One of my favourite things to do in the summer is to go strawberry picking, actually its eating strawberries and vanilla ice cream. I couldn’t wait to see what our little guy would do when he got out into the field this year, and you have to trust me when I tell you that I did not encourage him to eat them right off of the bushes. I have to admit though that it was one of the funniest things I’ve seen him do in a long time.

He actually did really well, and managed to come away with a clean shirt and a nice haul. I couldn’t resist grabbing a few photos of our little strawberry picker in action.

Enjoy


For those people that use a web-based email service such as Hotmail, Gmail, etc. etc. you may not be receiving legitimate messages.

The reason for this is that these services receive a ridiculous amount of messages each day and a majority of them are spam. I’m sure you’ve all gotten that email for those “magic pills” or the plea to send money urgently to a foreign country, and of course you’re sick of getting them over and over. As a result of this, these companies have to be very aggressive to fight this issue, but sometimes it may go a little too far.

The bottom line is that sometimes an email from a legitimate source, such as myself, may never reach your Inbox. The message will usually get directed right into your Junk/Spam folder without your knowledge or worse yet you may never get it all.

If you do send me an email I will always try to respond as soon as possible, often times within a few hours. If I’m doing a wedding or portrait session, I’ll often respond by the end of the day. If you don’t think you’ve gotten my response, please check your Junk/Spam folder as it may have inadvertently been sent there. I will also begin to follow-up any email requests with a phone call to discuss your inquiry.

Thanks
Mike

Congratulations to Shannon and Shawn who had a beautiful baby girl last month. I think she was content to sleep for most of the session rather than pose for us, but I’m sure that will change as she gets older.

I’ll be seeing her throuhout the coming year and can’t wait to capture more special moments. I love the little expression on her face in the second photo!

Enjoy


Just thought I’d write a quick post to let you know what’s going on in my life right now. Ok, maybe not right this minute but in the past few weeks and the weeks ahead.

We’ve been trying for awhile now to get everyone on board and put up a fence in the backyard. For some reason, it seems to be harder to get everyone’s consensus on a fence than it would be to extract water from a stone. Yes I did say that!

Both my wife and my little boy have been sick for the past couple of days, so things have been rough. For anyone with kids in daycare you know that they get sick every other week. I feel so bad for him because he can’t blow his nose or cough hard enough to clear his throat.

We’re planning a small vacation within the next few weeks so we’re looking forward to that. Hopefully the weather there will be more consistent than it is here. Even though I won’t be taking my camera equipment, we do have a small point and shoot, so I promise to take lots of photos.

For those that wonder; when someone hands me a point and shoot camera or if I have to use ours, I can’t get comfortable with it. The only way I can describe it is to imagine if all of a sudden you went to work and instead of having a modern computer there was a type writer on your desk.

I’m looking forward to doing more outdoor sessions in the next few weeks. In case you’re wondering, my favourite time for outdoor photos is about one hour before sunset.

I’m in the process of filing another tax return for the business. The whole process is confusing at best for me, which is why I have an accountant handle it. The amount of paper work is mind boggling.

I won’t even bring up the price of gas issue, that just gives me a headache.

I’ve made some changes to the main website, so take a look and enjoy.

That’s all for now.

Mike

Congratulations to Nadia and Mike who got married this past Saturday. As we all know it was extremely hot on Saturday and for anyone that’s been married or had the chance to be in wedding party on a day like that you can sympathize with the bride and groom.

Throughout the day Nadia and Mike were great and somehow managed to still look amazing. I had an awesome time and I wish you guys all the best.
Here are just a few images from their day.


Congratulations to Stephanie and Jeff who are now the proud parents of sweet baby girl. I photographed Stephanie’s maternity session a couple of months ago, and fast forward and here we are. It’s crazy how time flys by.

Our first session was a little bumpy as she wasn’t feeling that well, but I think we got some memorable photos. I know mom and dad will definitely have some stories to tell when she’s older, but that’s between us. I’m looking forward to seeing her grow over the course of the year.

Enjoy


I’ve had a number of clients ask me what portrait size would you recommended we get. Now obviously this will vary from person to person, and is ultimately your choice, but by following these general guidelines you will be able to get the most enjoyment from your favourite portrait. I’m sure at one time or another we’ve all made the decision to invest in something for the house, only to get it home and realize that it won’t fit into the spot we wanted. Choosing the proper portrait size is not that difficult, so let’s get started.

As a guideline, consider the head sizes of the subjects in the portrait. A spacious portrait showing the individuals and lots of environmental surroundings will have relatively small head sizes and will dictate a larger portrait size for effective viewing. A tight head shot, on the other hand, might look out of place in a 60 inch portrait because the image will actually be larger than life. Another important issue to consider in sizing your portrait is the relationship of the portrait to other furnishings. For example, if you hang a 20 inch portrait above a full size sofa or above a fireplace, it will look insignificant.

As architecture trends are focusing on larger “great” rooms, higher ceilings, and over-sized furniture, the need for wall portrait sizes that balance the space becomes apparent. Larger portraits are necessary for a spacious wall or a spacious room or when the portrait contains multiple people.

If you have a situation where you have a smaller wall space, one method I frequently use is the measure twice, hang once method. Here, you will measure the width of the wall space, say 40 inches, and then divide that number in half, so 20 inches. This will give you a rough estimate of the size of print, or frame that you will need to fill this space nicely. By doing this you will have a good, even balance on both sides of the print, making it not too big, and not too small for that area.

If you have any questions on this please don’t hesitate to ask. I’d be more than happy to work with help you decide. Just ask! The last thing I want is for you to not have your favourite portrait in a place where you can’t enjoy it for years to come.

Use the following table as a guideline in choosing your portrait sizes:

•Life Size – 60 Inches

•Wall (Decor Size) – 40 Inches

•Mantel Size – 24 x 30

•Wall Size – 20 x 24

•Easel Size – 16 x 20

•Hallway Size – 11 x 14

•Desk Size – 8 x 10

•Album Size – 5 x 7

•Original Size – 4 x 6

•Wallet Size - 2.5 x 3.5