Lakehead University Farewell Reception in Honour of Dr. Brian J.R. Stevenson and Judy Davies

This past Thursday, Lakehead University honoured Dr. Brian J.R. Stevenson's accomplishments as President and Vice-Chancellor of Lakehead University from 2010 to 2017. For the first portion of the event everyone in attendance mingled and conversed while enjoying some amazing food. As a surprise to Dr. Stevenson, students from his achievement program marched down towards the main stage with flags representing their country. It was a great start to a memorable evening. 

From that point on, there were a variety of speeches, speaking to just how much Dr. Stevenson has done for Lakehead University during his 8 year tenure. The final speech was from Dr. Stevenson himself, who spoke to all the people who have helped him during his time at Lakehead. There was also a short film by Theymedia about the achievement program as well as a surprise performance by Shy Anne Hovorka.

These types of events are always so fun to photograph, mainly because I get to look for all those split second moments of emotion and capture them for ever. It was a pleasure being a part of it and see just how much an impact Dr. Stevenson has had.

Jumpstart 2017 - Lakehead University Hanger

I’m still amazed at how many great events there are going Thunder Bay, and a lot of them I don’t even know about. Case in point, I was asked to photograph Jumpstart this past Friday, which is an event put on by Canadian Tire. Jumpstart’s core purpose is to raise funds, lift spirits and support dreams. If you want to learn more about this great organization, I encourage you to head on over to the website. 

The Jump Start event I was asked to photograph took place at the Lakehead University. It comprised of over 300 girls between the ages of 8 to 14. The purpose of the event was to also bring attention to the continuing trend of girls dropping out of sports as they get closer to their teen years. A couple Canadian Olympians did their part in saying a few words to all the girls in attendance. Boxer Mandy Bujold and freestyle skier Deidra Dionne spoke to the girls and offered them some inspiring words. A great write up of the day was done by TB Newswatch, so if you want to read more head on over to their website.

As a photographer, I was simply there to cover all the excitement and good times had by all the girls. I didn’t really know what to expect but as soon as I heard that over 300 girls were going to be in attendance, playing various games, I knew I had my work cut out for me. They arrived by the busload, and once all the girls were there, and changed into their Jumpstart t-shirts, it was off to the races. 

There were different stations set up throughout the Hangar, and after some time at each one, groups of girls rotated throughout them. My biggest challenge for the day was choosing what to photograph. Let’s just say there was no shortage of fantastic moments. I would often try and get some group shots of some of the girls and before I knew it, the original group called over 10 more friends!

From soccer, to curling to dancing, there was a wide variety of activities. As you can see from the photos below, I think every single girl had a very fun time. At the end of the day, Jumpstart brought together over 300 young girls and showed them just how important team sports are and encouraged them to continue playing them as they get older. 

Shannon + Chris Portraits - Lakehead Trail

I just recently started offering a Mini Session, which you can find on my pricing page. It's basically aimed at those families or couples that just need 20 or so photos during a 30 minute session. Shannon and Chris decided to do one and it was a lot of fun. Shannon recommended the Lakehead University trail and it was such a perfect choice. The funny thing is, is that I live just down the street and this was my first portrait session there. 

All the colours were in full swing so we headed down by the creek to take advantage of the water as well as the beautiful trail. With only 30 minutes to work with, I made sure to keep things moving while not necessarily rushing anything. What we came away with were some truly natural moments. Shannon and Chris were so great in front the camera. All I had to do was tell them to stand in a certain location and the rest was really easy. 

One of the final shots, as per Shannon's request, was a portrait of Chris with straw in his mouth. It was a fitting end to a very laid back session. Thanks to both Chris and Shannon for letting me photograph them on such a nice Fall afternoon.

Teach for Canada Summer Enrichment Program

A couple weeks ago I had the pleasure to photograph an event for Teach for Canada. For those of you who don't know, Teach for Canada is a non-profit organization that works with schools in northern First Nations communities to recruit, prepare, and retain committed teachers.

They decided to host a four-week, live-in Summer Enrichment Program at Lakehead University and they asked me to capture the event. I love these types of assignments because it requires me to sit back a bit and watch the action all while picking the moments here and there to capture. Of course, there were some formal portraits, but the majority of the photos were of the soon to be teachers taking in all the information and interacting with one another.

One of the highlights of the of the night was when Nick Sherman, a local musician, played a variety of songs from his new album. He gave a very powerful performance and it was great to see some local talent support this important organization. 

If you would like to learn more about Teach for Canada head on over to their website here.