Monthly Archives: November 2009

Update on the progress of the list!

Looking back over this list I can’t believe how many things I have accomplished since the last time I updated it :) Still waiting on that Thai though Jayme lol :) Almost halfway done!

1. Go on a Wednesday afternoon picnic with my husband and my dog Two wednesdays ago by the canal :)

2. Teach Freddie (my dog) to roll over

3. Go on a trip to Europe

4. Shoot a destination wedding

5. Go on a roadtrip – destination unknown

6. Have lunch or a real conversation with a photographer I admire

7. Make my mind up about having children

8. Buy a new house

9. Set up a home studio in said house

10. Smile more Smooshie makes me smile :)

11. Get my photo taken at least once a month for the next six months ( I never take photos of myself as it’s something I hate) – 5 months in a row! soooo close!

12. Do a portrait session with my family Completed April 13th – To be displayed in a blog post shortly

13. Do a portrait session with my husband :) (We don’t have any formal photos since Christmas 2003 unless you count our wedding photos) Thanks Sam!

14. Participate in a workshop

15. Attend WPPI again but do the Business Institute and Master classes as well :)
16. Get my business to go in the direction that I want it to with the clients that I want

17. Make sure that this time when I attend WPPI – I go a few days early so I can photograph all the landscapes I want

18. Do at least 5 seniors sessions

19. Donate my time to a local cause using my photography skills Donating prizes to Mainstream Golf Charity

20. Tell my husband one thing that I love about him (that’s different from the day before) every day for a month :)
21. Be a second shooter for a photographer I admire

22. Plan something great for our wedding anniversary

23. Spend more time with my mother

24. Take my little brother back to Canada’s Wonderland

25. Take my 19 year old brother out to a bar for drinks just the two of us

26. Give everyone of my bride’s a little gift to thank them for the gift they have bestowed upon me

27. Join the chamber of commerce Joined April 24th

28. Donate more money to charities or donate more time

29. Buy lens, end and body caps for all my gear and actually keep them without losing them for an entire wedding season

30. Lose 20 pounds before the end of the year – Completed 2009 – lost 24 pounds so far (not the way I would have wanted to though)

31. Go out dancing with my best friend Stella’s – April 25th

32. Have a get together with all my brides for the upcoming season

33. Get a few new backdrops for the studio

34. Create a really great mother’s day and father’s day gifts

35. Recover the panels in the office

36. Participate as a vendor in a local bridal show

37. Try thai food

38. Get together with some friends from out of town and catch up

39. Photograph a “first peek” session before the ceremony

40. Become a member of “Now I lay me down to sleep”

41. Deliver all of my brides and grooms their photos online within two weeks of the wedding

42. Quit pop – for good this time (don’t laugh it’s a serious addiction)

43. Swim in the ocean Did this with Bryan when we went to California :) such an amazing trip

44. Go fishing (haven’t done this in a long long time)

45. Add 10$ to a savings account every time I complete something on this list

46. Get my full G

47. Take a photo that represents each of the words in the 100 snapshots challenge ( http://thaumaturgise.wordpress.com/101-things/pictures/)

48. Go camping at BYNG

49. Go camping in Algonquin

50. Print some of our wedding photos to hang in our living room

51. Learn conversational Spanish

52. Learn conversational Italian – bought the book and CD and I am working on it !!!!

53. Take Freddie to puppy obedience classes

54. Take a tropical vacation

55. Learn how to snorkel or scuba dive

56. Take photos from the top of a mountain

57. Ride in a helicopter

58. At least three times in this period – push past my fear about something – and climb over the wall to do it anyway (ask me more if you’d like to understand this)

59. Research one new thing I’d like to learn a month – whether photography related or not (and blog about it) for six months

60. Go kayaking again – somewhere picturesque

61. Be a little more risky

62. Get regular pedicures this summer

63. Get regular massages this summer

64. Get signs made for the office

65. Install the fixed phone in the office so that when I lose power on the portable I can still answer calls!

66. Prepare flyers and promotional items for the bridal show

67. Plant the garden in the backyard

68. Dress Freddie (my dog) up for Halloween in a doggie Halloween costume

69. Change phone companies

70. Launch portrait site

71. Blog a video once every two weeks

72. Create an official charging station in the studio

73. Enter 5 photography contests

74. Shoot a “wear the dress” session in my favourite place in Ontario

75. Create a standardized logo file with my logo made to fit samples, envelopes, letterhead etc…

76. Get my hard drives under control

77. Finish MD photo book

78. Delete old and unecessary facebook messages

79. Order new business cards

80. Book a wedding out of province

81. Teach a basics course on how to take better photos

82. Finish office reno

83. Finish this list

84. Get glare free glass for all of my frames

85. Clean out my car – top to bottom and then get a car wash that includes the inside of my car

86. Order sample prints for comparison

87. Create supplier pricing binder & customer pricing binder Completed!! This past week thanks in help by Brianne!

88. Order new batteries and charger

89. Go to bed on time more

90. Read more Bukowski

91. Take a cooking class

92. Drink more water

93. Switch around the den and the dining room

94. Have a garage sale

95. Organize my entire house

96. Read the 57 other books on the BBC’s top 100

97. Reconnect with some friends who have fallen by the wayside

98. Be a “doer”

99. Clean out my closet

100. Take Freddie for more walks

101. Get up in time for Sunday breakfast with the in-laws again

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Karyne + Johnny – Family Photos

I still get teary eyed when I read the blog post for their wedding – Karyne and Johnny were one of the sets of clients last year that really had me evaluate how I wanted to continue doing business. I wanted all of my clients to be like them, easy to work with, totally trusting and head over heels in love with each other. Since their wedding they’ve added a new addition to their family so I was very happy when she came back and asked to get some family photos done. Here are a few from our session at the pumpkin patch . . .

