Atlas' First Birthday, The Cutest Camping Trip I've Ever Been On

Hey Everyone!

I love how stoked all of my mommy friends are getting about their kids first birthdays. From theme planning to driving across the city to snatch the best cakes in town (S/O San Remo’s!), every parent I know is curating and putting together the smallest (but most adorable) details to host some the most charming little birthday parties I’ve ever seen.

I walked into Atlas’ camping themed 1st birthday I couldn’t help but gush over the tiny binoculars, the teal checkered tent set up (complete with padded fire), the colourful confetti cake and yellow paper chandelier. Every detail was hand picked, curated and created by my very creative friend Madelaine (seriously, this girl does calligraphy, baking and is a PROFESH in the macaron world, check out her blog AND yummy recipes at www.soitssunday.com).

Madelaine had asked me asked me to be the designated photographer for the event which I was so excited to be a part of. Mads had asked me to capture her shower but Atlas was eager and arrived two months early and she spent the next few months with him, of course, making sure he was healthy and strong. Madelaine and I hadn't seen each other since our corporate lives at Sears and I had yet to meet her sweet little boy and husband!

I feel so lucky that I get to be a part of and capture these exciting moments and grateful that Madelaine thought of me to capture the moments that will be forever the most adorable camping trip I’ve ever been on. Check out some photos below and don’t forget to check out www.soitssunday.com to see what kind of creative magic Mads is able to bring to life!

XO T

OMG Happy 2019!

And where the eff have I been you may ask …and where the off have I NOT been is my answer….SO many things have been torpedoing around me for the last month, that I’m also SO stoked about. I landed myself two freelancing gigs shooting and editing for two different studios in the city so in between THAT and some very random blessed freelance gigs this month (that I’m super grateful for) I’ve been absolutely swamped with edited and shooting and creating and learning my ass off.

As 2018 came to an end and 2019 a new beginning it really felt like a momentum that began months ago just started picking up speed. SO many beautiful, creative and inspiring people have shown up as these wonderful forces that continue inspiring me and pushing me forward on the daily.

I’ve been really really really blessed to work on some of the projects and work with some of the PEOPLE I have this year from PSR Realty, to really kick ass, strong girl boss entrepreneurs, to more recently an amazing vintage clothing shop in the heart of my fav neighbourhood, Kensington Market. Every opportunity has given me the chance to expand and explore my creativity and keep on keeping on living my dream.

Recently an incredible friend of mine, (like when I say incredible I mean it) creative powerhouse and overall seriously inspiring and kick ass female and I decide to run our own course in starting an online Magazine. Crazy right? It was a small idea. We’re both creatives with this serious fire to create. When we say this I mean we CREATE. We spend minutes, hours and days in between our normal schedules to bring the dreams and words that dance in our heads into fruition. We put pen to paper, ink to water, or whatever in my case eye to viewfinder because well, we need to. We create because otherwise we may feel it wasted or otherwise we may be holding on to something that doesn’t belong to us. So out of this idea and a few back and fourth rants we created UNLOVED. A magazine and platform for artists to be able to share THEIR creations, because they’re fucking important! And because we know you’re creating them anyways. I couldn't be more excited to work alongside Radyah, a true artist in her own right and the definition of what it means to be a boss lady. If you have Instagram you should follow us @theunlovedmag or submit some shiz! We want to see…

Also I’ve been listening to a lot of Maggie Rogers lately? has anyone heard? She’s this super indie looking folky alternative girl who I absolutely have a girl crush on, her music is also amazing. Seriously, look her up.

Okay that’s all I got for now! Happy 2019 everybody, cheers to the best year yet

Family Photography

OLA! 

I know some of our best memories are often shared with our families. Between big functions to movie nights in there are always special moments we really want to hold on to and remember forever. Although the big moments ARE important, I find that often, it's in the split seconds of life NOT going according to plan that sometimes hold the funniest, cutest and most capturable (I just made up a word) moments. 

I recently photographed a family. I was scheduled to be there by 5:30 and told that the shoot should be two-hours. I had a park, a blazing sun and although adorable kiddos who (obviously) would rather be playing vid games and chilling at home. The parents didn't mind not having family photos taken but definitely wanted to capture their kids in the best light (not meaning to, but pun intended!).

As you can imagine, it's tough posing kids who are not down to have their portraits taken BUT I had a feeling that IF I got them in a good mood and put them in the right setting I could get some good shots. 

THANKFULLY there was a park around the corner. So I let them run free and really let them do what kids do best, EXPLORE. Once I gave them the freedom to do what they wanted they were 100% more open to posing suggestions and being guided to having their pictures taken in other locations. PLUS in the mean time, in between time, while they were running wild and free, I got some REALLY natural and cute AF shots of them playing and loving life! 

A little sample of what went down below! As a parent or photographer FIND and create those in between, split seconds of life not going according to plan shots to capture your family living their best lives. 

