north vancouver family photographer / joyful joyful

Nothing went exactly as planned for this family session.  The evening was supposed to be sunny, but it was overcast.  The park area we had planned to meet at was overtaken by tents for a city fair.  Rachel's husband Dave wasn't feeling well.

But this family braved through it all!   We met at the beautiful waterfront area of North Vancouver, and Dave managed a smile for lots of photos (brave man!), and they ended up showing me their true fun, goofy side in spite of the odds.  

P.S. I love Rachel's smile - I think her daughter definitely inherited it. 

vancouver newborn photographer / springtime baby

I had the pleasure of photographing the maternity session for Phoenix & Dennis just a few days before this little girl was born, so it was such a joy to meet her.  She was tiny, and perfect, and completely adorable.  

And she slept for most of the session.  As other newborn photographers can attest, a newborn who sleeps for most of the session will receive our eternal love and goodwill.  Not gonna lie - I was just a little bit overwhelmed by the amount of goodness and cuteness I was able to witness during this session.  (Her parents are pretty awesome too!)

Phoenix & Dennis' home was a natural light photographer's dream, as well: huge floor-to-ceiling windows EVERYWHERE, and so much white.  I felt like I was outdoors!  When I speak to clients who want indoor newborn photography, I can never over-emphasize the importance of windows, and lots of them: they make everything better.  Like these photos.

Here they are!

surrey engagement photographer / love, wine & crayons

Mira & Jason met me at Holland Park in Surrey, wearing beautiful clothes and big smiles and carrying two wine glasses.  (Good start to an engagement session, right?)

They got engaged one day last summer, after spending the afternoon downtown.  Jason told me he'd been carrying the ring around in his pocket all day, sweating and nervous and silent.  When he'd finally popped the question, he found out he had no reason to fear - she said yes!   

And here they are today.  I had so much fun with them, posing them and laughing and making them kiss (as a photographer, I have the power to make people kiss!) and sip wine (they love wine, so they brought along a bottle), and colour (yes - you read that right!  Mira & Jason drew their own Save-the-Date sign with wooden pencil crayons!).  

All in all - an evening well spent :) 

burnaby family photographer / pinwheel summer

Okay, so can I just say that this family was SO MUCH FUN!  They were up for anything and didn't feel the need to put on a perfect smile every time the camera was pointed at them; they were just "themselves" - scrunchy faces, laughing, crying, hanging upside down, running through pathways or tumbling in fields.  I loved that.  

We explored Barnet Marine Park in Burnaby for these photos; I'd never been there before, so it was especially fun!  Not only are they a completely adorable family (& the little girls have such beautiful eyes!) but they also have great taste in locations!

spanish banks couple's photographer / long-distance love

You're probably here because you agree with me that Olivia and Francis are one of the most adorable couples ever.  Right?   RIGHT??

They are both from Hong Kong, and both moved to Vancouver in the same year with their families - but they didn't know each other at that point.  Years passed, they met and fell in love and got married.  BUT - and here is where this session comes in - they have been doing long-distance for nearly all of that time.

When Olivia contacted me, she said she wanted a styled shoot (I love styled shoots) and she also said that the theme was to be "long-distance".  Having done long-distance myself for a year and a half, I got very excited.  I started tossing out idea after idea of how we could make this session amazing, and each one made me more excited than the last.  So, when we pulled up to Spanish Banks Beach, I knew this session was going to be fun.

Olivia walked up to me holding a seeded dandelion and wearing yellow, and Francis looked at her with so much love in his eyes, and the way they held hands and the way he watched her laugh, and the way she threw her whole self into her laugh, and the joy they had in each other - simply beautiful.  They would be together for just a few days more before he had to leave, and I could see that they were reluctant to let go of each other. 

One of my ideas was to pin memories of their long-distance relationship onto a string held between them, symbolizing the ways they showed their love even when not present.  So they brought along a plastic bag filled with cards they had sent each other, and little notes they had written each other; they laughed rememberingly as they pulled them out of the bag.  Carefully, we attached them to the string, along with daisies and paper airplanes, and they stood in the golden sunset light, connected in spite of the distance.

And here it is: their long-distance love story.