London Ontario Family Photographer | Darcy, Jessie & Max's Autumn Beach Session

I love this family. I say it every time I have the pleasure of photographing them, and every time I blog their sessions. They've been with me since my very early days as a photographer and lucky me, they keep coming back! This session is from 2016 - not my most recent session with them (I have a lot of blogging to do) - but one of the most memorable. We headed to the beach in Port Stanley on a chilly Fall day for something different. They played, laughed and snuggled, and I just tried to keep up - documenting all of those candid moments that I love so much. Here are some favourites from this playful lifestyle beach shoot. 

 

London Ontario Family Photographer | Studio Family Lifestyle Photography

At the end of 2016, I had the pleasure of stepping outside of my comfort zone a bit and photographing some lifestyle sessions in Studio Collective's beautiful white space. It's not something I do often, as my first love will always be shooting outside in nature. But it was so fun to try something new and document real interactions in a completely different way and in a totally different setting. Here are a few highlights from those sessions.

P.S.: If you'd like to have a simple, natural lifestyle studio session, I'm in!  :) 

London Ontario Newborn Lifestyle Photography | Baby L's In-Home Session

It's no secret that I absolutely love in-home newborn lifestyle sessions. - capturing babies in their own environment, cozy and comfortable and surrounded by their adoring family. This sweet session was no exception. Baby L was just as precious as can be, and I'm so happy to finally be sharing my favourites from this lifestyle newborn shoot on the blog today. 

London Ontario Photographer | Family and Pet Photography

I have the privilege and pleasure of knowing so many wonderful photographers here in London, ON. I strongly believe in community over competition, and being a one-woman show with no colleagues means things can get lonely if I let them! But thankfully, my circle of photographer friends is always growing and adds so much richness to my professional and personal life. Many of these women have become dear friends, and we are always sharing tips, enjoying food together and in this case - trading photos! Cynthia from One12 Photography is one of the nicest people you will ever meet, and it was a joy to photograph her with her babies - fur and human! - on this beautiful early Fall afternoon. Cynthia's adoration for her dogs is so special and I love that they are always included alongside proud brother Lander. What makes these photos even more special is that Cynthia's baby girl had just started growing on the inside when these were taken. The next time I had Cynthia's gorgeous family in front of my lens, almost a full year after this shoot, sweet baby Adellaine was in her arms. 

London Ontario Wedding Photographer | Gail & Alex's Elm Hurst Inn Wedding

Gail and Alex planned such a lovely Autumn wedding, starting with a ceremony at the beautiful St-Luke's in-the-Garden Chapel and ending with a reception at the Elm Hurst Inn & Spa, one of my favourite venues here in Southwestern Ontario. The Fall colours were on full display, and I absolutely loved the contrast of the elegant black bridesmaids dresses against the stunning ruby and peach-toned florals. Here are some favourites from their day! (Thank you to my second shooter Priya Tharmaseelan for helping throughout the day!)

London Ontario Family Photographer | The Benefits of Extended Family Sessions

I've been wanting to write about the benefits of booking an extended family session for awhile, and I had these three awesome extended family shoots due to be blogged. I decided to combine the two and share a few thoughts along with the highlights from these three sessions. 

Extended family sessions are great for so many reasons. First of all, if you are able to get everyone in one place at the same time looking even mildly put together, that is a huge accomplishment that simply must be documented. ;) In all seriousness though, as families grow and kids' activities begin taking over everyone's schedules, it becomes trickier to gather as a complete group. There's something so special about capturing grandparents with their grandchildren and seeing cousins run and play together. Setting aside an hour or two for photos during your next family gathering will ensure that you have photos to look back on and remember these special moments and relationships. 

These sessions make a great group gift for grandparents who already have everything, and as a bonus, the kids paying for it get something out of it, too. We always do mini family sessions for each individual family in addition to capture all of the large group combinations. Are you wanting a handful of updated family shots, a few individuals of your kids and a couple photo that's a bit more recent than your wedding photos, but you don't want to invest in a full family session just for your little crew? An extended family shoot gives you all of that in addition to photos of you with your adult siblings and their spouses, your parents, and everyone together. 

Often after extended family sessions, everyone heads off to a big group meal and makes a family day of it. Life can be so busy, why not slow down a bit, capture some memories before all the kids are grown, and then do what families do best - eat all the delicious food (bonus: you're all already dressed to impress.)

Here are some favourites from the last handful of extended family sessions I had the pleasure of photographing in 2016. Enjoy! :) 

London Ontario Wedding Photographer | Ashlee & Ross' Fernwood Hills Engagement Session

The sun couldn't have shone brighter for Ross and Ashlee's engagement session at Fernwood Hills. They brought their beautiful dog Wynnie along for the ride, and the four of us had a blast chasing the sun around the beautiful Fernwood Hills property. Here are some favourites from their e-session!