I posted below a little while ago about my health status and who you should call or email if you need a photographer. I guess I needed a picture because it seems like a lot of folks didn’t see that post and right now there are days (and days linked together) where I am no good at returning emails and then I worry because of how I appear to potential clients and, and, and…. and the less that happens, the better for everyone So just scroll down below this post for more details and if you are due with a new little one February 2012 or later, please check back here for news of when I am accepting clients again so that you can make a booking when my treatment has settled down and my strength is back.

Many, many thanks for your continued support. And please feel free to look through my galleries on my website or keep in touch via my Facebook page.

To my dear clients,

A couple of months ago I was diagnosed with breast cancer. I had hoped to back in the saddle after a short break, but at this stage, it’s looking like I will be taking it easy for a bit longer. I love what I do so much and had been putting off making the call to suspend my business for an extended time, but I have been quite sick as the result of both the disease and the treatment and it will be a longer than expected journey back to health for me.

At this stage, I am closing all bookings for the remainder of 2011 and asking that clients check out Connie’s Magic Moments as an alternative photographer.

If you are wanting to look into booking a newborn shoot in 2012, please do contact me as I intend to be back on deck on a part time basis in the new year. Families, please call Connie as the physical nature of outdoor family shoots will be beyond my capabilities for a little longer.

Thank you for your understanding and I hope that you are able to find a photographer to capture those precious, fleeting moments. You will never regret hiring a high quality, professional photographer!

I really do forget how amazing the light and the serenity is on the beach early in the morning. Usually I am reluctantly dragging myself out of bed to tackle the morning school rush and the sun rises without anyone in my house noticing the splendour of what we just hurtled our way through. But last week I dragged myself out of bed and headed to the water front to meet a handsome young man with his beautiful mama who is ready to welcome a beautiful little baby into their lives, any tick if the clock now. We took photos as the sun grew higher and captured the dreaminess of the low slung sun and the vividness of the higher, stronger light. It was such fun and I hope you like the little peek I have posted below!

I’d love to introduce Anelle Richardson as my featured photographer this week. Why? Because as consumers of photography or as aspiring photographers you NEED to see as much quality work as possible in as many different styles as possible so you can then either choose the right photographer for you, here on the Coast or; see something wonderful that will enrich your own search for individual style. Anelle is so talented in so many areas, but her self proclaimed love of “connections” is the thing that shines so brightly for me! You are left with no doubt that the subjects of her photographs do indeed know each other and love each other too.

There are links to her various homes on the web below as well as the standard 10 getting-to-know-you questions for your enjoyment. Thanks for answering these Anelle!

Name: Anelle Richardson
Studio Name: Anelle Richardson Photography
Location: Ottawa (and surrounding areas), ONT, Canada
Website: www.anellerichardsonphotography.com
Blog: www.anellerichardsonphotography.com/blog
Facebook: http://www.facebook….155087674518164

10 Questions
About the image…
1) Why do you love this image?
I love the interaction between these two sisters; I love their laughs and how their fun personalities totally shine through! To me, the opportunity to capture these precious moments, is what I love most about photography.

2) What were your settings with this image?
ISO 200; SS 1/400; AP f2.8

About Photography…
3) What do you love about Photography?
I love pretty much everything about it! I love getting to meet awesome families; I love playing with the kids and getting to know them; I love seeing the relationship between family members; I love being part of capturing the spirit of childhood.

4) What type of Photography do you specialize in and why?
I find it hard to say what I specialize in. Because in my mind, I would then have to choose only one or two areas of photography. The truth is that I love photographing children, families, babies and newborns (in no specific order)

About your life…
5) What are your favorite hobbies and pastimes?
I love photography (obviously); reading (non-fiction and fiction); my husband and kids (obviously not a hobby, but they are really awesome people I enjoy spending time with); and traveling.

6) Who or what inspires you?
I had to really think about this, because there are so many people who inspire me. I think it would be an injustice to choose any one person. I believe that every single person has something about them that can inspire us, if we take the time to get to know them and learn from them! If I am forced to choose only one person from the past and the present, it has to be Jesus Christ!

7) Who are some of your favorite singers/bands? That is an incredibly difficult question to answer. I actually love a bit of everything. Well, if I’m honest, I’ll have to admit that I don’t like jazz! But I also don’t like music on all the time. Maybe because our home full of rambunctious boys is so busy and noisy that I don’t feel the need to add to it!

What is your favorite movie of all time?
Another one of those I can’t pick questions 

9) What would your ideal day be like?
My ideal day would pretty much be the same way it is now, with the exception that it will start a little later!

10) If you weren’t a photographer, what other profession would you like to pursue?
I love my life as a photographer, mom and a homeschooler, so I don’t think I would change anything. I am really blessed that I have the opportunity to the things that I love! If I had to choose anything else, I think that I would have maybe liked to have pursued journalism (which is what I studied) as a foreign correspondent.

