scintillating sunwashed spanish banks family session

All the S's in that title remind me of a book we were given, called Alpahebetics: An Aesthetically Awesome Alliterated Alphabet Anthology (by Patrick & Traci Concepción). 

My favourite page from the book is Q, which goes like this: "Quinn the quail queen quietly queued for the quintessential quinoa quiche."

Amazing, right? All of this, of course, has absolutely nothing to do with this session, but I believe it was a very worthwhile sidenote.

Steve spent a few months last summer pastoring at our church, and I had the opportunity to photograph this (ADORABLE) family together one sunny August evening. Linsey is a talented writer, their little son is probably the most active child I have ever met, and his little sister is such a sweetheart. We miss you guys!

{vancouver photographer}mini family session at a bakery

These are things I love: coffee, pastries, warm indoor light, pretty outfits, and photographing families. (In no particular order.) So having the opportunity to do a rainy day family session at Pure Bread downtown was kind of amazing, since it combined all of these spectacular things, and also meant I didn't need to be outside in the pouring rain.

I've photographed Amy & her family many times, and each time I'm amazed by the lovely outfits she coordinates. SO MUCH FUN to photograph! Plus, they are the sweetest, most considerate clients.

On another note, this was my very last winter mini session, but I will be offering mini sessions again in the spring, starting in March! Please contact me for pricing details if you're interested in booking a mini session :)

we'll live on coffee and flowers

In October, some friends and I had a little unofficial photographer's retreat. As in, we left our husbands behind and took our kids along and all ended up in a rambling old Airbnb home overlooking Shawnigan Lake in Victoria. It was full of furniture that looked like it belonged elsewhere but had somehow ended up here, and creaky hardwood floors, and little handwritten notes from the owner on everything, nicely requesting that we touch nothing at all. (We're still not quite sure why we couldn't hang our coats on what was clearly a coat-rack.) But huge windows overlooked the lake and the fog, and occasional pieces of sunshine found their way inside, and we had fun. For a few days, we barely slept (because the kids were up most of the night), drank copious amounts of coffee, and took SO MANY PHOTOS.

P.S. You can find Jamie's work here, and Katrina's work here. Such lovely talented photographers :)

& this was 2015

It's the time of year again when I spend hours and hours culling images from the past 12 months, and then culling through the culled images, and then closing my eyes and deleting images at random, and still...still, I have too many photos to share with you. Forgive me if loading this blog post crashed your computer; it will likely never be the same, and for that I apologize.

But I won't apologize for all the pretty light and all the amazing clients I've been blessed with. In this past year, I've learned that trying to edit with a busy toddler running around the apartment is kind of insane, and that blogging sessions is impossible. I've discovered a little bit more about the kinds of clients I love to photograph (many of which you'll see below), and also that becoming friends with your clients is basically the best kind of everything. I've pushed myself to occasionally photograph what I wouldn't normally. And also, I've found that taking on a couple projects for free, simply for the sake of passion, is actually incredibly inspiring, and that these shoots often become my favourites. So please, if you have a spectacular shoot idea or project, send me a message.

And now for the computer-crashing recap of 2015. ARE YOU READY??

{vancouver portrait photography} patterns of fairytales

This evening was a fairytale, hair threaded with gold and light painted with sunset.    

Christine is a massage therapist, and our portrait session began in her sun-filled home.  She is a collector of beautiful things; every blanket, table, and plant was a reminder of the loveliness she finds in the everyday.  

We wandered down to Tower Beach afterwards, and witnessed magnificent waves crashing upon shimmering pebbles.  I think we both were a little in awe of the incredible beauty; I kept feeling like "Please pinch me, IS THIS REAL?!"  So in love with these photos.