You wouldn’t know it at first glance, but we live in the North End of Winnipeg – a very nice little pocket of it along the river, with big trees and old character houses. We’re surrounded by a number of really nice homes with pretty yards which puts our own place to relative shame (my apologies to the neighbours – it’s a very long work in progress!) Roman and Christina are one of the neighbours on the block who have a really put a lot of effort into their place, so I was professionally and neighbourly interested when they asked me to drop in and shoot some family pics during their parents’ 50th anniversary celebration.

Despite having hosted a big shindig the night before at their place, everything in their home looked in typically fabulous shape. The yard was decorated with funky art painted by one of Christina’s brother-in-laws – I quite liked the flowers and the rendition he did based on one of the Korbutiaks’ wedding photos 50 years ago. It was also interesting to see the resemblance and yet differences between Christina and her sisters, and again in the next generation of three little blonde nieces who were so bashfully cute in front of the camera. A few pics from the session:

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Every spring, I look forward to the opportunity to work with the wonderful Sareen family and their two little ones: Mya and Aidan.  It was a bit of a revelation when it occurred to me that this was my fourth annual portrait session with them – how time flies!  With last year’s shoot taking place in the studio, we changed it up this year and I eagerly headed over to their home to chase after the kids with my camera in their own environment.

While there’s the usual surprise in seeing how much they’ve grown every year, the signs of change were rather apparent this time: you know time is passing when they’re out of diapers and have moved on to losing teeth.  But some things remain the same and as always, the kids were super excited, falling over each other to show me their latest toys, and all-in-all just a blast to be around. I spent some time following them around the house as they showed off their rooms and newly found piano skills (I don’t recall my kids being quite so focused as Mya was on the keyboard).  And with it being a bright and sunny afternoon, we headed out to the park, running after them as they pedalled furiously away on their little bikes.

Always a joy and a pleasure to work with – thank you to the Sareens for sharing your lives with me!  And some of my faves from the session:

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As I’ve mentioned previously, when I’m not taking pictures, chasing after my kids, or playing hockey, there’s a good chance you’ll find me chasing after a frisbee. About 5 years ago, I put together a team of friends – mostly new parents who after parenting all day needed a physical outlet. To our surprise, not only did we end up really liking Ultimate, but we also found that we were fairly successful! This despite being a collection of mostly “old and slow” moms and dads.

One defining trait of this team is that other than a few sad departures and a few welcome additions, there’s been great continuity – we’re pretty much the same crew over the years. The other defining trait is that just about everybody who plays with us will promptly breed children. You can usually tell it’s us from afar by the mob of babies, toddlers, and youths that buzz around on the sidelines.

This particular shoot was of Jacq and Will and one the newest members of our team: Ethan. I may be biased, but I have to say Chinese babies are soooo cute. Ethan was like a little buddha. I thought he looked pretty good in the team jersey too, though I’m not so sure he was as convinced.  Otherwise, it turns out that among his favorite things are fans. So to his delight and ours, we turned the studio fan on and I snapped away.

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While in Edmonton over the holidays, I had the chance to hook up with Beth and Victor who were old wedding clients of mine. It was great seeing them again and to meet their new little daughter – Eva Zuzu (what a great name).  I figured between Beth’s natural elegance and Victor’s big smile and playful demeanor, Eva would have no shortage of personality and she certainly didn’t disappoint. With a head full of frizzy hair and a big easy smile of her own, Eva showed me around her house – a wonderfully decorated house at that, which lent itself to some nice editorial-like shots.  A few of my faves:

Ellie is another little girl who I’ve had the pleasure of photographing every year since she was a little wee one (she’s the one blowing the dandelion with her dad in the rotating pictures at the top of this blog).  Her grandparents live just down the street from us on the river, so we took advantage of a beautiful autumn morning and the fabulous field in their back yard to take the family’s pictures this year. This time Ellie’s brother Eric was able to make the shoot and, between the two of them, it was non-stop shenanigans in the leaves and the tall grass.  It’s always so interesting to watch the progression of these babies and toddlers as they develop into little people – the first time I took Ellie’s picture, she was still on all fours and had just this little tuft of hair.  Now, armed with a full head of curly locks, she was inviting me for tea and biscuits along the river bank.  I can’t wait to see what she and Eric are like next year!