It can only get better from here!

Soo, a slight change of plans this week. I had my first two family portrait sessions today instead of Friday as I had to take that evening off for some exciting event (stay tuned for pics :D).

It was an interesting experience. I only glanced briefly at the photos I took, and I'm not sure how they'll measure up to the standards of Sharon (my boss). I used the work camera (Nikon D60) instead of Oliver...

P.s. Laura: I think I need to take lessons from you on how to make kids smile. Tis the season right? Nah - the youngster I had tonight cried the entire time. I wasn't even allowed to bribe her with suckers!

New Developments :)

Soo....guess whose first family portrait session is booked for December 3rd???? THAT'S RIGHT!!!
My boss informed me of this fact today. Oh, and I also get to do the Santa photoshoot on Dec. 11 and 18th :D!! [deep breath] THISISAWESOME!!! But I'm incredibly nervous. I have a long list of "don't's" from my boss and an equally long list of "do's" so these pictures turn out good.

p.s. we still need a Santa. If you're available from 11-3 on Dec. 11 & 18 and you fit the category of quite jolly, non-pedophile, cookie loving, and have the ability to fill in a Santa suit, let me know, k?

&beauty was everywhere.

This sight greeted me after a particularly troubling sleep.  

My mom woke me up at around 7:30 asking if Oliver wanted to take a look outside. I'm not sure if he did, but I sure did! I slipped my feet into my sister's crocs and stumbled outside while tugging on my winter jacket. I stumbled out into the snow, inwardly slapping myself for forgetting socks. It was cold! I managed to get a few quick shots, and I hope they're worth the frostbite on my feet :P

Question for photisters: This next photo was taken in manual mode at approx. 1/80 sec, F/16. I thought I had the shutter speed slow enough to get enough ambient light, as it wasn't even that dark out, but this is how it turned out..

Yuck.

Solutions?

Now this picture was taken that same morning and it doesn't do any justice to the amazing display God set out for us to enjoy. The hoarfrost was so huge it was literally hanging from the tree branches, and when the sun's light hit it it was like a million tiny mirrors were gracing each branch. It was absolutely breath taking!

I'll give one thing to absolutely frigid weather: it sure gives us amazing displays of beauty! I'm now wondering why I used to hate winter with such passion...even though it's sparse and cold, it still manages to be beautiful in its own unique way.

Guys.

I couldn't figure out a clever way to start this post, so I'm just going to come right out and say it:

Sometimes the way a guy acts really turns me off and reminds me why I'm not dating anyone.

There, I've said it. But now I feel funny inside. Don't read me wrong - not every guy out there acts inappropriately around girls; it just seems like there's more of them these days.

To the guy covered in tattoos buying a Playboy:
Little boys look up to guys like you. What sort of an example are you setting to them? It's not a wonder that young boys don't know how to treat girls with respect.

To the married man in the corner trying to hide the magazine he's reading:
Your wife was in a few days ago printing wedding photos. Her smile was radiant and pure. How can you defile that with the trash you're looking at?

To "Mr. Romeo" who seems so desperate for a date he'd ask a complete stranger if she could leave work early to go to the bar with him:
I have two words for you: En oh. The fact that you can wiggle your eyebrows while attempting to smile seductively does nothing to sway my decision.

To the complete stranger who left me coffee at my work with his phone number:
What would have happened if I called that number and your wife picked up? Too bad you didn't think that one through, and good thing I never called that number.

To the boys on the street making no effort to hide the fact they're checking out every girl that walks past:
Seriously? Half those women are old enough to be your moms. Does your mom know where you are?

I'm not trying to say that this is all the fault of the male gender, either.

To the girl shivering in the cold because of all the clothes she's not wearing:
You're not doing much to help matters, unfortunately.You are worth so much more than that. Dressing the way you do makes you come across as cheap. Why don't you wait for the guy who values you so highly he'll love you even if you're wearing a hoodie and sweatpants?

To the girl trying to put up with her abusive boyfriend:
Just seeing the two of you together breaks my heart.

Like I said earlier - it's not that every guy acts this way; just seems like there's a lot that do. Or maybe it's the fact that I live in a small town and see a lot of people on a very regular basis through work that it just seems like there's a lot of guys like this. So...