Jenna & Andrew

I was so lucky this weekend to get to share Jenna & Andrew's wedding with them this past weekend! I couldn't have imagined a prettier barnyard wedding. The guest arrived to a wheel barrel of beer and a three piece band to great them with a message instructing "grab a drink and find a spot, we'll be out soon to tie the knot".

The whole event was sprinkled with the cutest, handmade details from lace-y table clothes to barn wood seating charts and signs, no shabby chic detail was left overlooked! This adorable couple was equally as fun as the environment they set to celebrate this magical day with family and friends. 

Annie Leibovitz Masterclass

Annie Leibovitz released a Masterclass where she shares all of her photo-taking wisdom in these beautiful, to the point, 10 minute videos.

Firstly, let me say that her aloof attitude isn't how I imaged her, however I'm TOTALLY into this calm, wise demeanour she's got goin' on. She's got this aura of wait-for-me-to-finish-my-thought-because-it's-worth-hearing attitude that makes me want to listen to what she has to say. It's also probably because she's photographed for Rolling Stone, Vogue, Vanity Fair and not to mention that famous photograph of John Lennon nakedly clutching onto Yoko Ono's body in their NYC hotel room right before John Lennon was shot and killed....Yeah she's a big deal and her advice is broken down into easily consumable material in her Masterclass. 

Her advice is simple and straightforward. Using a single light setup on your locations...I know first hand that lugging heavy stands, light modifiers and strobes around can be seriously time consuming and frustrating, especially when things don't go well. Keeping it simple will also force you to become creative in using your location or maybe seeing things differently to force the location and subject to work for you. It's not always about working with the most gear but making the gear you have work for you. 

She spent a lot of time shooting with only her 35mm in order to push her perspective and force her to become more creative in getting the shots she wanted. It's so easy to get sucked into a "gear" hole when it comes to shooting (trust me I've been there!) and often I think we forget to chase the process because really that is the everyday reality of shooting. You will probably be in more situations that not that are not exactly the most ideal in terms of location, lighting etc...So really remind yourself that you can make an image anywhere, under any circumstances - sometimes it's just a matter of looking for that natural light and moving your subject, or finding that texture in a brick wall and using that. Even seeing the coloured window and using it as a gel...whatever it is, make it happen, and keep shooting to keep pushing yourself beyond your own creative limits. 

Here are some Annie photos that I dig :) 

Kathleen Trotter Fitness

I had the pleasure of working with health and fitness queen Kathleen Trotter this past weekend. She’s been featured in the Globe and Mail as a health and fitness writer and her first book “Find Your Fit” is a step by step guide to finding the fitness routine that best suits your personality to curate a routine that fits snugly into your schedule and lifestyle. Hired to shoot some BTS fitness shots while she was being filmed for a fitness short she’ll be releasing on her social media in preparation for her new book launch in January. It was super cool to bathe in the daylight of her at home studio while she went through some basic moves, shared a little health and happiness wisdom and shared her sunny personality with the camera. Here are a few shots from the day:

Brilliance, Bosoms + Bums

Undressing in front of a camera isn’t an easy thing to do. Did you know that 91% of women dislike their bodies? That’s the majority of us picking apart our STRONG, beautiful, solid bodies because of some very wrong misconceptions we have about how we’re SUPPOSED to look. Every woman deserves to feel beautiful and celebrated in the bodies they were given. Embracing this philosophy takes time. Shedding the sometimes very ingrained inaccuracies of how we see ourselves doesn’t happen overnight. That’s why I am so happy, after wrapping up a week of boudoir shoots, to say that I got to play a small part in this process for all the gorgeous ladies who stepped into the studio this week to bare all their brilliance….and a little bit of their bosoms and bums.

Glow

In the recent years I’ve been more and more convinced that the best time to shop is on clearance. I’m more convinced after this portrait that, post holiday clearance sales are perfect for picking up accessories, props, lights and knick knacks on the cheap that may come in handy when you want to add some colour to your portraits. Sometimes you stumble in a party store after halloween and decide to pick up some mark down products then months later - BOOM - you remember you have a black light and blacklight paint laying around (this was the case for Dani) who courageously let me paint her face with the bright black light paints and take her photo under the fluorescent purple of the blacklight.

Check out the rest of the photos here! 

Megan + Bill

I met Megan two years ago and it was an insta-friend moment. We met on our birthdays (yes we share the same one!) and bonded over good wine and all the intense libra-scorpio cusp traits we shared. So when Megan asked me to shoot her November wedding naturally I was stoked! The wedding was at the Sherwood Inn, two hours north of the city and the perfect little setting for this fun loving, laid back duo.  

This was the second week of November and although no snow had reached the city yet, the drive up to Port Carling was a transition from bare concrete to snow covered pines, so there was hope of a snowfall that Megan and Bill were really hoping to have. That’s why when it snow started trickling down later that night during the reception Megan, Bill and I darted outside with a speedlight to brave the cold just a little bit.

I’m super stoked to have been a part of welcoming Megan and Bill into their new life together and tell the story of their cozy Northern love story. Check out more photos here!