sampling of the images that this family created with me. Not only did we get amazing portraits to put on their walls or share with family and friends, but we got a great series of images that allow for a wonderful book that illustrates this moment in their family’s history.

Adventure Session Out At The Barn

Everybody always seems to be in such a hurry these days. Especially families with teens. We are so busy running them to all of their things. But, the thing is…as you near the end of your 18 summers(have you all read that quote about 18 summers?), you realize how important it is to take time to slow down and just be together. That’s the adventure that we did for this family. A night at the barn where their daughter spends a lot of time and all of their pets could roam comfortably and be a part of the session.

I know the trend is to go small with a portrait session now—to rush it and go for a quick mini session, but, for me, my heart will always be in these longer sessions. The time and space allows everyone to relax and just be themselves. We are able to create a space where your family can just be together without constraints or cell phones or worrying about fitting everything in. We give ourselves the time for things to unfold organically. Yes, you get a lot of photographs and maybe you think you only need a few, but if you haven’t seen these photographs yet—how do you know what you are missing? I can tell you that in a mini session, there is no time to capture the true personality of your crew. I also know that if you wear clothes that aren’t your own or your force kids into stuffy outfits that they are uncomfortable in, that you won’t see your true selves in the photographs. I want to show you who you are in your family portraits. Maybe that’s something you feel has been missing in your past family portraits—so, if you are ready to see the beauty of your life, try an Adventure Session with me this fall. I still have room in my schedule. before the snow flies.

Graduation Session in the Blossoms | Calgary Photographer

As soon as I saw this girl’s dress, I knew that we had to schedule the session in the spring blossoms. It suited her dress so perfectly and made for such soft and romantic photographs. She bought the dress while on holiday with her mom in Quebec if I remember correctly.

This family chose to add a quick little family mini session to the beginning of their graduation session. Almost every family chooses that, but if you are not one of those families, you can add an extra outfit or an extra location to the session. Some graduates like to be photographed in a casual outfit or a team uniform. Others choose to have two contrasting locations—perhaps the studio and then a more natural setting. Or, their childhood bedroom and a cool urban location. This is why I create a totally custom session for each graduate. I’m not interested in creating a session that is hurried and only provides a few photographs. I want to create a session that documents your graduating child in a complete way and that takes time so that it is done properly.