To the guys that try to treat their sisters-in-Christ and girlfriends with respect:
Thank you. It's nice to be around guys like you who have sensible heads on their shoulders. It's more fun hanging out with guys like you because the fun we have is good and clean. Thank you for the example you are showing to the younger guys and girls around you. It must be hard to always keep yourself in check, but just that effort is worth applauding.

To the old man and woman who I see regularly:
Your eyes still shine with love for each other. You've been through life's storms and survived together. Thank you for showing us all that it is possible to still love the same person after 50+ years despite what Hollywood tries to tell us otherwise.

Jack Frost & Old Man Winter

Really, who needs a red carpet when every year nature paves a road of diamonds right to your door?

Jack Frost came for a visit warning us that Old Man Winter is on his way...

And come he did! We were out at the Cenotaph on Remembrance Day when it started snowing. Hard. There's not a thing to show for it now, though; it's all melted. It's been a weird month weather-wise - usually by now we have at least a few cm on the ground!

Evangeline+Nadia

My cousin (sort of) Laura Onderwater and her hubby have a photography business in Houston, B.C. Link here Today, being my day off from work, I headed over to Houston to "help" Laura with some studio shots she was taking of her son's preschool class (shh, I really just stood there and watched in awe as she got even the stubbornest of children to smile...well, except for one, but I'm not holding that against her :P). After that was done, we took out her Canon (ick!) and Oliver to take some shots of her daughter and niece. Even though it was freezing cold it was a lot of fun, and I hope to do that again one day with her! Here's a few of my favourite shots:

Love Evangeline's boots and frills and Nadia's practical
Mary Janes and courds!

I warned you this one was going up, Laura :D

Pretty sure Jason and Laura are gonna have to guard
the doors when she's older!

I love the focus on this one. I dunno why, I just do :D

I cropped the above and tweaked a few things
on Photoshop :D




Happy Wednesday!

Opera Company of Philadelphia "Hallelujah!" Random Act of Culture

Such an amazing "random act of culture." It brought chills to my spine! This piece of music is especially close this year as I am part of a choir performing Handel's Messiah on December 9 - 12. Such a powerful witness during such a huge time of consumerism!

Grey's beauty

As autumn nears its end, things are looking a little more grey than usual outside. The trees have all lost their colour and snow on the mountain is gracing their branches where once there were golden leaves. I'm not a huge fan of grey. It's a fence-sitter; neither the pure brightness of white nor the deep darkness of black. It's undecided and vague.

 

Everything seems grey. It looks way different without autumn's royal colours everywhere!

But, thinking about this, I realized something. The grey of the trees and sky bring out the colour in otherwise ordinary-looking plants and weeds: 

This brings me back to a conversation I was having with a friend the other day. We were both saying how boring our lives were and how we wished for some excitement. Our lives were rather "grey" you might say. But through the routine of our lives, beauty is seen in a different area. Maybe you went the extra mile for someone at work or school, and they appreciated it. Maybe you waited for the pedestrian to cross the road before going. Maybe you just smiled at a stranger. And, looking deep down, I'm sure you could even find something interesting in your grey life. It's like the definition on a tree. The tree isn't just grey, it's different shades. It's got different patterns, different markings making that tree unique from any other.

And, looking deep down, I can definitely think of interesting things happening in my life. I guess that's a start!

Night Lights

Last Saturday Danielle, Amanda and I did a no-flash night shoot. Fun stuff! Here’s some of the pics:

It was way different doing a night shoot rather than a day shoot because the dynamics of every photo are different, especially because I wasn’t using the flash and instead focused on absorbing the ambient light. It resulted in a longer exposure – hard to do without a tripod! (*hint* Christmas wish-list item :) ) I’m still trying to master aperture and shutter speed, so these didn’t turn out as great as they could have been, but it was fun anyways :)

Aside from that, not too much has happened of late worthy of being blogged. Oh, other than appearing in the newspaper :D that was mildly exciting. I’ve been working a lot; and choir, Sunday School, and Little Lambs all keep me busy too.

Here’s another shot from when I took my dog for a “walk.” (It really was more of a “chase” since he really doesn’t understand the concept that speeding cars might really hurt.) I would have liked to have gotten more, but Luther didn’t really help that much!