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).

Sarah’s mom, Ana, the matriarch of this family, approached me years ago to plan this photo-session, but because of timing issues (and later, Covid), it took us until this July to make it happen.

The idea was: document the family’s stay at their summer cottage, on Grippen lake.

I’ve been there before, because I’ve photographed their neighbors a bunch of times in years past. It’s a gorgeous place. Private, pristine, quiet…

And in mid-summer, that gorgeous green of the trees, couples with the deep blue of the lake…

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.

I have been photographing Tiiu and Dale’s family for several years now. The very first time I saw them, Tiiu was still pregnant with her daughter.

It's been a joy to watch the kids grow, and develop personalities. So much personality!

This is the power of a candid photography session.

For any parent who is undecided about documentary photos a.k.a. candid photos, I hope this demonstrates why it is so much easier (especially for toddlers) to have a candid session than it is to have a post session.

Toddlers just want to get on with their fun play. They don’t want to be sitting still or being told what to do. They don’t care if there’s a photographer who is taking photos, as long as they don’t have to change what they’re doing for the photographer :) And that’s exactly what a documentary family session is all about. Letting the kiddos play and do their thing, and just going with it, and capturing THOSE photographs.

Now, having said all this, we did manage to get a few photos of Jude not crying in the group photos, an

This was a really fun session with a really amazing family who have a cottage on Wolfe Island just a hop away from Kingston, on the ferry.

I've actually been photographing this family for quite a few years.

One of the first times was when Patrick and Kay were getting married, after which we did a "Day In The Life session” at their Cottage.....

This photo session was all about capturing moments with Grandma.

The girls have an amazing grandma.

She lives out in BC, but often spends weeks at a time travelling to Ontario to be with her granddaughters.

Some of the awesome activities that they do include swimming in the backyard pool, learning about flowers and gardening, eating yogurt together, and just enjoying each other's company.

Wolfe island is a pretty magical place, and as I've learned, there is a long and rich history to it.

Another thing I've learned about Wolfe Island, is that there are the “Islanders”, and then there’s everybody else.

You might have lived on the island for 10, 20 or even to years, but unless you, your parents, and your grandparents was all born on the island, you're probably not really considered an “Islander.” (Right? Islanders, help me out here!)

That doesn't mean you can't have an absolutely amazing experience living there, mind you. Even if you move there later on in life, like Sally and Arnie - the matriarch and patriarch of this family.

I'll always remember this photoshoot.

A couple of months before the session, Lauren had been given the news that her beloved pup Moe, had a very aggressive type of cancer, and was only expected to live a couple of months.

Lauren hoped for the best, but feared for the worst. So, she wanted to make sure that she could preserve some memories with before he passed.

She rented a cottage with her sister at Rideau Ferry.

Kindness is everything, and spending time with family is true happiness. I spent a small snippet in the life of Irit and Mike, with their adorable toddler Leo in Ottawa, and captured a bunch of fun things they love to do together.

I even made a slideshow! Hope you enjoy :)