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Recently I had the pleasure of working with up-and-coming model Chantal and her boyfriend Andy on a shoot that was recorded for Global TV. I think this is my fourth time on TV and I’m actually getting used to it now! Man, the first time was freaky, even for someone who used to perform in live bands and act in amateur theatre! But this time it was a breeze and Chantal and Andy were very easy to work with as well. Of course, it certainly helped that our cameraman, Chris from COGO Productions, was super calm and professional, too.

The idea was to do a regular engagement-style session and record it for a TV commercial for Global. So I went through the sort of things that I would do for an engagement shoot and directed Chantal and Andy, telling them to interact and pose in ways that suited their personalities. We had a lot of fun. Chantal, especially, was really into the whole image-making process and both of them were up for anything, so we ended up shooting for quite a while, continuing long after Chris had packed up his video gear and gone home for dinner.

We started out in the Henotic restaurant and then spent a bit of time in an alleyway, before heading out to a nice big field just outside of town.

You can see the commercial on Global’s network, mostly around the 6pm to 7pm timeslot during the next couple of weeks or so. And here is a selection of images we got from the shoot.

We recently had the privilege of photographing our friend Melissa. She needed some headshots done for a local church. Like many people, the only prior experiences she’d had with photography before talking with us had been unpleasantly contrived sessions and she told me that she wanted something natural, something authentic, something that showed who she was as a person.

So we started out with the headshots, which we did in her house in front of a wonderfully colourful wall, and then moved on to a field on the outskirts of Lethbridge for photos of her playing her guitar. Melissa is a Christian and the photos at the end of the slideshow are of her worshipping God in a very natural way. This shoot was very spontaneous, as many of my shoots are, and Melissa’s photos grew out of an organic interaction between us all. After the headshots I did no posing at all. It was great to photograph someone so genuine who opened up with us like that. Photography for me is very much about connecting with people and my most meaningful and successful shoots are those where people are able to relax and be themselves. I’m a very open person myself and so I think I create an environment where people find it easy to do this.

Melissa is a very gifted multi-instrumentalist and the music in her slideshow was taken from a CD she recorded. You can find out more about her and her music HERE. Click on the play button below to see her photos.

Karlo and Sandra live in Calgary, so on the way back from our latest Banff wedding I stopped in to shoot their engagement session.  As you can see from the photos, these guys are a lot of fun and very individual.  Both of them are musicians and Karlo is recording a demo album.  I loved the decor in their house, too.  The colours and natural window light was just fantastic for getting cool photos!

Sandra and Karlo were both happy, laid-back and so easy to take photos of.  Karlo looked kind of rough with his tattoos and all the rest, but he was smiling constantly and I actually had to tell him a few times, “Ok, this time I want a serious expression!” 

We started out in their bathroom, of all places—lol!  That’s the first time I’ve ever done that at an engagement session!    Then we visited a few areas close by them for some more photos, finishing in a grungy part of Calgary not too far away.  I’m really looking forward to one location for their wedding day that we didn’t get into for the engagement session, but hopefully we will get to on their wedding.  I’m leaving it up to Karlo and Sandra to sweet-talk the venue owners into allowing us to take photos there.  I won’t say where it is, but they’ll be photos unlike any location I’ve ever been in.    I’m definitely looking forward to their wedding and you’ll have to check back in here in the beginning of August to see their wedding images blogged.

We recently did Mike and Gillian’s engagement session. We did it here in Lethbridge, but they are from Airdrie and will be having their wedding up in Calgary. They are a fun and easy-going couple and we jumped around to a few different locations here during the shoot, including the parking lot of a Safeway, because they originally met in a Safeway in Calgary. Who says grocery shopping can’t be romantic?

Anyway, without further ado here are their photos! We look forward to seeing Gillian and Mike again on their wedding day later this year.