A “year in the life” photography package isn’t for everyone.

It is an investment, for sure.

It means that we can get together multiple times a year (12 is the suggested amount, once per month, but really any amount works!) and document the growth of your children, especially if they’re in particularly dynamic parts of their childhoods (e.g. transition from toddler to preschooler, transition from early childhood to adolescence, etc).

I’ve got a really sweet photo story to share with you today: it was a documentary family session I photographed in Ottawa a few weeks ago.

This family was about to make an epic move: from Ontario to Saskatchewan!

So, they were just about ready to pack everything up and put it in boxes. We booked in the sessions as soon as we could possibly squeeze it in (on a Monday!), so that we could get some photographs of important things before they were all packed up.

As a photographer who is NOT a skateboarder (I mean… I tried for about a year so far… but you get hurt a lot, and I am not a huge fan of getting hurt 😜), I’m still learning what makes a good skateboarding photo.

I’m also trying to make sure I’ve got enough photos of the entire event - and not just the skateboarding photos - to flesh out the story.

Libby and Bernie’s children had put together a gorgeous slideshow of photographs from Libby and Bernie’s 65 years of life.

This is when I got all choked up.

There were imaged of them as a newlywed couple…

Images of them as parents to very young kids… the same kids that were gathered here today to celebrate their parents… and had brought their OWN children…

During family get-togethers, there’s often someone within the family who takes photos… but it’s more awkward because they never get to be in the photos themselves (trust me, I know… this is why this year, we’ve hired Tim Forbes to be our family photographer so we can all hang out and ALL be in the photo)

So I jump at the chance of being the photographer to help the family all be present with each other.

Now, for the Solc family, it was important to take a few traditional photos.

Candids were great, they said, but we also want some of all of us all together, and a few of each family.

Well, of course, we can take some time to do this, I said!

Here we bring you another installment of the ‘Year in the Life’ series, with the Wright Straub family.

As you might recall if you’ve been following this blog, the year was 2017. We had predetermined that we would meet once a month with this family to photograph their activities.

And each month was like a fun game, figuring out what activity to photograph!

Jacklyn contacted me early that week and was like, “hey, i know it’s short notice, but we’re heading to Gananoque on Friday to do an egg toss and have some pizza”, and I was like, YES!

In March, we decided to go to Maple Madness at the Cataraqui Conservation Park. Maple Madness, for the uninitiated, is when the temperatures are just right in late winter/early spring so that the maple trees can be tapped for sap. I don’t know the ins and outs of it, but you can learn a LOT if you go for yourself. It happens in early spring (early March until early April).

The sap is tapped and it fills buckets. Then, it’s made into maple syrup, by boiling out the water.

It’s an indigenous practice, and Maple Madness offers an opportunity to learn all about the history and traditions from indigenous people. There are live demonstrations of how the water is boiled away using a hot stone.

A couple of months ago, Tim Forbes and I had a photoshoot exchange: He photographed my family, and I photographed his.⁣

Now, for those of you who don’t know, Tim is one of the best documentary photographers this side of Ontario. He’s primarily a wedding photographer, and was actually my mentor. I shot an entire season of weddings as his second shooter in that first year of business, back in 2016.

He’s been in the biz for nearly twenty years, and it really shows! His work is perfect. (no pressure, Tim 😉)

Here is our first session: it was during the darkest days of winter, mid-January. I went over to their house on a school-night, and the session was about capturing their dinnertime together. Jacklyn made some chicken and rice, the boys played some games on their tablets while dinner was being made, and then everyone sat together and shared stories from the day.

This is an oldie but a goodie :)

I drove to Ottawa in early May of 2019 so that I could meet this beautiful family and take some candid photographs of them doing their thing.

They have three daughters, and we had already settled on a one-hour session in their home, during which time we would be able to take some photos both inside and outside.

Lots of times I hear people ask, “what is the best time of year for family photos?”

The traditional answer is probably late spring or mid-fall.

But this isn’t a very traditional place, you know.

I’m of the opinion that literally any time of year can be a good time to take family photographs.

Because we documentary family photographers aren’t interested in what is happening in the background. No. We’re much more curious about what is happening in the foreground. What the people are doing.

Every time I check out the Kingston School of Art (KSOA) and its many programs, I am blown away by how much there is to do there for all ages.

I’ve often thought about registering for a course (maybe this spring?). They offer a range of courses, but the life drawing one grabs my attention. A few years ago, I did a series of life drawing classes with Diane Black at ArtNoise Kingston (not KSOA!). I really enjoyed it!

Anyway, KSOA offers youth and adult classes, including life drawing, illustration, oil painting, and so much more! This blog is all about one of their awesome community events - Paint the Town!

Anyway, KSOA offers youth and adult classes, including life drawing, illustration, oil painting, and so much more! This blog is all about one of their awesome community events - Paint the Town!

Occasionally I take time out from doing family or wedding photography, and I document local events and activities happening around Kingston.

Last year, Kingston-based educator Katherine Morlog began a weekly skateboarding drop-in workshop for girls in Kingston to learn to skate. These sessions were held Thursday evenings at Daly Street Skate park (on Daly St, across from the Rideau Heights Community Centre).

It’s a fantastic initiative for many reasons.

Girls are waaay under-represented in skateboarding. It’s intimidating for girls to get into it, because it’s mostly boys and men who skate.

Photography is a hyper-saturated field. Everyone and their cat can become a photographer. All you need is an entry level body with a kit lens, and a business name.

BUT THIS CAN BE A GOOD THING!! Hear me out…