As a photographer of people, I get let into homes to capture and share very intimate and exciting moments.  It’s not often that the “focus” is on me and my personal life but today I decided to share some of my life in the past 8 months.  I have been on maternity leave, experiencing motherhood since having my daughter on May 17th, 2011.  There are 4 months remaining until I am back to work and I am getting extremely excited for some really interesting portraits and weddings in 2012.

I can’t begin to explain how much my life has changed.  So I won’t.  But please enjoy the images…

Labor Day usually symbolizes the end of summer and the beginning of a new school year and a new season.  For a lot of people, it means goodbye to hot summer days (and nights) and to vacation time!  Fall is my favourite season and also my favourite time for family portraits.  I began my Fall Portraits a little early with the Clarke Family on Labor Day weekend.  There was still still a hint of summer left without being sweltering, and the evening granted us with an outstanding sunset to finish up our shoot on the beautiful beach.  I couldn’t have asked for nicer weather, prettier scenery, or a more fabulous family to photograph!  This was the best way to end my summer…

One of my best friends got married this past August.  I was honored to be able to stand up in her wedding but that meant that I couldn’t be the photographer, which saddened me a bit.  Instead, a week before her wedding, I took Mandy out to “trash” a wedding dress (not her own!).  This was a wedding dress, never worn for a wedding, that had already been trashed elsewhere and needed some rinsing off… So we headed to the beach early Saturday morning and went for a swim!  The results were, to say the least, stunning.  Mandy practiced her bridal face in front of the camera and I got to capture her in a stunning gown with the complete calm of the deserted beach and still water.

There was no pressure of a time line, no lists of family shots to take, no worry of getting dirty… Just two friends having fun!

When I think about this summer and the weddings, I am very pleased to have had wonderful couples, families, and beautiful sunny days.  July and August had many sunny days and along with the sun came the heat.  The whole Kirkman Photography team really worked a good sweat this year.  Is it just me, or does it get hotter and hotter each time?

Despite the sweltering temperatures, we met some lovely couples, experienced some seriously cool tribal dancing, and created some memories that I don’t think we’ll ever forget.  For me, this wedding season has been the best so far!  It might get hotter each year, but the photos keep getting better.

Approximately 10 years ago I was in high school.  I rarely think about these days because my life is so super awesome right now that I have no desire to live in the past, especially in the days of awkwardness and uncertainty.  But occasionally there  are things that I look back at and remember as a distinct “event” in the small community that was our entire world at the time.  One of those events was when Matt Lorbetski and Melissa Chong started dating.  That’s right, it was the big hit story for a day or two.  This was right around the time when people were slowly coupling up and the air was thick with hormones and colourful written notes (this is before text messaging people!).  It was an intense time and before Facebook and You Tube and The Superficial, the Matt and Melissa’s were our version of the Brad and Jen’s. Front page news in our little teenage minds.

Now years have past and most of those Brad’s are now with Angelina’s and so on.  But Matt and Melissa made it through the journey from the front of the gossip column and into the fairy tale book where they live happily ever after.  Standing there with my camera in hand, I captured them as they said their I do’s as grown adults.  Even though I know that there is a decade in between now and those interesting high school years, I swear we were all sixteen again… So while a lot of things do change (the awkwardness, the bad skin), there are some amazing and pure things that remain and make through the storms and come out shining like gold.

There are many reasons why photographers begin taking photos.  In the portrait and wedding photography business, photographers are almost always outgoing and great with people.  This is mainly because we deal with people on a regular basis in somewhat intense situations.  In order to “capture” a moment, sometimes you need to move quickly…  In order to “create” a moment to capture, sometimes you need to be bossy or rather convincing.  These criteria go with the job description.

I can’t say that I am one of those outgoing and charismatic photographers, whom I’ve been so lucky to be in the presence of at times.  Instead, I am naturally quiet and I am an observer.   My heart beat quickens when I have a group of people staring at me waiting for my commands.  I am amazed at myself that I even have that much power to say “here, now, like this!” and people listen to me without question.  It is not a natural environment for my personality.  And that is what I love about it.  I’ve grown as a person with this job and it continues to thrill me everytime!

