Graduation Photos

I was out at UBC photographing the VST grads in their gowns. I will photograph the convocation in May. This is the second year of taking their portraits and it is an interesting experience. I asked more questions this year about what the grads do with their degrees and it is quite varied. Some graduates go into ministries of all spiritual and religious forms. Other graduates are counsellors who desire a greater understanding of their clients spiritual backgrounds. I was impressed by the diversity of reasons in pursuing this degree.

Healthy Families Conference

It appears that April will be a busy month for sweet earth. On the weekend of April 18-19th the Healthy Families Conference is taking place at UBC. It is an event to support families and the communities that connect them. From their website:

On April 18-19, 2009 educators and parents from across the Pacific Northwest will gather to participate in an event designed to inspire, support, and connect the amazing individuals who contribute to building community for our children at home and in school. This two-day conference is packed with great presentations, breakout sessions, workshops, discussion groups, and meals that will create a collaborative and participatory setting giving each participant a toolkit of resources and contacts to take home. Attend the Healthy Families Conference to learn skills and strategies to nurture strong relationships within your family and create strong ties for children within your community.

It is a very exciting conference with many well known speakers. sweet earth photographics will be showing there.

Here is the link to the website: http://www.healthyfamiliescanada.org/Home.html .

Baby and Toddler Fair at the Roundhouse Community Centre

April 4th brings the Yaletown Baby and Toddler Fair to the Roundhouse Community Centre. Here is the link: http://www.babyandtoddlerfair.com/. sweet earth photographics will be the on-site event photographer. Over 70 vendors will be there with an emphasis on supporting local craftors and mompreneurs.
It will be a great event so come out and support other moms!

Winnipeg Newborn Photoshoot

I had the most wonderful opportunity to shoot miss Emily Jennifer Sprague who was at the ripe old age of three days old when I met her. To be with a newly hatched family over the course of three days was a very special circumstance. I was flown to Winnipeg and would visit the family each day with my cameras in hand. Having the time to capture very relaxed moments does not come often. I felt very blessed to be present to meet grandparents and other family members as well.

Child photography 101

I will begin with the obvious. Patience is a must in any photographic situation. Waiting for the right moment is key in capturing the casual smile or glint in the eye and I think this is the hardest for parents. Time is of the essence, usually, and trying to get those perfect moments with kids can be very stressful.

One of the greatest challenges with photographing families is the parents, not the kids. I am not saying this is true in every case, but even in capturing my own kids, parents desire cooperation from our children. I believe that children can sense this need and do almost anything to deny their parents a well-composed image.
So, what do we do to channel our kids into good subjects? The first thing we do is to shed our preconceived notions of that perfect family photo and making our children sit still and look just so. I find that the most beautiful of images come when I sit back and let my children be themselves.

When photographing families I will tell the parents that they need not worry about their child. I am there to capture the true moments of beauty which include silliness, thoughtfulness and even moments of frustration. I do capture the images that the parents want, but I also capture those little antics that give a more rounded view of the child.

When I was planning the design for my business I knew the image I wanted that, to me, would convey who I was as an individual as well as a photographer. I needed my daughter's assitance. My darling eldest child cooperated for all of 10 minutes and then grew frustrated with my directions. She is a very independent child and does not appreciate being asked to do anything she would rather not do. I grew frustrated myself... but only for a moment. I stepped back and tried to sink into the background as I could see she was losing herself in the moment of dirt and digging. I remained quiet and unobtrusive and felt almost giddy watching her play. I thanked her profusely at the end as she gave me more than I could have asked for. She also loved viewing the images of herself later.

***Be a fly on the wall with your children. Take photos of the spaces they call their own. Take a photo of that beloved stuffy; the corner where they sit and lose themselves in a book; the structure or village that took hours to build. Capture a moment that defines their childhood, not a stiffly posed image set up for others. It is wonderful to have those images of siblings posing nicely for the grandparents and other relatives, but mix it up a little. I imagine my children looking back at all the photos that I have taken over the years and I hope they see a more complete picture of what was important to them and the spaces within which they existed.

Here are a few photos from the shoot for the images I use in my business:


Eldest daughter put the brakes on early on.


Wait!!! She found a worm and wants to show me.





I love this image. She is lost in a world of her own.


Boredom sets in. She is done.


This is her payoff. I had to take a photo of teddy on her little stick swing. I think it is a good deal.

December and January have been very busy months but I have grand plans for the blog. I will start a 'how to take great pics of your kids' section or perhaps just a few helpful hints that can make an amazing difference when taking photos.

I have a few shoots to post, but I was out today on a very beautiful winter day and I wanted to get these images up. I had a lovely afternoon taking pictures of three siblings and the best part of the afternoon was just watching their interactions. I know I only have a very small window into the lives of others, but the ease with which the three of these young people simply 'were' with each other was very pleasant to watch. They appeared so content to just be present with one another.

summer relics with hats on

I could have spent all day outside with my camera. What an amazing day. The sun was perfect. The snow was so delicate and framed everything with its white outline. I did manage to take a break and slip out into my backyard before the sun was too high and started melting the snow. It appeared that all the odd little objects that are scattered in my backyard were wearing these lovely white hats. Perhaps a party occurred that I was not invited to.

my street this a.m.