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Wishing you friendship and love,

Amanda

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Tavish & Nate

We headed out to the pumpkin patch with Tina and RJ – they wanted to get some family photos done and also some photos of Tavish in his costume – so Bryan and I decided to make it a family thing and brought Nate along too :) Can’t wait to see what kind of trouble these two get into as they grow up!

PP (2 of 22)

PP (20 of 22)

PP (3 of 22)

PP (4 of 22)Cutest giraffe I’ve ever seen!

PP (5 of 22)Yup that’s my little Nate – a pea in the pod and Tavish playing bongo’s on his face lol

PP (6 of 22)PP (8 of 22)Us with our smooshie :)

PP (9 of 22)some Mommy cuddles

PP (13 of 22)and Daddy kisses

PP (22 of 22)and one last one of Tavish

Thanks again guys for a great day!

Wishing you friendship and love,

Amanda

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Todd + Jenn

I can’t really decide between Jenn or Tricia as to who made me cry more during this wedding. Before I begin to tell this story I just want to take a moment and thank both of them for their very kind words. It’s not expected to be thanked at the end of the night and yet when it happens it’s a nice treat. I heard not once but twice during the night the most effusive and kindest praise I could ever ask for and it brought me to tears.  Thank you to Jenn and Todd for trusting me implicitly to capture your day, to your families for having me along on yet another wedding and to Tricia for insisting on the dress (it was gorgeous) and that you use my services. I can never find enough words to thank you both so I did the next best thing – took photos the best way I know how; from the heart. I hope you enjoy them and cherish each other on whatever your next adventure is.

One of my favorite moments of this wedding day was leaving the preparation at the bride’s house and while I was half in my car I heard a joyous shout “I’m getting married today!” Jenn was out showing one of her neighbours her dress and was exclaiming for all the neighborhood to hear – much the same way she had been doing all morning. I think the realization that she finally gets to be Mrs. Ethier, officially made her so awe struck that she seemed to need to remind herself. It was as if she was in a dream and expected someone to pinch her and she would wake up but each time the “pinch” came and yet the day still remained and the celebration was still to come, at last Prince Charming. Arriving at the church to a little bit of a quietly excited but still nervous Todd I was so excited for these two, since I’ve met them I’ve always known how great they are together. There’s a true and deep love and I shed my own tears as Jenn came down the aisle with a smile on her lips and happy tears in her eyes – on the arm of her father; who looked so incredibly proud. Everyone in that church,family and friends alike, had faces alight with joy for both Jenn and Todd. I couldn’t be happier and Sam and I couldn’t have had a better time. From “pound it’s” to the entire grooms side of the wedding party doing this crazy dance to some major Maple Leafs hating we really enjoyed this wedding. Here’s a few of the samples . . .

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Todd and Jenn seem to collect turtles so we thought this was appropriate

002Jenn’s pretty flowers

003Jenn’s sister helping her put her earrings on

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008The ring bearer “pounding it” with a few of the groomsmen – this was so cute

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this one turned out to be my favorite

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and to finish I’ll leave you with this one as I couldn’t believe my luck – this wasn’t planned ahead of time I just happened to notice the fire pits the day of the wedding and asked if there was anyway to light them at night – so glad we stayed for this one :)

Thanks again to you both!

Wishing you friendship and love,

Amanda

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Millions of photos of . . .

Sam! Yup, I think the amount of photos I’ve taken of her could be around the million mark lol but I love that I know her well enough and have shot her enough times for her guard to be completely down in front of my camera. If I can’t shoot a wedding with Bryan my next go to person is Sam (and yes Katie you are next in line after that :) ) and I can’t believe we’ve only known each other for 3 years. I think we probably spend on average one hour a day on the phone but at times that number is probably closer to 3 or 4 lol (I know it’s terrible right?) We’d been planning to try and do family photos but the pregnancy and being busy afterwards threw a bit of a monkey wrench into things but thankfully we were finally able to work something out. This was my first time shooting her whole family and we had fun chasing Caleb around Merritt Island and Bryan even came out with Nate for a little bit. Here’s a few from our shoot . . .

SF (3 of 18)

SF (16 of 18)She’s gonna be a heart breaker – as long as it’s not my son’s heart lol  Sam and I have already banned them from dating

SF (6 of 18)I love the giggles that were escaping from him as he ran down the hill – snapped this one real quick after one of his bouts of freedom

SF (4 of 18)Love her face :)

SF (5 of 18)

Finish off with this last family one!

Wishing you friendship and love,

Amanda

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