Here is the truth… I continue to push out of my comfort zone because between the demanding moments of this job, there are the moments where I get to see people the way I never would if I wasn’t behind this lens…

And so this brings me to Mandy and Jason.  I have the honour of being a bridesmaid this year instead of a photographer in their wedding, as I’ve known Mandy for over 10 years now (really, it’s been that long!?).  She asked me to do their engagement photos and of course, I was thrilled because they are such a great couple.  Not really having spent much time with the two of them, I was also interested in this because I wanted to see them together.  Often when I first meet a couple, I get them in front of the lens and I get to really see the couple together and see the little looks and the smiles and the way they bond together naturally.  This is where the observing comes in… Without the camera, people don’t often reveal themselves.  They are able to control a certain amount of what you see, of what is underneath.  With my camera, I am instantly given the ability to see the connection between people and that distinct beauty within.  I truly believe that the camera really does “steal souls” or at least, little pieces of them.

So now when I am standing there holding my flowers in my very uncomfortable, but very sexy heels, I will be thinking about how lucky they are to have found each other.  I will be happy that Jason has found a person as wonderful and quirky as Mandy and more importantly, I will be thankful that Mandy has found someone who will provide her with strength, protection, and comfort for the rest of her life.

Recently, I was asked to photograph a child’s 1st birthday.  I had never met the family in person until the day of the birthday party.  I am always interested when I get asked to do different shoots that aren’t on the usual agenda because I am never sure what to expect.  It was a cool, windy day but sunny.  Family and friends gathered outside to celebrate Ben turning 1 with great food and fun.  I stood in the background and captured the moments as they happened, allowing the parents to enjoy the day without worrying about recording it themselves.  The smash cake was a huge success and my favourite part!

Wedding season in 2010 has started off with a wedding that was close to my heart.  I’ve known Elise since she was a little girl, riding the school bus while her mom drove us all to elementary school in small town Corunna.  I grew up with her older sister Crystal and through the years have seen her blossom into a young woman, and now a young married woman!  The entire day was beautiful, surrounded by great family and friends.  I still can’t believe that this much time has passed.

I had the pleasure of meeting Kyle’s four brothers and groomsmen.  The best part of the event was seeing their two big families come together to support the two as they start their life together.  I am incredibly grateful that I was asked to capture this day.  It meant a lot to me to be a part of it.

It’s amazing how quickly time goes by.  Before we know it, another year has gone by and we’re left wondering what we did with that time.  Everyone takes photos for a different reason.  My reason is to capture all of those moments, those memorable scenes, and even those people who slip in and out of our lives in the blink of an eye.  For me, the photos are what keep the memory frozen.  The photos bring back those moments, those scenes, and those people to life and I get to relive it.

Photographically speaking, 2009 was a year of new life, old friends, and of course, lots of bellies, babies, and brides!  As my job, I’ve had the pleasure of working with the love of my life and my best friend, while capturing some awesome moments… Being let into families to explore the dynamic of their homes, seeing younger sisters as beautiful young brides, meeting new family members – this is by far the best job ever.  Looking through the lens can be magical.  In a split moment you don’t just see a couple whom you’ve just met, you see what they see in each other.  You see that moment, that look, that explains what it is that has brought them to you.  It’s not just an active child, because you can see where that child has come from and you know that just a few months ago she was a tiny, fragile, newborn and now she speaks and walks and plays.  That in itself is a miracle.  And that friend who is 7 months pregnant is still that 10 year old little girl that you used to have sleepovers with and talk about what it would be like to grow up and get married and have kids.  I’ve watched through my lens and I’ve seen a beautiful couple in love on their wedding day full of hopes and dream and then a couple of years later, I’ve seen them create a family.  So maybe it is just a photograph… but for me I suppose a photograph really is worth a thousand words.

I’m really looking forward to an exciting wedding season.  We’ve already kicked it off with a great wedding and I am looking so forward to so many more.

I had the pleasure of photographing baby James this week.  At three months, he had lots of giggles for us.  My favourites are of the family together, lying down.  I always love to see the facial expressions that appear and see what I can capture out these sessions.