Here is a sneak peek from one of my most favourite maternity sessions ever!  This mama-to-be had so many ideas about what her bump meant to her and how to capture it, that when we put our heads together we came up with some truly beautiful images. Maternity photography is becoming so incredibly popular now and I’ll be honest in saying I wasn’t entirely sure why. But time has taught me that  some things are REALLY worth capturing in images. If there is one thing that is certain, it’s that time drags us speedily from these miraculous moments and fades our memories all too well.  With my youngest of three having started school this year I finally GET IT. That phase of my life is gone.  And I most certainly would not regret having a few shots of my girls in my tummy. I also imagine I would be proud to show my granddaughters such images too. So yeah, I’m a bit slow but these days you’ll hear me recommending maternity shots to anyone who’ll listen! Even if it’s just a handful of photos, it’s better than nothing

So, here are three more shots from K’s session (I posted just one earlier today on my Facebook page HERE). K, I hope you love them as much as I do – that bump will be gone any day now!!

When you embark on the journey to become a professional photographer, the first thing you do is jump on the internet, go to the library, buy photography magazines. You need to know what to buy, how to use it and most importantly, WHY to use the equipment and skills you are learning.  We’ll call that Inspiration. As your journey progresses, your role models become colleagues and even friends. And after all that knowledge gathering and Inspiration, hopefully you will have found your style, niche or natural strength. And the nice part about that is you can freely admire other photographers and their work without necessarily striving to emulate them. There’s one kind of photography you will not have seen much of here on my blog, and that is Senior Photography.  No, not old folks, but year 12 students who are about to fly the nest. It is a particularly American tradition, but it is one which is so very unique and full of possibilities. These sessions are especially meant as a coming out of individuality. It’s a chance for people who have been children up to this point to show the world who they are and for their parents to meet these new adults through the lens of an outsider. But like I said, it’s not my niche, as much as I love everything about this type of photography. And that is why I am featuring my colleague Rachel Aberle of Wisconsin, who is a talented photographer of many subjects (including children and families!), high school seniors amongst them. She’s been kind enough to talk a bit of shop and tell me a little about herself as well.  Here’s 10 questions for Rachel – enjoy!

Name: Rachel Aberle
Studio Name: Rachel Aberle Photography
Location: Green Bay, Wisconsin
www.rachelaberle.com
Facebook

10 Questions

About the image…

1) Why do you love this image? I love her cat like eyes on the first one and the variety of colors. On the second, I love this image mostly because I remember when taking it, how she loved to pose for me. Her personality was just that, pose for the camera with that grin. Love it.

2) What were your settings with this image? The first was shot at f/1.8, 1/1250 and ISO 200; the second at f/2.8, 1/250 and ISO 200

About Photography…

3) What do you love about Photography? I love that photography can draw a viewer into the picture. Looking through a book of Annie Leibovitz, you can stare for hours at some of the images she captured. Sometimes its just that glance back from the subject that draws you in or shapes and lines within the picture that are captivating. With kids, I find this can be so much fun to capture as they tend to wear their feelings and emotions of the day on their sleeves. You are drawn right into their silliness, reflectiveness or whatever they may be feeling that day.

4) What type of Photography do you specialize in and why? I specialize in families, children and seniors and will be adding newborns soon. Families purely to see that connection. What a enjoy to capture. Children for their personalities and fun. Seniors because they just rock!

About your life?

5) What are your favorite hobbies and pastimes? Well, my husband and I used to golf a lot before kids. Now when I get free time, I love to read a good book.

6 ) Who or what inspires you? There are just so many that I find inspiring. I think mostly I would say were other photogs that I have become friends with. I have learned so much from others and am loving this journey that we are on together.

7) Who are some of your favorite singers/bands? I am not monogamous when it comes to music, lol. I’m a bit of everything and switch around a lot. I get in the mood for rock, then at times soulful or country. Whatever strikes the mood I guess.

8 ) What is your favorite movie of all time? Bridget Jone’s Diary!

9) What would your ideal day be like? A day when I can sleep in a bit. Then spend the morning having a cup of coffee and hanging out with my kids. I would then go for a nice lunch with the family and sneak in a photoshoot in the late afternoon with some gorgeous early evening light. Then relax with a movie in front of the t.v. with the hubs.

10) If you weren’t a photographer, what other profession would you like to pursue? I always wanted to be a writer.

I met this delicate little lady last week. She’d had rough start but battled her way home where she became my little star for a few hours! As always, it was a pleasure to meet a new – brand new – person! I hope your mummy and daddy enjoy their preview!

…you fell in love with The One?  The One who made you laugh for real, made you not afraid to be serious, made your heart damn near explode? And can you believe I actually managed to photograph a heart exploding with love??  Yeah, me either but  I am  just tickled to have done exactly that

Happy Valentine’s Day to everyone and thank you so much S & L for an incredibly funsexycool shoot! Enjoy your preview – there are so many shots that I haven’t even seen them all yet but I just had to share these right away!

I cannot think of a better word to describe this little girl: Doll. So pretty with the most knowing eyes I think I have ever seen. They way she quietly tipped her head slightly to the side and regarded her Daddy, slowly and intently. The way she relaxed into her Mummy’s arms and surveyed the room… like all the Grannies say, that’s an old soul there! It was a truly lovely session and I think it shows in the photos we captured. Thanks for a great session guys!!

I met this little lady just over a week ago. Is it way too superficial to say I was excited to meet a baby with a mane of beautiful dark hair? Probably, but having said that, it wasn’t her amazing locks that struck me when we met. It was her curiosity, her way of drinking in her surroundings unlike any sleepy new baby I had ever met! It was a lovely session and we got many beautiful photos. Here are just a couple